Product Manager, Web & Apps

About the California Academy of Sciences

Founded in 1853 , the California Academy of Sciences is a globally renowned, AZA-accredited non-profit scientific and cultural institution located in the heart of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Home to a world-class planetarium, aquarium, rainforest, research institute, and natural history museum—all under one living roof— our mission is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration.

Our living collection reflects Earth’s vast biodiversity, consisting of nearly 60,000 animals representing over 800 species. Our research collections are the largest west of the Mississippi, spanning nearly 46 million plants, animals, fossils, and cultural artifacts from across the globe and throughout history. Our diverse team includes leading biodiversity scientists, educators, storytellers, designers, and communicators who are passionate about advancing knowledge and catalyzing action through science and storytelling.

Whether you're conducting research behind the scenes or engaging the public on the museum floor, your work will help connect people to the natural world and empower them to protect it.

About the Opportunity

The Product Manager for Web & Apps is the central owner of the Academy’s public-facing website and select digital surfaces. The website is both a global science communication platform and one of the institution’s most important revenue engines — driving ticket sales, membership enrollment and renewal, donations, event attendance, program registrations, retail purchases, and digital product engagement.

This role blends product strategy, content platform leadership, UX rigor, experimentation, insight-driven decision-making, and complex cross-functional orchestration. You will shape how global audiences discover our science, plan their visit, support our mission, and return again and again, while managing a team of 4 to 6 direct reports who support the work.

You will bring structure, clarity, and momentum to a large ecosystem of stakeholders — Science, Creative Studio, Marketing, Membership, Philanthropy, Education, Guest Experience, Sales, Operations, Business Applications, and Retail.

What You Will Lead

1. Ownership of the Website as a Revenue & Growth Engine

You will drive measurable improvements across all revenue-critical flows, including:

Ticketing and attendance growth

Membership join and renewal paths

Donor and philanthropic giving journeys

Event attendance and ticket sales

Educational program bookings

Retail and e-commerce (digital + physical)

Digital product engagement and monetization

You will own the multi-year vision and roadmap to improve funnel efficiency, reduce friction between user and purchasing experience, and increase conversion across channels.

2. Stewardship of the Digital Science & Storytelling Platform

You will ensure the Academy’s online presence:

Makes scientific content accessible, engaging, and emotionally resonant

Translates research, exhibits, and conservation work into intuitive digital formats

Supports exhibitions, events, and programs through dynamic content

Maintains scientific accuracy, representational integrity, and public trust

Strengthens the Academy’s voice in biodiversity, climate, and conservation

3. Product Strategy & Multi-Year Roadmap

You will:

Define the long-term product vision across web and digital experiences

Maintain a sequenced roadmap for UX improvements, content evolution, revenue growth, and platform modernization

Align roadmap priorities with institutional goals and executive direction

Connect digital experiences to the Academy’s Museum 3.0 transformation

Build structured processes for prioritization, resourcing, and trade-offs.

4. Platform Modernization & Technical Excellence

You will strengthen the Academy’s digital foundation through:

CMS improvements, structured content models, modular templates, and workflow upgrades

Performance, accessibility, and mobile-first optimization

SEO health, discoverability, and technical search improvements

Responsible use of AI tools for content creation, translation, optimization, and personalization

Close collaboration with Business Applications, Ops, and Sales to align digital flows with back-end ticketing, POS, CRM, and membership systems

Familiarity with Tessitura, Shopify, Stripe, Salesforce Commerce, WooCommerce, or similar tools (experience a plus , not required).

5. Cross-Functional Alignment & Leadership

You will unify and streamline collaboration across:

Marketing & Communications: Audience growth, campaigns, acquisition, landing pages

Creative Studio: Design systems, visual identity, storytelling, component libraries

Science & Research: Accuracy, content translation, scientific integrity

Membership: Conversion, retention, segmentation, benefits communication

Philanthropy & Development: Donor journeys, fundraising pathways, impact storytelling

Guest Experience: Visit planning, wayfinding, operational clarity

Education & Events: School programs, family events, community learning

Retail & E-Commerce: Product sales, order flows, merchandise storytelling

Sales: Group sales, institutional offerings, partnerships

Operations & Business Applications: Ticketing, POS, identity systems, CRM, backend integrations

You will define processes, establish decision-making frameworks, and ensure the website serves as a unified gateway to everything the Academy offers.

Organizational Culture

When you join the California Academy of Sciences, you become part of a mission-driven community that values curiosity, collaboration, and innovation, and celebrates its accomplishments together. Staff share a commitment to executing a new strategic plan that will strengthen the organization's financial foundations, cultivate a vibrant internal culture, and foster smart growth to secure the Academy’s future.

We hope you are inspired by what we do and are motivated to contribute to our mission. The Academy is looking for candidates who do great work, and we know they may come from a number of different backgrounds and experiences. We encourage you to apply even if you do not believe you meet every qualification for the position.

This position is based in San Francisco, California. The specific onsite/hybrid schedule for this position is listed below.

About the Experience & Revenue Team

This role sits within the California Academy of Sciences’ Experience & Revenue Division and reports directly to the Head of MarComm. The Experience & Revenue Division strengthens the Academy’s relevance, reach, and revenue by uniting storytelling, design, science, and technology to reimagine how audiences engage with the Academy — onsite, online, and out in the world. We create emotionally resonant, insight-driven experiences that deepen belonging, spark wonder, and support financial sustainability through increased attendance, member engagement, donations, diversified revenue streams, and modern digital platforms. The Product Manager for Web & Apps is a central contributor to this mission.

Key Responsibilities

Revenue Growth & Conversion Optimization

Own all digital funnels and conversion pathways

Build dashboards and analyses that reveal bottlenecks and drive enhancements

Lead A/B testing and experimentation cycles

Partner with Sales, Marketing, and Guest Experience to optimize acquisition and conversion

Drive continuous improvements in average order value and LTV

Content & Experience Governance

Establish content standards that ensure clarity, consistency, accuracy, and accessibility

Maintain information architecture, navigation, structured content, and taxonomy systems

Support sustainable content operations through improved workflows and governance

Balance scientific depth with an intuitive public-facing n