Product Manager

Ascend Learning is a national leader in data driven, online educational solutions for learners, educators and employers in high-growth, licensure-driven professions spanning healthcare, fitness and wellness, skilled trades, insurance and financial services. We are passionate about accelerating learning while impacting job readiness, employment success and employee retention with the belief that our work changes lives.

Our culture is intentionally results-driven and selfless, with a relentless focus on our customers. We believe in trust, transparency, freedom, and responsibility with a commitment to meritocracy, inclusion, and diversity of thought. Continual investment in our over 1400 employees is also a core principle realized through ongoing professional development and providing opportunities to grow, develop and lead. Ascend Learning is headquartered in Burlington, MA, with additional office locations and remote workers in cities across the U.S. and in the U.K

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain a strategic portfolio plan grounded in data and dedicated to solving customer problems
• Achieve new signing and revision goals in line with the strategic goals of the company and assigned lists.
• Build P&Ls and competitive business cases, and adhere to budgets and schedules
• Recruit authors and acquire new content
• Negotiate contracts
• Set and track development schedules for product suites to achieve optimal market windows
• Communicate effectively with authors and vendors to ensure adherence to contracts and guidelines
• Bring competitive product suites to market and collaborate cross-functionally to drive their financial success
• Proactively engage external clients and establish new partnerships within assigned market sphere to drive list growth and positioning
• Apply principles of Pragmatic Marketing™ to all list activities
• Listen to our customers, through conversation, market surveys, market and product reviews
• Collaborate cross-functionally with content, marketing, sales, technology teams, and others to meet shared objectives
• Travel as necessary to conferences and meetings to achieve goals, while effectively managing budgets for T&E and plate expenses.
• Create and drive digital product roadmap for assigned portfolio
• Formulate market justifications and LBCs for forward-thinking digital initiatives in support of our future state

JobSpecifications

Education & Experience - List the required education and/or experience needed to competently perform the job.

• Bachelor's degree
• 5+ years of experience in editorial acquisitions or product management with P&L responsibility

Skills & Abilities

• Problem Solver: Uses rigorous logic or methods to solve difficult problems with effective solutions; probes all fruitful sources for answers; can see hidden problems; is excellent at honest analysis; looks beyond the obvious and doesn't stop at the first answers.

• Decisive: Makes sound decisions based on a mixture of analysis, wisdom, experience, and judgment; most of his/her solutions and suggestions turn out to be correct and accurate when judged over time; sought out by others for advice and solutions.
• Proactive: Doesn't wait for direction to act; understands what needs to be done; seeks out new projects, is able to spot inefficiencies and suggest improvements.
• Adaptable: Can effectively cope with change; can shift gears comfortably; can decide and act without having the complete picture.
• Resourceful: Can marshal resources (people, funding, material, support) to get things done; can orchestrate multiple activities at once to achieve a goal better and faster.

Candidates should be aware that Ascend Learning currently maintains a policy requiring all employees to be fully vaccinated. Newly hired employees must be fully vaccinated by their start date. Ascend Learning is an equal opportunity employer and will provide a reasonable accommodation to those unable to be vaccinated where it is not an undue hardship to the Company to do so as provided under federal, state, and local law.Exceptions to the vaccine requirement may apply for employees living or working in Montana.

Ascend Learning, LLC is proud to be an equal opportunity employer (M/F/Vets/Disabled). No agency or search firm submissions will be accepted. Applications for U.S. based positions with Ascend Learning, LLC must be legally authorized to work in the United States and verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.

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