Head of Product, Technical

Technical Product Senior Manager US-IL-Chicago Department : Data and AI Summary The Technical Product Senior Manager is a senior leader who combines deep technical expertise with strong business acumen. Serving as the firm’s business-facing lead for workflow automation initiatives, this role ensures complex business needs are translated into clear, actionable, and technically sound solutions. The Senior Manager must be equally adept at hands-on technical work—building automations when needed, reviewing architectures, validating feasibility, and leveraging AI tools—as well as leading teams to deliver high-quality outcomes under tight timelines. By fluently bridging business priorities with technical execution, this role drives alignment, accelerates adoption of intelligent automation, and enables scalable AI-driven workflow solutions across the firm. This hybrid role blends the capabilities of a technical product senior manager, technical lead, and strategic business partner, making it pivotal to shaping and delivering the firm’s Data & AI strategy. Duties and Responsibilities Lead the intake process for workflow automation and AI initiatives, ensuring requests are captured, assessed, and prioritized by business value and technical feasibility. Manage the product backlog, ensuring delivery teams focus on the right priorities and maintain momentum on high-impact initiatives. Serve as the primary business-facing lead, engaging with stakeholders to clarify objectives, align expectations, and drive consensus on scope and priorities. Review and validate solution architectures, technical approaches, and platform selections, ensuring alignment with firm standards and scalability needs. Provide hands-on technical leadership when needed—evaluating tools, building prototypes, or testing automation concepts to accelerate delivery. Influence the firm’s Data & AI roadmap by identifying emerging opportunities, aligning business priorities, and advising leadership on automation and AI adoption strategies. Track and communicate initiative progress, proactively identify blockers, and facilitate resolution to keep projects on schedule. If an estimated salary range for this role is available, it will be provided in our Target Salary Range section. Our compensation package also includes bonus eligibility and a comprehensive benefits program. Target Salary Range $180,000 - $200,000 if located in Illinois Qualifications To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform the Duties and Responsibilities (Duties) above satisfactorily and meet the requirements below. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job. Education and / or Experience : Required : Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Information Technology, Business, or related field; Experience with automation platforms, workflow orchestration tools, AI / ML technologies, and cloud-based platforms. A minimum of 6 years of experience in technical product management, solution delivery, or Agile program management with cross-functional teams. Proven track record of managing product backlogs and driving prioritization of initiatives by business value and technical feasibility. Experience facilitating intake, roadmap planning, and stakeholder alignment sessions. Strong technical background, with hands-on experience in reviewing architectures, evaluating platforms, and validating automation or AI solutions. Familiarity with Agile project management tools such as Jira, Azure DevOps, or similar. Strong problem-solving and analytical skills, with the ability to adapt to changing priorities and manage multiple initiatives simultaneously. Preferred : Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) or Certified Scrum Master (CSM). Proficiency in process analysis, workflow design, and optimization techniques. Proficiency in the following technologies, n8n (or equivalent experience in other workflow tools), LLMs, ChatGPT, UiPath (or equivalent experience in other RPA tools), Git, Javascript, C#, Python, Azure Devops - Boards and Test Suites, JIRA and draw.User experience (UX) knowledge, with an understanding of usability principles and how user needs inform product design. legal, financial, accounting, consulting). Experience leading organizational change and driving adoption of new technologies across business units. Experience leading distributed or remote delivery teams and managing stakeholders across multiple geographies. Strong organizational skills Strong attention to detail Good judgment Strong interpersonal communication skills Strong analytical and problem-solving skills Able to work harmoniously and effectively with others Able to preserve confidentiality and exercise discretion Able to work under pressure Able to manage multiple projects with competing deadlines and priorities Sidley Austin LLP is an Equal Opportunity Employer LI-Hybrid LI-OE1 PI29a48ee6fdc2-25448-38850564