Lead Product Manager

Reporting to the Director of Product, Digital Banking, the Lead Product Manager will take full ownership of the strategy, vision, and execution of our Core Banking platform. This role requires independent leadership in shaping product direction, driving cross-functional alignment, and delivering innovative solutions that support business growth and exceptional customer experiences. The Lead Product Manager will mentor and influence teams across Product, Engineering, and Design to execute high-impact initiatives aligned with the bank’s strategic objectives.

•    Own and Drive Product Strategy: Define and execute the strategic vision and roadmap for Core banking products, ensuring alignment with business goals and customer needs.
•    End-to-End Product Ownership: Lead the entire product lifecycle—from discovery to delivery and optimization—ensuring measurable business outcomes.
•    Strategic Influence: Collaborate with senior leadership to prioritize initiatives that drive customer engagement, deposit growth, and operational efficiency.
•    Cross-Functional Leadership: Serve as the key decision-maker for product initiatives, leading alignment between Engineering, Design, Operations, Compliance, and Marketing.
•    Market Leadership: Identify market opportunities through competitive analysis, customer feedback, and industry trends to inform product innovation.
•    Advanced Product Roadmapping: Develop and maintain a strategic, theme-based product roadmap that balances near-term deliverables with long-term vision.
•    Data-Driven Decision Making: Leverage data and customer insights to make informed product decisions and measure product success.
•    Stakeholder Influence: Effectively influence senior stakeholders and cross-functional teams without direct authority to gain buy-in for product initiatives.
•    Mentorship (Without Direct Reports): Act as a thought leader and mentor within the product team, guiding Product Managers in best practices and strategic thinking.
•    Platform Resilience: Own the resilience strategy for Core Banking by establishing reliability targets, prioritizing hardening initiatives, and guiding cross functional decisions that reduce operational risk and improve long term platform health.
•    Vendor Relationship Management: Act as a key product counterpart to core technology vendors, setting expectations, challenging architecture and delivery approaches, and driving accountability for quality, timelines, and long term platform health.

•    Regulatory & Risk Critical Workflows: Lead the product design and continuous improvement of regulatory and risk critical workflows (e.g., CDIC FID, CRA tax slips, KYC, reconciliation and transaction processing), ensuring they are accurate, auditable, and operationally sustainable.

•    Education: Post-Secondary Degree in Commerce, Management, Economics, Finance, Engineering, Computer Science, etc. 
•    MBA or other graduate degree a plus and/or
•    8+ years of Canadian Financial Institution experience leading core banking platform (or equivalent experience) in a role such as Application Manager, Channel Manager, and Product Manager. 
•    Experience with core banking systems.
•    Experience with deposits/payments/account management/onboarding.
•    Familiar with Canadian Banking products High-interest savings account/registered products/ GICs/ Payment solutions (AFT/eTransfer/Bill payments).
•    Experience with financial processes like reconciliation and transaction processing. 
•    Experience with CRA tax slips for all registered and non-registered products.
•    Experience with FATCA/CRA requirements, CDIC FID extracts and premium reporting, KYC processes.
•    Understanding of APIs and integration between backend and frontend. 
•    Basic understanding of cybersecurity principles.
•    Payments and fintech knowledge (New payment infrastructure like RTR/Interac Instant).
•    Experience working closely with technology teams in all aspects of SDLC (requirements, development, testing), including vendor teams.
•    Understanding workplace collaboration tools to achieve efficiency.
•    Proven track record of delivering customer-facing service enhancements on a large scale.
•    Familiarity with user experience & design principles, specifically for digital interactions.
•    Strong attention to detail.
•    Proven ability to initiate and execute projects.
•    Good verbal and written communication skills.
•    Project management experience. 
•    Previous work experience with significant accountabilities relating but not limited to:
o    Product management and product development 
o    Leading IT and business teams 
o    Influencing senior executive decisions 
•    Enthusiastic, thorough, inclusive and results-oriented; ability and desire to help others thrive in a dynamic team-oriented environment.
•    Deep passion for first class customer experiences, innovation and delivering software.  
•    Excellent verbal and written communication skills, ability to communicate on a broad spectrum (from deep technical discussions to high level executive vision).  
•    Work experience in facilitation and fact-based problem solving to resolve complex issues and drive actionable outcomes. 
•    Experience in a technology company or top-tier technology consulting firm.