Product Manager // Self-funded Saas Company

Motion Recruitment; New York (NY); On-site; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Motion Recruitment in New York is seeking a Product Owner for a purpose-built scheduling platform serving large-scale construction projects. You will bridge construction expertise and the development team, turning ideas into user stories with clear acceptance criteria.

You’ll own the product backlog, prioritize work, and act as the on-call decision-maker when founders are unavailable, while the engineering lead handles implementation. A fast-paced startup mindset is essential.

Qualifications

• Experience in an early-stage startup, ideally as the first Product Management hire.
• Direct construction scheduling or project controls experience.
• Proven track record owning product backlogs and defining acceptance criteria.
• Thrives in fast-paced startup environments with cross-functional alignment.

Responsibilities

• Translate founder vision into developer-ready user stories and requirements.
• Own and prioritise the product backlog to drive high-impact delivery.
• Bridge construction scheduling logic and software engineering.
• Make autonomous product decisions and provide constructive pushback.

Skills

Early-stage startup experience

Construction scheduling domain knowl

Product backlog ownership

Acceptance criteria definition

Decisive leadership

Communication and collaboration

Job description

Job Description

We are a purpose-built scheduling platform utilized for large-scale construction projects.The enterprise construction-scheduling Saas platform is built for construction around the operational complexities of multi-million-dollar construction guidelines. With enterprise customers beginning to use the platform independently and a public commercial launch ahead, we are growing our team to support its next stage and are looking to expand our team.

As a Product Owner, you'll be the bridge between the co-founders' construction expertise and the development team building out the code.You’ll be responsible for turning raw product ideas into user stories with clear acceptance criteria, prioritizing and sequencing what gets built, and acting as the on-call decision-maker for developers when the founders are unavailable, while the engineering lead owns how it gets built. You’ll work side by side with a small, growing development team and stay deeply connected to how schedulers and Primavera P6 users actually work, so decisions move from conversation to code in days, not weeks.

Responsibilities

• Translate founder vision into actionable, developer-ready user stories and requirements.
• Own and rigorously prioritize the product backlog to drive continuous, high-impact delivery.
• Serve as the crucial bridge between complex construction scheduling logic and software engineering.
• Act as an autonomous product leader who makes definitive calls and offers constructive pushback.

Qualifications

• Must have: Experience working at an early stage startup, ideally the founding/first Product Management hire.
  Direct experience in construction (e.g., scheduling, project controls) combined with a strong technical aptitude.
• Proven history of owning product backlogs and defining crystal-clear acceptance criteria for engineering teams.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, ambiguous startup environment while maintaining strong alignment across small teams.
• A high-agency leader who earns trust and credibility through decisive action and honest communication.
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