Group Director, Product Management – Search & Recommendations Quality

Walmart; Sunnyvale (CA); On-site; USD 254,000 - 481,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive benefits package

Performance bonuses

Stock options

Job summary

Walmart is looking for a Group Director of Product Management to lead Search and Recommendations across their digital ecosystem. This pivotal role entails defining the strategy for product discovery and optimizing customer engagement through machine learning and recommendations.

The ideal candidate will impact customer satisfaction, drive strategic direction, and oversee a high-performing product management team. The role is based in Sunnyvale, California, with a salary range between $254,000 and $481,000 annually, plus performance bonuses and stock options.

Qualifications

• 15 years’ experience in product management or 17 years in a related area.
• Experience with search and recommendation systems.
• Ability to influence executive stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute the long‑term vision for Search and Recommendations.
• Own product strategy and roadmap for Search Quality.
• Lead senior product teams in optimizing customer discovery.

Skills

Leadership

Machine Learning

Product Management

Collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or related area

Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Business Administration or related area

Job description

Position Summary

We are seeking an experienced and visionary Group Director of Product Management to lead Search and Recommendations Quality across Walmart's digital ecosystem. This leader will be responsible for defining and executing the strategy for how customers discover products across Search, Recommendations, and emerging discovery experiences. The role sits at the intersection of customer experience, machine learning, recommendation systems, and marketplace optimization, driving improvements in relevance, discovery quality, engagement, conversion, and customer satisfaction at massive scale.

As a leader of leaders, you will oversee multiple product organizations responsible for Search Quality, Recommendations, Discovery and multi‑objective optimization. You will partner closely with Engineering, Data Science, Design, Analytics, Advertising, Marketplace, International, and Sam's Club teams to shape the future of customer search and discovery at Walmart.

This role requires a strong product leader who can balance long‑term platform investments with customer outcomes, influence executive stakeholders, and build a high‑performing organization capable of solving complex discovery and recommendation challenges.

What you’ll do

Define the Future of Customer Discovery

• Develop and execute the long‑term vision and strategy for Search and Recommendations Quality.
• Establish a unified approach to customer discovery across Search, Recommendations, and emerging discovery experiences.
• Identify opportunities to improve how customers find, evaluate, and engage with products.
• Drive innovation in machine learning‑powered discovery and optimization systems.
• Create scalable frameworks that balance customer relevance, exploration, assortment exposure, and business objectives.

Lead Search Quality

• Own the product strategy and roadmap for Search Quality, including:
  • Search relevance and retrieval systems
  • Ranking and optimization frameworks
  • Search quality measurement and evaluation
  • Discovery effectiveness across Walmart U.S., International, and Sam's Club
  • Emerging search experiences and experimentation initiatives
• Drive continuous improvements in customer satisfaction, engagement, and shopping outcomes through a relentless focus on search quality.

Lead Recommendations Quality

• Define the strategy for recommendation systems that power customer discovery across the Walmart ecosystem.
• Responsibilities include:
  • Recommendation quality and effectiveness
  • Cross‑surface recommendation experiences
  • Product and assortment discovery
  • Customer engagement and shopping outcomes
  • Recommendation evaluation and optimization frameworks
  • New recommendation‑driven discovery experiences
• Ensure recommendation systems continuously evolve to improve customer discovery while supporting broader business objectives.

Drive Discovery Optimization Platforms

• Lead the strategy for the platforms that optimize customer discovery experiences at scale, including:
  • Unified ranking frameworks across Search and Recommendations
  • Explore/Exploit capabilities
  • Diversity and discovery optimization
  • Experimentation frameworks
  • Multi‑objective optimization systems
  • Marketplace and business objective integration
• Develop scalable approaches that balance customer relevance, exploration, assortment visibility, and business priorities.

Build and Lead High‑Performing Teams

• Lead a team of senior product leaders responsible for Search Quality, Recommendations, and Optimization platforms.
• Develop organizational capabilities and leadership bench strength.
• Create a culture of customer obsession, innovation, accountability, and operational excellence.
• Establish clear operating mechanisms and decision‑making frameworks across teams.

Influence Across the Enterprise

• Partner closely with Engineering, Data Science, Design, Analytics, and Business teams.
• Align stakeholders across Walmart U.S., International, Sam's Club, Marketplace, and Advertising organizations.
• Communicate strategy, progress, and investment recommendations to executive leadership.
• Drive alignment across competing priorities while maintaining focus on customer outcomes.

Organizational Scope

This leader will oversee product organizations responsible for: Search Quality, Recommendations & Arbitration, Discovery Optimization. The role will partner closely with Customer Intent and Query Understanding teams to ensure seamless end‑to‑end customer discovery experiences.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience leading Search, Recommendations, Marketplace, Discovery, or AI‑driven consumer platforms at scale.
• Deep understanding of search systems, recommendation systems, experimentation, optimization frameworks, and machine learning‑powered products.
• Experience operating across multiple business units, markets, or international organizations.
• Demonstrated ability to influence executive stakeholders and lead through organizational complexity.

Success Measures

• Improvements in Search and Recommendation quality metrics.
• Customer engagement, conversion, and satisfaction outcomes.
• Discovery effectiveness across Search and Recommendations experiences.
• Adoption and impact of optimization and experimentation platforms.
• Organizational health and talent development.
• Delivery of strategic roadmap commitments.
• Executive and stakeholder confidence in product direction and execution.

Benefits & Compensation

The annual salary range for this position is $254,000.00 – $481,000.00. Additional compensation includes annual or quarterly performance bonuses and stock options. You will also receive a comprehensive benefits package including medical, vision, dental, 401(k), stock purchase, life insurance, PTO (including sick leave, parental leave, family care leave, bereavement, jury duty, voting), short‑term and long‑term disability, company discounts, military leave pay, adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, and more. Benefits may be subject to eligibility requirements and are offered in accordance with company policy.

Minimum Qualifications

Option 1: Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or related area and 15 years’ experience in product management.

Option 2: 17 years’ experience in product management or related area.

Preferred Qualifications (Extended)

Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Business Administration or related area and 14 years’ experience as a product manager, ideally working on consumer‑facing, large‑scale, highly complex B2B/C products. Supervisory experience. Preferred candidates have experience creating inclusive digital experiences, knowledge of Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standards, assistive technologies, and integrating digital accessibility seamlessly.

Primary Location

1345 Crossman Ave, Sunnyvale, CA 94089‑1114, United States of America

Additional Information

Walmart and its subsidiaries are committed to maintaining a drug‑free workplace and have a no‑tolerance policy regarding the use of illegal drugs and alcohol on the job. This policy applies to all employees and aims to create a safe and productive work environment.