Product Manager, Data and IT-Managed Services

Company Description

Uncommon Schools is a leading nonprofit network of high-achieving public charter schools that provide an exceptional K-12 education in historically underserved communities. Our schools represent our diverse student population, with over 60% of our dedicated teachers and staff identifying as people of color. Uncommon Schools currently operates 53 schools, serving more than 20,000 students across Boston, Camden, New York City, Newark, and Rochester. We are proud to report that our graduates persist in and complete college at five times the national average, thanks to our rigorous academic programs, co-curricular activities, and social-emotional learning support.

Job Description

We are seeking a passionate and skilled Product Manager to join Uncommon’s Product Management Team. In this role, you will oversee the Managed Service Providers workstream, ensuring the team achieves its goals autonomously with minimal guidance. Your responsibilities will include performance management, support management, tracking deliverables and obligations, conducting customer satisfaction surveys, vendor metrics, reporting, contract inquiries, budget and invoice management, and resolving escalations by managing vendors responsible for Uncommon's IT infrastructure.

Beyond technical aptitude, the ideal candidate should possess strong change management, planning, and communication skills to manage our extensive technology and processes effectively.

Key Responsibilities:

Oversee IT Managed Service Providers (MSPs):

• Manage Use Cases: Understand stakeholders' IT goals and use cases, including day-to-day support, hardware maintenance, and software licensing.
• Oversee Summer Infrastructure Upgrades: Supervise MSPs in school-based hardware and infrastructure projects.
• Develop and Manage Processes: Implement processes for relationship, performance, and issue management, vendor support, deliverable tracking, and reporting.
• Support Policy Development: Collaborate with the Data Governance team to build, execute, and automate policies, including security, data governance, and roles & permissions.
• Troubleshoot and Manage Escalations: Work with vendors to resolve outages and escalations.
• Own Service Improvement and Innovation Plans: Oversee vendor service reviews and improvement plans.
• Contract, Payment & E-Rate Management: Oversee contract and financial management, including E-Rate processes.
• Vendor Relationship Management: Establish relationships with vendors and act as the liaison between vendors and Uncommon on projects and school-level escalations.

Manage Google Workspace for Education:

• Oversee Planning, Prioritization, and Execution: Lead the Google Workspace roadmap in partnership with team members reliant on GW functionality.
• Issue Management: Identify and escalate issues with technology partners and manufacturers.
• Communication and Change Management: Create plans for internal shifts or Google-imposed changes.
• Train IT Support: Educate IT support teams and outsourced partners on handling common issues.
• Collaborate with IT Team: Facilitate integrations with GW data sets.

Vendor Management:

• Contract and Payment Management: Oversee the renewal and payment processes for contracts, such as with Verizon.
• Vendor Relationship Management: Build and maintain vendor relationships, act as the project liaison, and manage school-level issues.
• Address Partner Concerns: Collaborate with the Director to manage vendor issues.

Training and Documentation:

• Create and Manage Knowledge Base: Develop internal and school-facing support, troubleshooting, and best practices documentation.
• Develop and Facilitate Training: Organize training sessions for regional or school leaders.
• Coordinate Vendor-Offered Training: Define and arrange vendor-offered training sessions suited for Service Desk and Relationship Managers.
• Document Processes: Work with regional/school leaders to document existing processes for supported applications.

Organizational Relationships:

Collaborate closely with regionally-based RSOs, school-based Directors of Operations, and members of the Data and IT Team.

Qualifications:

Education Requirements:

Bachelor’s degree required

Experience Requirements:

• 7-9 years of professional experience
• 3-4 years of directly related experience
• 1+ year managing a Ticketing System