Governor of Illinois
Job Summary
Under the direction of the IT Deputy Director – Quality and Compliance, the Product Owner is the voice of the business and proactively represents internal stakeholders by delivering the highest possible value to the business. Through the creation, prioritization, management and execution of the product backlog, the Product Owner collaborates cross‑functionally and focuses the development team(s) on a clear vision of the product, its goals and delivery. The Product Owner has deep customer knowledge and an excellent ability to transform strategic intent into fully elaborated requirements in the form of user stories, feature specifications and acceptance criteria. This position ensures all stakeholders and team members are well educated about both the current state of available functionality and its value to the organization, as well as the short‑ and longer‑term product goals. The Product Owner drives and articulates product value delivery via agile ceremonies including sprint planning, backlog refinement, daily scrum, demo and retrospectives seeking improvement through every iteration.
As a functional leader, the Product Owner may serve on multiple committees related to IT audit and compliance and may be a voting member of the Change Advisory Board (CAB). The incumbent will provide mentorship to team members on triaging and responding to first‑level production support issues, serve as the escalation point for advanced‑level production support, and is a member of the IT Incident Response team. This position may be involved in new software project initiatives that include planning, requirements, configuration, integrations, implementation, and production support.
Essential Functions
Proactively supports stakeholders throughout the organization by providing solutions to their system application needs.
Educates team members, stakeholders and leaders on core product foundations and infrastructure, software development lifecycle (SDLC) practices, feature functionality, business processes, and short‑ and long‑term product goals.
Stays up to date with legislative changes and schedules routine job shadowing to ensure product value to business areas and alignment of deliverables with the vision.
Collaborates with leadership to establish product vision and create roadmaps for existing and new applications.
Participates in multiple committees for IT audit and compliance, including internal and external audit requests, new policies and procedures review, annual policy reviews, and risk assessments.
Presents product changes to CAB, serves as a voting member, and participates in change management activities.
Develops deep functional product knowledge to assess requested changes based on ROI, risk, time criticality, and effort.
Performs data‑driven analytical research using PowerBI, SQL queries, end‑user feedback, and other tools to provide insights and recommendations for product design, scope definition, and prioritization.
Conducts in‑depth analysis of software code and data to identify root causes of production incidents and informs stakeholders of resolution outcomes.
Documents product initiatives and defines scope for each initiative, prioritizing the product backlog accordingly.
Plans release cycles in line with the product roadmap, highlights key risks and constraints, and actively manages blockers to deliver value.
Communicates progress to stakeholders through email, high‑level progress reports, and demos to elicit feedback from end users.
Coordinates with product delivery team(s) and design colleagues to ensure required activities meet agreed quality, time, and budget, making product enhancements available across the organization.
Creates and maintains mapping documents to visualize current and new business processes.
Advocates for the end user by ensuring the IT team understands and meets user needs throughout development.
Synchronizes with other Product Owners to ensure new work is brought into the backlog and prioritized across teams.
Works with System Architecture/Engineering to understand database structures, define architecture standards, maintain data dictionaries, and document these for end users.
Creates and modifies UI/UX designs that represent user requirements and accurately depict data structure and UI standards.
Supports Business Analysts in creating user stories that align product design and development for maximum ROI.
Provides training to BAs for first‑level production support and advanced assistance for escalated issues.
Participates in or leads sprint planning, feature and story refinement, and reviews team progress to ensure alignment with backlogs.
Ensures clear communication of changes and justification for requirements adjustments to stakeholders.
Maintains confidence between stakeholders/end users and development teams through transparency, good intent, and continuous improvement.
Participates in the Production Incident Response team, identifies root causes, and updates processes and procedures.
May participate in planning, requirements, configuration, integrations, and implementation of new software projects.
Knowledge, Skill, Ability
Excellent verbal, written, and attention‑to‑detail skills.
Ability to resolve conflicts for the team and within the team, influencing internal stakeholders.
Strong organizational, interpersonal, and time‑management skills.
Exposure to technical concepts, product owner techniques, tools, and principles.
Minimum Requirements
Bachelor’s degree in business, information systems, computer science, or related field; or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
2+ years of experience as a Scrum Product Owner, or 3+ years as a Business Analyst, or similar role within an Agile environment.
Solid understanding of Agile frameworks (Scrum, Kanban) and product management principles.
Proven ability to translate business needs into clear, actionable user stories, acceptance criteria, and product backlog items.
Experience working with cross‑functional teams, including developers, QA, and stakeholders.
Strong prioritization, organization, and decision‑making skills.
Excellent communication, facilitation, and interpersonal skills.
Proficiency with Agile project management tools (e.g., Jira, Azure DevOps).
Preferred Qualifications
Relevant Agile/Product Owner certifications such as CSPO, A‑CSPO, or PSPO.
Background in user experience (UX) design principles or customer journey mapping.
Experience in data‑driven decision‑making and product analytics.
Familiarity with API‑driven product development or technical integrations.
Work Hours:
M‑F 8:30 am – 4:30 pm
Work Location:
2815 W. Washington St., Springfield, IL 62702‑3397
Agency Contact:
Christina Lonbom Email:
clonbom@trsil.org Phone:
217‑814‑2226 Posting Group:
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics
TRS is a non‑code state agency.
