Job description

Hello, we’re Instrumentl. 👋 Grants fund nonprofit work, but they also create some of the toughest operational challenges. Every grant brings its own deadlines, spending restrictions, reporting requirements, and commitments, so managing that complexity across fundraising, finance, and HR requires more than spreadsheets. Instrumentl is the system of record for grants. We bring discovery, applications, award compliance, and grant operations into one platform, giving nonprofits a shared foundation to grow their revenue and impact. More than 6,000 nonprofits rely on Instrumentl, from local community groups to state and county governments, universities, and maybe even your local animal shelter. We're a cash flow positive, YC-backed company building our next chapter, and we're hiring people who will shape and grow the impact of the nonprofit sector. About the role: We're hiring a Staff Product Manager to own our GrantOS, the platform every other product area at Instrumentl is built on, reporting to our Co-founder and Head of EPD. This is a customer-facing role. You'll spend regular time with grant professionals on calls, in their day-to-day workflows, and at conferences, until you understand how they work better than they could describe it themselves. Then you'll turn what you learn into strategy across Platform (data layer, MCP, and BI) and Core (Tracker, Tasks, Reports, and Integrations), the layers that decide whether customers experience Instrumentl as one connected system or a set of separate features. If you get energy from customer conversations and want them to shape the hard zero-to-one calls on a platform roadmap other teams can align behind, this is the seat. Our ideal candidate is proactive, eager to learn, willing to experiment, and excited to collaborate with multiple teams to enhance the customer experience at Instrumentl. Get to know us at instrumentl.com/about ! The Instrumentl team is fully distributed, with offices in Oakland, CA. For this position, we're planning for a hybrid schedule - you'll be able to work from home four days per week, and from our Oakland offices once per week (or more often, if you'd like)! What you will do Customer insight Stay close to grant professionals' real workflows and pain points through customer calls, workflow observation, and research, and use that insight to pressure-test platform decisions rather than relying on internal signals alone. Turn customer and internal-stakeholder research into a prioritization framework the whole GrantOS effort can be evaluated against. Represent the customer's stake in platform trade-offs that are otherwise easy to make purely on technical or organizational grounds. Strategy and roadmap Own the GrantOS product strategy end to end across Platform and Core, and translate it into a roadmap other teams can build against. Make the zero-to-one calls on platform direction where there's no established playbook, and turn ambiguity into a decision the org can act on. Define how success is measured for a platform layer that customers experience indirectly, through the products built on top of it. Cross-team alignment and execution Drive alignment across the product and engineering teams that depend on GrantOS, resolving competing priorities before they turn into conflicting roadmaps. Partner closely with engineering leadership on sequencing and trade-offs for platform work with real technical stakes. Set the standard for how GrantOS decisions get communicated and adopted across the org, so downstream teams aren't caught off guard by platform changes. What we are looking for: Required 8+ years of product management experience, including time spent close enough to users to describe their workflow better than they could, and reframing the problem before jumping to a feature. Track record of picking which problem was worth solving when nobody had scoped it, holding a clear point of view under pushback, and shipping in thin slices rather than betting everything on one big release. Pragmatic judgment about when AI earns its place over rules-based or scoring approaches, including how to design for trust when stakes are high and how to tell whether a build is actually working. Proven ability to set clear goals with leading and lagging indicators, give an honest read on outcomes after launch, and explain complex platform work simply enough to align Design, Engineering, CS, and GTM without being orchestrated from above. Nice to have Entrepreneurial or founder background. Technical fluency (e.g. SQL) or experience working closely with data platforms, APIs, or BI tooling. Compensation and Benefits For US-based candidates, the target salary range is $220,000 - $245,000 base + equity. Final compensation is determined based on experience, skillset, scope, interview performance, and geographic location. We’re committed to paying competitively and equitably. Benefits 100% covered health, dental, and vision insurance for employees (50% for dependents). Generous PTO, including parental leave. 401(k). Company laptop and home-office stipend. Bi-annual company retreats. Why join Instrumentl Instrumentl is evolving rapidly, and you’ll be joining us at a pivotal point in our company’s journey. You’ll always have new challenges and opportunities to grow in your role - you won’t be bored! As an early member of our small but mighty team, you’ll also play a huge part in shaping our culture for the years and colleagues to come. At Instrumentl, we live by a set of Core Values that are at the heart of everything we do. Learn more about how we work at Instrumentl Careers ! Instrumentl is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building an inclusive workplace and do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, or any other legally protected status. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply. We also consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records in accordance with applicable fair chance laws. If you need a reasonable accommodation during the application or interview process, please let us know. We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us. Instrumentl is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building an inclusive workplace and do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, or any other legally protected status. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply. If you need a reasonable accommodation during the application or interview process, please let us know.

Requirements

Must-haves

Hello, we’re Instrumentl. 👋
We're a cash flow positive, YC-backed company building our next chapter, and we're hiring people who will shape and grow the impact of the nonprofit sector.
Our ideal candidate is proactive, eager to learn, willing to experiment, and excited to collaborate with multiple teams to enhance the customer experience at Instrumentl. Get to know us at instrumentl.com/about !
Customer insight
Turn customer and internal-stakeholder research into a prioritization framework the whole GrantOS effort can be evaluated against.
Represent the customer's stake in platform trade-offs that are otherwise easy to make purely on technical or organizational grounds.
Strategy and roadmap
Own the GrantOS product strategy end to end across Platform and Core, and translate it into a roadmap other teams can build against.
Make the zero-to-one calls on platform direction where there's no established playbook, and turn ambiguity into a decision the org can act on.
Define how success is measured for a platform layer that customers experience indirectly, through the products built on top of it.
Cross-team alignment and execution
Drive alignment across the product and engineering teams that depend on GrantOS, resolving competing priorities before they turn into conflicting roadmaps.
Partner closely with engineering leadership on sequencing and trade-offs for platform work with real technical stakes.
Set the standard for how GrantOS decisions get communicated and adopted across the org, so downstream teams aren't caught off guard by platform changes.
8+ years of product management experience, including time spent close enough to users to describe their workflow better than they could, and reframing the problem before jumping to a feature.
Track record of picking which problem was worth solving when nobody had scoped it, holding a clear point of view under pushback, and shipping in thin slices rather than betting everything on one big release.
Pragmatic judgment about when AI earns its place over rules-based or scoring approaches, including how to design for trust when stakes are high and how to tell whether a build is actually working.

Nice-to-haves

Entrepreneurial or founder background.
Technical fluency (e.g. SQL) or experience working closely with data platforms, APIs, or BI tooling.

Application prep

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

Keywords to mirror

aisql

Platform: lever
Effort: quick

Benefits

Benefits detected in the listing.

Dental

Vision

401(K)

Pto

Parental Leave