Job description

PowerSchool creates connected K-12 technology that helps schools work more effectively and advance student outcomes. The Vice President, Product Operations turns that purpose into disciplined, scalable execution across the Product organization. Reporting to the Chief Product Officer, this leader owns the product operating model connecting multi-year strategy, investment, planning, execution, commercialization, and performance. The role defines how Product operates, governs decisions, and aligns resources over 2-4 year horizons, then translates those choices into annual and quarterly commitments with clear accountability and measurable outcomes. What You Will Lead Product Strategy and Operating Model • Own and evolve the Product operating model, connecting 2-4 year strategic priorities with portfolio investment, roadmaps, capacity, execution, and measurable outcomes. • Set the enterprise Product planning framework, translating long-range strategy into annual operating plans and quarterly priorities across Product, Engineering, Finance, Sales, Marketing, and Customer Success. • Define and enforce operating rhythms, decision rights, governance standards, and escalation paths that increase accountability, speed, and execution discipline. Portfolio Governance and Investment • Own portfolio visibility and executive governance for the CPO and leadership team, including investment, capacity, dependencies, risks, strategic tradeoffs, and performance. • Establish and govern consistent criteria for new investment, acceleration, continued investment, consolidation, and product retirement. • Own the product investment process, requiring business cases to connect market opportunity, customer value, strategic fit, cost, capacity, risk, and expected returns. • Drive portfolio prioritization across growth, customer commitments, innovation, technical investment, compliance, and enterprise needs, surfacing tradeoffs to the appropriate executive owner. Monetization and Commercialization • Own Product governance for pricing, packaging, monetization, and commercialization, defining decision processes, required inputs, and accountability across Product, Finance, Sales, and Marketing. • Set and enforce launch-readiness standards, decision gates, and post-launch accountability for major product initiatives. • Establish lifecycle governance from investment and development through growth, optimization, consolidation, and retirement. Product Intelligence and Performance • Own the enterprise product performance framework, defining metrics and review mechanisms that connect product activity with customer, operational, and business outcomes. • Set executive reporting standards across adoption, engagement, retention, growth, financial performance, delivery predictability, portfolio health, and multi-year strategic objectives. • Require corrective action when performance falls below expectations, ensuring Product leaders identify root causes, define recovery plans, and track results through governance. Cross-Functional Execution and Leadership • Serve as the executive operating leader across Product and key cross-functional interfaces, aligning Product, Engineering, Finance, Sales, Marketing, Customer Success, Services, and other functions around shared commitments and decision rights. • Identify and remove systemic barriers that slow decisions or execution, while preserving clear accountability within Product teams and escalating enterprise tradeoffs to the appropriate decision owner. • Build and lead the Product Operations organization, setting clear accountabilities and talent expectations across planning, analytics, portfolio management, commercialization, and operational excellence. • Set the standard for business-case discipline, outcome-based management, and portfolio decision quality across Product leadership, intervening when accountability or operating discipline is insufficient. Success Means: • A disciplined Product operating model connects 2-4 year strategy to annual and quarterly execution, improving portfolio visibility, investment discipline, decision speed, accountability, commercialization, and business performance. • A single enterprise planning framework operates across all product lines, translating multi-year priorities into the AOP, capacity plans, roadmaps, and quarterly execution. • The CPO and executive team review portfolio performance on a fixed cadence against one agreed set of metrics, with investment and lifecycle decisions traceable to that governance process. • Product leaders experience Product Operations as an accountable operating function that improves decision quality and execution speed, not as an administrative layer. Required Experience and Capabilities • 15+ years of progressive experience in Product Management, Product Operations, Strategy, Business Operations, or related SaaS leadership roles, including significant senior leadership responsibility. • Demonstrated success in a complex, multi-product B2B SaaS organization. • Experience building or transforming enterprise product operating models, multi-year strategy, annual and quarterly planning, portfolio governance, and executive operating rhythms. • Strong understanding of SaaS economics, portfolio investment, commercialization, pricing and packaging, and product lifecycle management. • Strong financial and analytical capability with experience connecting product investment to measurable business outcomes. • Executive-level judgment, communication, and decision leadership, with demonstrated ability to establish accountability and drive outcomes across organizational boundaries. Preferred Experience • Experience in EdTech or another complex vertical SaaS environment. • Advanced degree or equivalent additional relevant experience. Compensation & Benefits PowerSchool offers the following benefits: • Comprehensive Insurance Coverage (including Medical, Dental, Vision, Pharmacy benefits, Life Insurance and AD&D) • Flexible Spending Accounts and Health Savings Accounts • Short-Term Disability and Long-Term Disability • Comprehensive 401(k) plan • Generous Parental Leave • Unrestricted paid time off (known as Discretionary Time Off - DTO) • Wellness Program, including ClassPass & Employee Assistance Program • Tuition Reimbursement • Optional Benefits: Pet Insurance, Identity Theft Protection, Student Debt Repayment Program and Prepaid Legal coverage The compensation range for this role is specific to the United States and it incorporates many factors including but not limited to an applicant's skills and prior relevant experience and training; licensures, degrees, and certifications; internal equity; internal pay ranges; and market data/range parameters. EEO Commitment PowerSchool is committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace. PowerSchool is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected veteran status, disability, age, or other legally protected status. Our inclusive culture empowers PowerSchoolers to deliver the best results for our customers. We not only celebrate the diversity of our workforce, we celebrate the diverse ways we work. If you have a disability and need an accommodation regarding our recruiting process, please let us know by emailing accommodations@powerschool.com. Not ready to apply? Connect with us for general consideration.

