California
Negotiable within California
WHO WE ARE
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Grounded in science, we develop innovative solutions to the world's toughest environmental challenges so that people and nature can thrive. Our work is guided by our values, which include a commitment to diversity; respect for people, communities, and cultures; and a collaborative, nonpartisan approach. Thanks to more than 1 million members, over 400 scientists, and the dedicated efforts of our staff and partners, we impact conservation around the world.
The California Chapter is TNC's largest state program and one of the largest, most dynamic conservation organizations in the country. With approximately 275 employees, from financial analysts and fundraisers to ecologists and economists, we are currently invested in 14 strategies to address the biggest challenges facing California and the world, including numerous community-based projects designed to increase the pace, scale, and effectiveness of conservation. Over the past six decades, we have protected 1.4 million acres, 5,000 miles of streams, and 3.8 million acres of ocean habitat in California and off the coast.
The California Chapter believes that we are most effective when we are embedded in our state's communities, politics, media, and environmental issues. For this reason, and to reduce our carbon footprint when meeting in person, all staff live in California, including those in a home office.
Finally, we are passionate about holding the middle ground in American politics and civic life and doing our part to make conservation a shared national value. The hallmark of The Nature Conservancy is its "big tent" approach, engaging people across the political and ideological spectrum to find solutions that last. We are not activists. We do not litigate. We do not take public stands on matters unrelated to our purpose. We welcome everyone. Everyone in our organization should therefore be adept at working with people who may not share their personal values or opinions. We ask all employees to embrace the critical strategic position of our brand and organization as centrist and non-partisan. It is the foundation of our success.
WHAT WE CAN ACHIEVE TOGETHER
The Oceans Product Manager is responsible for bridging the gap between conservation business needs, user demands, and technical development. This position presents a unique opportunity to work with leading design and technology partners as well as on-the-water conservation practitioners to develop, pilot, and scale innovative technology products and solutions for ocean conservation. The Oceans Product Manager plays a critical role guiding the success of technology products and ensuring they drive impact in line with programmatic goals and meet market needs. The role with works with teams that may span multiple departments, programs, geographies, or partner organizations. This position requires regular travel domestically and/or internationally, and occasional evening and weekend hours. Work environment may involve variable weather conditions, remote locations, and minor physical exertion and/or strain.
The Oceans Product Manager will support a range of technology products across the California Oceans Program strategies focused on marine habitat restoration, fisheries management, plastics, and island resilience, with a primary focus on technology to scale coral restoration.
WE'RE LOOKING FOR YOU
Are you looking for a career to help people and nature? Guided by science, TNC creates innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world's toughest challenges so that people and nature can thrive together. We're looking for an entrepreneurial and collaborative person that is passionate about leveraging technology to create bold solutions to achieve ambitious ocean conservation goals.
In this role, you will support a portfolio of technology products across the California Oceans Program and work to maximize their impact in the conservation space, with a primary focus on coral restoration. You will help to define the product vision and develop a clear strategy that aligns with The Nature Conservancy's goals. You will conduct research on market trends, competitive products, and emerging technologies to identify opportunities and risks. You will be responsible for gathering input from both internal and external stakeholders, users, and partners to help prioritize features and improvements that will have the greatest impact for conservation. You will create and maintain a detailed product roadmap that outlines key deliverables and aligns with business objectives and develop and manage strategic partnerships, products, and contracts related to this work. You will also regularly communicate product status, timelines, and key milestones to stakeholders and leadership, and ensure that expectations are managed throughout the product lifecycle.
The role requires strong cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary communication skills and a high degree of technical literacy in order to liaise between users and engineering teams to align user needs and feedback with technical feasibility. The role also requires the ability to operate in a non-traditional space for product management, as market forces and demand for technology products in conservation are often unlike consumer technology products in the private sector. In this role, you will apply an understanding of the conservation market to work with TNC colleagues and external partners to conduct relevant market analysis and explore and evaluate business models that allow these solutions to be financially sustainable in the long term.
WHAT YOU'LL BRING
* Bachelor's degree and 7 years related experience or equivalent combination
* 5 years of product management experience
* Completed coursework or other training on product management principles
* Experience developing and managing complex projects, including budget management
* Experience managing product teams and coordinating the work of cross-disciplinary professionals and partners
* Experience working with culturally diverse stakeholders and navigating sensitive issues and relationships
* Experience in partnership development with non-profit partners, government agencies, and private sector
* Experience managing scheduling and logistical aspects of medium to large projects that range from short to long term; and directly using and consulting on project management techniques and tools
* Experience working with a highly matrixed, decentralized and collaborative organization
* Experience meeting time sensitive deadlines
* Experience training staff on how to effectively engage with internal and external parties
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
* Experience in or knowledge of current technology trends, practices, and innovations in marine habitat restoration
* Critical analytical thinking and excellent English writing skills
* Strong communication and presentation skills
* Experience working on technology products in the conservation or other NGO sectors
* Strong interpersonal skills, including ability to negotiate, influence, and persuade
* Multi-cultural or cross-cultural experiences
* Experience developing solutions for remote, under-resourced, or harsh environments
* Experience supervising staff, interns and/or volunteers
* Proven ability as creative, versatile, and entrepreneurial self-starter, with ability to develop and drive new ideas and approaches
* Experience in research and analysis, with ability to synthesize information from divergent sources for decision-making and strategic communications
* Successful experience implementing strategic program goals
* Fundraising experience, including identifying donor or investor prospects and effective cultivation
SALARY INFORMATION
The starting pay range for a candidate selected for this position is generally within the range of $85,000 - $120,000 for annual base salary. This range only applies to candidates whose country of employment is the USA. Where a successful candidate's actual pay will fall within this range will be based on a variety of factors, including, for example, the candidate's location, qualifications, specific skills, and experience. Please note countries outside the USA would have a different pay range in the local currency based on the local labor market, and not tied to USA pay or ranges. Your geographic location will be confirmed during the recruitment.
SALARY INFORMATION
The starting pay range for a candidate selected for this position is generally within the range of $85,000 - $120,000 for annual base salary. Where a successful candidate's actual pay will fall within this range will be based on a variety of factors, including, for example, the candidate's location, qualifications, specific skills, and experience.
Our salary bands are tied to geographical locations of our employees. To be more precise in our salary range transparency efforts for this role, please find the additional information below:
San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles County is $102,000 - $120,000
Sacramento, Santa Barbara, Ventura, San Diego is $93,500 - $110,000
Arcata, Chico, Fort Bragg is $85,000 - $100,000
Job Family: Business Strategy Consulting
Internal Job Code: 200086
Salary Grade: 8
APPLY NOW
To apply for job ID 55909, submit your materials (resume and cover letter) online by using the Apply Now button at https://careers.nature.org/ by 8:59 pm PST December 9th. Need help applying? Visit our recruitment page or contact applyhelp@tnc.org.
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TNC is committed to offering accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in our job application process. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, please send a note to applyhelp@tnc.org with Request for Accommodation in the subject line.
The Nature Conservancy is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Our commitment to diversity includes the recognition that our conservation mission is best advanced by the leadership and contributions of people with diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and cultures. Recruiting and mentoring staff to create an inclusive organization that reflects our global character is a priority, and we encourage applicants from all cultures, races, colors, religions, sexes, national or regional origins, ages, disability status, sexual orientations, gender identities, military or veteran status or other status protected by law.
The successful applicant must meet the requirements of The Nature Conservancy's background screening process.