Chief Product Officer

Chief Product Officer

The Chief Product Officer (CPO) will serve as a key member of the executive leadership team, responsible for defining, leading, and executing the product vision and strategy across the organization's portfolio of publishing products and services. This role requires a deep understanding of the academic publishing ecosystem, researcher and librarian needs, open science and open access trends, digital publishing platforms, evolving landscape of scholarly communication, and education & digital learning markets.

The CPO will lead cross-functional product management teams, drive innovation in digital products, ensure strong market alignment, and deliver sustainable growth while upholding the organization's mission to advance knowledge dissemination in the scholarly, academic, and education communities. A central focus will be on seamless integration across business units, customer experience journeys, and cross-sector innovation.

Responsibilities

• Define and own the product strategy and roadmap across all publishing and platform offerings, ensuring alignment with business goals, community needs and customer / user journeys.
• Partner with the executive team to shape overall organizational strategy, especially regarding digital transformation, and global expansion.
• Monitor industry trends (e.g., open access and open data mandates, AI in research workflows) to anticipate market shifts and position the organization at the forefront of scholarly communication.
• Shape the organization's digital product strategy across both scholarly communication and education ecosystems, ensuring cohesive growth and future vision in both sectors.
• Align product strategy to ensure seamless interoperability across business units (publishing, education, technology, sales, marketing) for cohesive customer-facing solutions.
• Drive the development of digital-first products, platforms, and services that improve researcher, author, librarian, educator, and learner experiences (e.g., submission systems, peer review tools, discovery platforms, analytics dashboards).
• Lead initiatives in metadata management, interoperability, research data services, AI / ML integration, and workflow automation.
• Champion customer-centric design and data-driven decision making in all product initiatives.
• Lead innovation in digital learning products, adaptive education technologies, and content delivery platforms to support education and learning markets.
• Oversee product lifecycle management, from ideation to launch to ongoing optimization.
• Establish frameworks for product governance, performance measurement, and portfolio prioritization.
• Ensure compliance with industry standards (e.g., Crossref, ORCID, DOIs, COUNTER, COPE), global data privacy and ethical AI regulations.
• Build, lead, and mentor a high-performing global product organization, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and accountability.
• Partner with editorial, technology, sales, and marketing teams to deliver integrated solutions that align with both internal business needs, external customer needs, and future market requirements. Engage directly with researchers, institutions, funders, and societies to gather insights and strengthen partnerships.
• Actively support M&A technology related activities and assess the build versus buy options.

Qualifications

Key Competencies

Physical Requirements

KGL a CJK Group, is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, religion, national origin, disability, protected Veteran status, age, or any other characteristic protected by law.