Product Manager - Public Library Discovery

Hard Problems; Dublin (CA); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Best-in-class health coverage

Retirement plans with generous company

Paid parental leave

Tuition reimbursement

Public Service Loan Forgiveness equity

Job summary

OCLC, based in Dublin, OH, is seeking a Product Manager to own strategy and growth for the public libraries discovery portfolio, driving CapiraMobile, web visibility, and new channels in collaboration with engineering, UX, sales, and library partners.

You will lead roadmaps, market analysis, pricing plans, and cross-functional workstreams to balance patron needs with business priorities, while developing customer acquisition and retention strategies and supporting sales with marketing

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• 2 to 4 years of experience in library services or library management systems.
• 2 to 4 years of experience in product, project, or program management.
• 2 to 4 years of experience supporting online or database services, preferably in the library field.
• Strong communication and presentation skills.
• Solid understanding of the product management lifecycle.
• Demonstrated ability in financial planning and forecasting.

Responsibilities

• Set and maintain the product roadmap for the public library discovery portfolio, defining strategic goals and collaborating with development on release plans.
• Conduct market analysis and develop product strategy, business cases, pricing strategies, and positioning plans to support product profitability.
• Lead cross-functional product workgroups, facilitate communication between product management and development, and drive consensus on priorities.
• Develop strategies for customer acquisition and retention, manage relationships with user groups, and support the sales team with marketing and awareness plans.
• Commission and interpret market research to maintain expertise in the markets served, competitive alternatives, new technology, and relevant standards.
• Produce market and sector white papers, define and refine user personas, and generate market size and penetration statistics by sector and territory.
• Provide training and support to sales and support teams, and assist on significant sales calls when needed.
• Analyse product wins and losses against competitors and feed those insights back into product planning.
• Contribute input into portfolio business plans, roadmaps, strategies, metrics, and progress reviews.

Skills

Product lifecycle

Market analysis

Cross-functional leadership

Communication skills

Financial planning

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

Job description

OCLC is a non-profit global technology company that develops services for libraries. It connects libraries to each other and to the people they serve through large-scale cloud computing, data sharing, AI and machine learning, and discovery tools used by member libraries worldwide. Its mission is to make knowledge accessible to everyone, on the principle that what is known must be shared.

The role

This Product Manager role owns strategy and growth for OCLC's patron-facing discovery portfolio in public libraries, covering products including CapiraMobile, public library web visibility, and new offerings that help libraries reach patrons across web, mobile, and emerging AI-assisted channels. The role also owns market analysis, competitive positioning, and new revenue opportunities for the product line. It works closely with engineering, UX, sales, and library partners to balance patron needs, market trends, and business priorities.

What you would do

• Set and maintain the product roadmap for the public library discovery portfolio, defining strategic goals and collaborating with development on release plans.
• Conduct market analysis and develop product strategy, business cases, pricing strategies, and positioning plans to support product profitability.
• Lead cross-functional product workgroups, facilitate communication between product management and development, and drive consensus on priorities.
• Develop strategies for customer acquisition and retention, manage relationships with user groups, and support the sales team with marketing and awareness plans.
• Commission and interpret market research to maintain expertise in the markets served, competitive alternatives, new technology, and relevant standards.
• Produce market and sector white papers, define and refine user personas, and generate market size and penetration statistics by sector and territory.
• Provide training and support to sales and support teams, and assist on significant sales calls when needed.
• Analyse product wins and losses against competitors and feed those insights back into product planning.
• Contribute input into portfolio business plans, roadmaps, strategies, metrics, and progress reviews.

What they are looking for

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• 2 to 4 years of experience in library services or library management systems.
• 2 to 4 years of experience in product, project, or program management.
• 2 to 4 years of experience supporting online or database services, preferably in the library field.
• Strong communication and presentation skills.
• Solid understanding of the product management lifecycle.
• Demonstrated ability in financial planning and forecasting.
• Experience managing staff or leading teams (desired but not required).
• Experience leading cross-functional workgroups (desired but not required).
• Knowledge of OCLC products and services (desired but not required).

Working arrangements

The role is based in Dublin, OH, in a hybrid arrangement. For many roles at OCLC, this means three days per week on-site, with occasional additional days based on business needs. The campus includes a fitness centre, cafeteria, and a range of on-site amenities.

Pay and benefits

OCLC offers a Total Rewards package including competitive compensation, best‑in‑class health coverage, retirement plans with generous company contributions, paid parental leave, adoption assistance, tuition reimbursement, Public Service Loan Forgiveness eligibility, and company‑subsidized pricing on local tickets and memberships.