Requirements

Must-haves

What You Will Lead
Product Strategy and Operating Model
Own and evolve the Product operating model, connecting 2-4 year strategic priorities with portfolio investment, roadmaps, capacity, execution, and measurable outcomes.
Set the enterprise Product planning framework, translating long-range strategy into annual operating plans and quarterly priorities across Product, Engineering, Finance, Sales, Marketing, and Customer Success.
Define and enforce operating rhythms, decision rights, governance standards, and escalation paths that increase accountability, speed, and execution discipline.
Portfolio Governance and Investment
Own portfolio visibility and executive governance for the CPO and leadership team, including investment, capacity, dependencies, risks, strategic tradeoffs, and performance.
Establish and govern consistent criteria for new investment, acceleration, continued investment, consolidation, and product retirement.
Own the product investment process, requiring business cases to connect market opportunity, customer value, strategic fit, cost, capacity, risk, and expected returns.
Drive portfolio prioritization across growth, customer commitments, innovation, technical investment, compliance, and enterprise needs, surfacing tradeoffs to the appropriate executive owner.
Monetization and Commercialization
Own Product governance for pricing, packaging, monetization, and commercialization, defining decision processes, required inputs, and accountability across Product, Finance, Sales, and Marketing.
Set and enforce launch-readiness standards, decision gates, and post-launch accountability for major product initiatives.
Establish lifecycle governance from investment and development through growth, optimization, consolidation, and retirement.
Product Intelligence and Performance
Own the enterprise product performance framework, defining metrics and review mechanisms that connect product activity with customer, operational, and business outcomes.
Set executive reporting standards across adoption, engagement, retention, growth, financial performance, delivery predictability, portfolio health, and multi-year strategic objectives.
Require corrective action when performance falls below expectations, ensuring Product leaders identify root causes, define recovery plans, and track results through governance.
Cross-Functional Execution and Leadership
Identify and remove systemic barriers that slow decisions or execution, while preserving clear accountability within Product teams and escalating enterprise tradeoffs to the appropriate decision owner.
Build and lead the Product Operations organization, setting clear accountabilities and talent expectations across planning, analytics, portfolio management, commercialization, and operational excellence.
Set the standard for business-case discipline, outcome-based management, and portfolio decision quality across Product leadership, intervening when accountability or operating discipline is insufficient.

Nice-to-haves

Experience in EdTech or another complex vertical SaaS environment.
Advanced degree or equivalent additional relevant experience.

Application prep

Use the role’s language and application details while tailoring your materials.

Platform: icims
Effort: medium

Benefits

Benefits detected in the listing.

Dental

Vision

401(K)

Paid Time Off

Parental Leave

Wellness