Agile Product Manager

A global higher education leader in innovative teaching, research and public service, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill consistently ranks as one of the nation's top public universities. Known for its beautiful campus, world-class medical care, commitment to the arts and top athletic programs, Carolina is an ideal place to teach, work and learn.

One of the best college towns and best places to live in the United States, Chapel Hill has diverse social, cultural, recreation and professional opportunities that span the campus and community.

University employees can choose from a wide range of professional training opportunities for career growth, skill development and lifelong learning and enjoy exclusive perks for numerous retail, restaurant and performing arts discounts, savings on local child care centers and special rates on select campus events. UNC-Chapel Hill offers full-time employees a comprehensive benefits package, paid leave, and a variety of health, life and retirement plans and additional programs that support a healthy work/life balance.

The Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research seeks to improve the health of individuals, families, and populations by understanding the problems, issues, and alternatives in the design and delivery of health care services. This is accomplished through an interdisciplinary program of research, consultation, technical assistance, and training that focuses on timely and policy-relevant questions concerning the accessibility, adequacy, organization, cost, and effectiveness of health care services, and the dissemination of this information to policymakers and the general public.

Are you passionate about improving healthcare through modern IT solutions? The Sheps Integrated Research Solutions ( SIRS) Team is seeking a skilled Agile Product Manager to oversee a diverse portfolio of custom web applications designed for health research projects. This role offers the opportunity to work closely with engineers, Principal Investigators, and research teams to deliver innovative solutions that support cutting-edge research.
The Agile Product Manager will be part of one of two Agile Scrum teams, each consisting of 4-5 junior and senior-level engineers. This position is responsible for managing all aspects of product ownership, ensuring that projects are delivered efficiently, on time, and within scope.

For a single project
- Manage and oversee moderately complex programming tasks with minimal guidance.
- Collaborate with engineers and prospective clients to create high-level estimates for new projects.
- Design solutions to meet the medium-to-high complexity needs of health services research projects.
- Communicate with clients to prioritize the scope of work necessary to complete a minimum viable product ( MVP) within budget and timeline constraints.
- Develop and maintain project roadmaps using initiatives and epics.
- Provide division-wide guidance on resolving moderately complex technical and product issues.
- Create user stories and tasks for features in the project backlog.
- Groom the backlog to ensure readiness for upcoming sprints.
- Assess team capacity and plan sprint work to meet project milestones.
- Ensure key deliverables are completed within prescribed deadlines.
- Mitigate scope creep to ensure timely and budget-conscious project completion.
- Consult with internal and external clients on moderately complex issues/projects.
- Test completed user stories, tasks, and bug fixes during sprints.
- Make recommendations on technology applications and/or technical solutions.
- Proactively communicate with clients regarding changes to budget, timeline, or scope.
- Exercise some decision-making authority in the development and execution of product strategies.

Across multiple projects
- Gain a deep understanding of existing applications built by the SIRS Team.
- Manage competing priorities and timelines across multiple projects.
- Distribute work efficiently across teams to balance workload and meet deadlines.
- Maintain frequent communication with clients to set expectations for project progress.

Why Join Us?
The Sheps Center is committed to advancing healthcare research through innovative IT solutions. As an Agile Product Manager, you will play a crucial role in shaping the development of impactful research tools while working within a collaborative and dynamic environment. If you are excited about driving digital transformation in healthcare research, we encourage you to apply!

Master's and 1-2 years' experience; or Bachelors and 2-4 years' experience; or will accept a combination of related education and experience in substitution.

- Must have excellent communication and organizational skills.
- Must have experience in Agile product ownership
- Must have familiarity with Agile methodologies, including Scrum and backlog grooming.
- Must have ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously while balancing competing priorities.
- Must understand software development processes and team capacity planning.

- Preferred Agile methodology expertise in a research or healthcare setting.
- Preferred strong ability to translate client needs into actionable user stories and project plans.
- Preferred technical understanding of software development.
- Preferred ability to design wireframes and entity relationship diagrams (ERDs) based on requirements.
- Preferred user testing experience for software applications.
- Preferred experience creating estimates for new work and managing budgets for existing work.

The University is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes all to apply without regard to age, color, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.