Principal Product Manager

About us:

Kiva (kiva.org) is an international nonprofit with a mission to expand financial access to help underserved communities thrive. We run a global marketplace platform to crowdfund microloans for financially excluded entrepreneurs, farmers and students around the world. Through Kiva Capital, we serve as a bridge between large scale impact first investors and underserved populations. 

Our organization combines the culture and technological passion of an internet start-up with the compassion and empathy of a non-profit to create impact and opportunity at global scale. Since 2005, we have raised more than $1.66 billion in loan capital for 4.1 million borrowers in 77 countries. Our lenders fund over $10 million in loans every month. With offices in San Francisco, Portland, New York, Nairobi, and Bangkok, Kiva's team includes 100+ employees and 400+ volunteers worldwide. Our team is growing as we pursue exciting new opportunities to create a financially inclusive world.

Kiva's values:

Impact first - This is why we exist. This is the drumbeat we march to. Every day.

Extreme ownership - Own it; you, your relationships, your impact. Insist that others support you and hold you accountable.

Be curious and bold - Never stop learning. Question assumptions. Take Risks and dream big.

Inclusion. Equity. Diversity. - Without reservation and without caveat. In our hiring, in our workplace and in our impact in the world.

Honor and integrity - Do the most right thing in the most right way. Cherish diversity and respect each other.

Love and kindness always - Say what you mean. Mean what you say. And don't say it mean. Clarity. Courage. Kindness.

Role overview:

Join a team of product managers, designers, and technologists who are on a mission to expand financial access to help underserved communities thrive. Building on the success of our crowdlending product, we envision a future in which people come together to invest in others who are improving their communities around the world: women, refugees, small-holder farmers, climate-impacted people, and underserved communities in the US. 

We are looking for a Principal Product Manager who is great at understanding user problems, roadmapping and product execution at scale, and has a passion for building new ways to mobilize citizen lenders to expand financial access.

At this time, we can only consider applicants with authorization to work in the United States on a permanent, full-time basis; unfortunately we cannot provide visa sponsorship.

Key responsibilities include: 

• Devise a preliminary working strategy, informed by market, customer, and business understanding to drive an exponential increase in the number of lenders active on Kiva.
• Manage your backlog and help your team to deliver measurable impact within your first three months.
• Build trust up, down, and across to accelerate your success.
• Socialize your strategy and value delivered with key stakeholders.

Core competencies:

• Delivers results. The ability to make correct product decisions, even in the presence of major ambiguity. Decisions need to be macro-level (will this product work?) and micro-level (what is the right label for this button?). Clearly responsible and accountable for your product’s success.
• Analytic sense: Ability to frame the right questions, evaluate multiple facets of a problem, and simulate possible outcomes. Being good with data is not the only driver for being sound from an analytics perspective – you have to think critically beyond the numbers.
• Execution: Ability to align people toward a particular objective and orchestrate complex projects. Exercise creativity, empathy, and persuasiveness – in addition to having superb organization abilities. Regularly ships improvements that move your product toward its vision.
• Leadership: Ability to inspire and motivate the people around you to deliver positive impacts to the company’s mission and the work environment. Leaders emphasize authenticity, cooperation, and open communication. 
• Experience: 7 to 9 years as a product manager 
• Specialized knowledge: Retention & engagement methodologies, user experience, new product development.

What we offer:

• An opportunity to improve real lives, solve hard problems, and change the world
• Friendly, supportive, and adventurous environment with a team of engaged colleagues
• A comprehensive, industry-leading benefits package including health, dental and vision insurance, parental leave, professional development, 401k m