TRS is an Equal Opportunity Employer. If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, or completing any pre‑employment testing, please direct your inquiries to Human Resources at (217) 814‑2111, or HRServices@trsil.org.
Hiring decisions are not based on or affected by political factors, including political sponsorship, affiliation, or support.
#J-18808-Ljbffr
As a functional leader, the Product Owner may serve on multiple committees related to IT audit and compliance and may be a voting member of the Change Advisory Board (CAB). The incumbent will provide mentorship to team members on triaging and responding to first‑level production support issues, serve as the escalation point for advanced‑level production support, and is a member of the IT Incident Response team. This position may be involved in new software project initiatives that include planning, requirements, configuration, integrations, implementation, and production support.
Essential Functions
Proactively supports stakeholders throughout the organization by providing solutions to their system application needs.
Educates team members, stakeholders and leaders on core product foundations and infrastructure, software development lifecycle (SDLC) practices, feature functionality, business processes, and short‑ and long‑term product goals.
Stays up to date with legislative changes and schedules routine job shadowing to ensure product value to business areas and alignment of deliverables with the vision.
Collaborates with leadership to establish product vision and create roadmaps for existing and new applications.
Participates in multiple committees for IT audit and compliance, including internal and external audit requests, new policies and procedures review, annual policy reviews, and risk assessments.
Presents product changes to CAB, serves as a voting member, and participates in change management activities.
Develops deep functional product knowledge to assess requested changes based on ROI, risk, time criticality, and effort.
Performs data‑driven analytical research using PowerBI, SQL queries, end‑user feedback, and other tools to provide insights and recommendations for product design, scope definition, and prioritization.
Conducts in‑depth analysis of software code and data to identify root causes of production incidents and informs stakeholders of resolution outcomes.
Documents product initiatives and defines scope for each initiative, prioritizing the product backlog accordingly.
Plans release cycles in line with the product roadmap, highlights key risks and constraints, and actively manages blockers to deliver value.
Communicates progress to stakeholders through email, high‑level progress reports, and demos to elicit feedback from end users.
Coordinates with product delivery team(s) and design colleagues to ensure required activities meet agreed quality, time, and budget, making product enhancements available across the organization.
Creates and maintains mapping documents to visualize current and new business processes.
Advocates for the end user by ensuring the IT team understands and meets user needs throughout development.
Synchronizes with other Product Owners to ensure new work is brought into the backlog and prioritized across teams.
Works with System Architecture/Engineering to understand database structures, define architecture standards, maintain data dictionaries, and document these for end users.
Creates and modifies UI/UX designs that represent user requirements and accurately depict data structure and UI standards.
Supports Business Analysts in creating user stories that align product design and development for maximum ROI.
Provides training to BAs for first‑level production support and advanced assistance for escalated issues.
Participates in or leads sprint planning, feature and story refinement, and reviews team progress to ensure alignment with backlogs.
Ensures clear communication of changes and justification for requirements adjustments to stakeholders.
Maintains confidence between stakeholders/end users and development teams through transparency, good intent, and continuous improvement.
Participates in the Production Incident Response team, identifies root causes, and updates processes and procedures.
May participate in planning, requirements, configuration, integrations, and implementation of new software projects.
Knowledge, Skill, Ability
Excellent verbal, written, and attention‑to‑detail skills.
Ability to resolve conflicts for the team and within the team, influencing internal stakeholders.
Strong organizational, interpersonal, and time‑management skills.
Exposure to technical concepts, product owner techniques, tools, and principles.
Minimum Requirements
Bachelor’s degree in business, information systems, computer science, or related field; or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
2+ years of experience as a Scrum Product Owner, or 3+ years as a Business Analyst, or similar role within an Agile environment.
Solid understanding of Agile frameworks (Scrum, Kanban) and product management principles.
Proven ability to translate business needs into clear, actionable user stories, acceptance criteria, and product backlog items.
Experience working with cross‑functional teams, including developers, QA, and stakeholders.
Strong prioritization, organization, and decision‑making skills.
Excellent communication, facilitation, and interpersonal skills.
Proficiency with Agile project management tools (e.g., Jira, Azure DevOps).
Preferred Qualifications
Relevant Agile/Product Owner certifications such as CSPO, A‑CSPO, or PSPO.
Background in user experience (UX) design principles or customer journey mapping.
Experience in data‑driven decision‑making and product analytics.
Familiarity with API‑driven product development or technical integrations.
Work Hours:
M‑F 8:30 am – 4:30 pm
Work Location:
2815 W. Washington St., Springfield, IL 62702‑3397
Agency Contact:
Christina Lonbom Email:
clonbom@trsil.org Phone:
217‑814‑2226 Posting Group:
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics
TRS is a non‑code state agency.
TRS is an Equal Opportunity Employer. If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, or completing any pre‑employment testing, please direct your inquiries to Human Resources at (217) 814‑2111, or HRServices@trsil.org.
Hiring decisions are not based on or affected by political factors, including political sponsorship, affiliation, or support.
#J-18808-Ljbffr