Senior Manager, Product Operations - Strategic Partnerships

If you're passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country—and you're committed to working hard to play your part in building that future—consider WGU as the next step in your career. Driven by a mission to expand access to higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families. The salary range for this position takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs. At WGU, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their position, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. A reasonable estimate of the current range is: Grade: Management_Executive 608 Pay Range: $101,000.00 - $181,800.00 Job Description (A note before you read on. We are looking for someone who reads carefully, thinks clearly, and follows through. To help us identify those candidates, this job description includes a small request hidden inside the requirements. Take your time and read all the way through.) At Western Governors University, our mission is to expand access to high-quality, affordable education for learners everywhere. As Senior Manager, Product Operations, you will help enable that mission by building and scaling the systems and operational tools that power WGU's Strategic Partnerships. This role sits at the intersection of business operations, technology, and leadership, ensuring teams have the platforms and processes they need to grow meaningful partnerships and extend WGU's impact. The Role: Senior Manager, Product Operations - Strategic Partnerships The Senior Manager, Product Operations owns the strategy, development, and delivery of systems and operational tools that support WGU's Strategic Partnerships team. This role leads a small, cross-functional team and partners closely with technology and business stakeholders to translate operational needs into scalable product solutions, with Salesforce as the primary platform. Success in this role requires strong product and project management discipline, business acumen, and the ability to drive measurable outcomes in a matrixed environment. What You'll Do Own and manage the product roadmap for Strategic Partnerships systems and tools, including Salesforce CRM, partner portals, intake workflows, and reporting infrastructure. Lead and support a cross-functional team of developers, administrators, project managers, and a UX designer by setting priorities and enabling delivery. Translate business requirements into clear technical specifications, user stories, and structured project plans that guide development and deployment. Serve as the primary liaison between Strategic Partnerships and EdTech teams to ensure alignment on architecture, security, data governance, and integrations. Manage the full lifecycle of systems initiatives from discovery and scoping through build, testing, launch, and post‑launch support. Oversee Salesforce solutions including custom objects, flows, reports, dashboards, Experience Cloud portals, and third‑party integrations. Establish and maintain development standards, release processes, change management protocols, and platform health across the Strategic Partnerships tech stack. What You'll Bring Bachelor's degree. 5+ years of experience in product management with increasing scope and responsibility. 3+ years of experience leading and managing teams. 3+ years of experience developing enterprise-wide technical solutions such as Salesforce. To help us evaluate this, send a short email to Francesca.delgado@wgu.edu with the subject line "Coolest Build – Your Name" describing the most interesting system, product, or technical project you have led: what it was, what made it tricky, and why you enjoyed the work. Three to five paragraphs are plenty. We treat this as a meaningful signal of fit alongside your application. Salesforce Administrator (ADM 201) certification is required within 6 months of hire date. Project Management Professional (PMP) or equivalent certification (e.g., CAPM, PMI-ACP, Scrum Master) is required within 1 year of hire date. Bonus Points Experience in higher education, ed‑tech, or a mission‑driven organization. Experience in partnerships, business development, or marketing Experience with Salesforce Experience Cloud, PRM solutions, or CRM data enrichment tools. Lean Six Sigma, Change Management (Prosci), Agile, or SAFe Work Location This is a full-time, in-office position at WGU's office in Salt Lake City, Utah. certification. What to Expect At WGU, our mission drives everything we do, including how we hire. Our interview experience is designed to give qualified candidates the opportunity to show their best work through meaningful conversations and collaboration. We thoughtfully review every application and invite forward the candidates whose experience and potential best align with the role and our mission. Interview Steps Introductory call (30 minutes) Hiring manager interview (45 minutes) Technical interview (45 minutes) Final Interview (1 hour) #LI-FP1 Position & Application Details Full-Time Regular Positions (classified as regular and working 40 standard weekly hours): This is a full-time, regular position (classified for 40 standard weekly hours) that is eligible for bonuses; medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare; health savings account and flexible spending account; basic and voluntary life insurance; disability coverage; accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental coverages; legal and identity theft coverage; retirement savings plan; wellbeing program; discounted WGU tuition; and flexible paid time off for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual, flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual, 11 paid holidays, and other paid leaves, including up to 12 weeks of parental leave. How to Apply: If interested, an application will need to be submitted online. Internal WGU employees will need to apply through the internal job board in Workday. Additional Information Disclaimer: The job posting highlights the most critical responsibilities and requirements of the job. It's not all-inclusive. Accommodations: Applicants with disabilities who require assistance or accommodation during the application or interview process should contact our Talent Acquisition team at recruiting@wgu.edu. Equal Employment Opportunity: All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any protected characteristic as required by law. In 1997, a coalition of 19 U.S. governors founded Western Governors University with a singular vision: to make higher education more accessible by offering full degree programs online. Starting small, we quickly expanded. Today, we're one of the largest accredited online universities in the U.S. Click on the links below to learn more: Enrollment Counselor Evaluator Field Experience Roles (Part-time & Intermittent) Program Mentor Service Desk Technician Mexico Team