AI Product Owner (US Citizen/Hybrid/Pubic Trust Required

AI Product Owner

IvoryCloud is seeking an AI Product Owner to support a vital government contract. In this role, you will turn mission needs into clear product priorities and guide AI-enabled solutions from discovery through delivery, adoption, and continuous improvement.

You will work directly with government stakeholders, end users, and technical teams to understand operational challenges, evaluate solution options, and deliver measurable value. We are looking for someone who takes initiative, brings informed recommendations, and follows work through to completion. You should be comfortable navigating ambiguity, asking thoughtful questions, and using evidence to guide decisions.

Responsibilities

• Lead product discovery. Engage government stakeholders and end users to understand workflows, identify unmet needs, and define problems before committing to solutions.
• Evaluate AI opportunities. Partner with technical leads to determine where AI can improve mission outcomes, considering data availability, feasibility, cost, security, and whether a simpler approach would better meet the need.
• Define product direction. Establish clear product goals, success measures, and a roadmap aligned with mission priorities and available delivery capacity.
• Own the product backlog. Create, prioritize, and maintain actionable features and user stories with clear acceptance criteria, dependencies, and expected outcomes.
• Bring informed recommendations. Use research, workflow analysis, user feedback, and technical input to present options and explain tradeoffs to government decision-makers.
• Lead refinement and clarify requirements. Prepare work for development, answer questions promptly, and resolve ambiguity with stakeholders and delivery teams.
• Guide iterative delivery. Break larger initiatives into useful increments that teams can build, test, release, and validate with users.
• Partner across disciplines. Collaborate with engineers, data specialists, architects, UX designers, QA, DevSecOps, and the Scrum Master to coordinate dependencies and address delivery risks.
• Validate AI behavior and product quality. Work with technical and QA teams to define representative test scenarios, expected behavior, quality thresholds, human review needs, and handling of inaccurate or unsupported outputs.
• Review and accept completed work. Evaluate functionality against agreed acceptance criteria and user needs, document gaps, and prioritize corrective work.
• Support release and adoption. Coordinate user validation, demonstrations, release communications, and feedback collection so delivered capabilities can be understood and used.
• Measure results. Track adoption, usability, output quality, and operational impact. Use findings to improve the product and recommend whether to expand, adjust, or discontinue a capability.
• Maintain clear communication and follow-through. Make priorities, decisions, dependencies, and risks visible. Escalate issues early with actionable options and close the loop on commitments.
• Support responsible AI practices. Incorporate applicable privacy, security, accessibility, data governance, and federal requirements into product planning and acceptance criteria.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field, such as Information Systems, Computer Science, Data Science, Business, or a related discipline.
• Demonstrated experience as a Product Owner, Product Manager, or in a comparable role with direct responsibility for product priorities, requirements, and delivery outcomes.
• Experience supporting federal agencies or government programs, including direct engagement with government stakeholders, working groups, or cross-functional initiatives.
• Experience delivering AI-enabled or data-driven products, with the ability to explain your contribution and the outcomes achieved.
• Working knowledge of AI and machine learning concepts, including generative AI, their practical applications, and their limitations.
• Ability to translate complex business needs into focused problem statements, prioritized backlogs, user stories, and testable acceptance criteria.
• Experience leading discovery sessions, workflow analysis, backlog refinement, and product demonstrations.
• Experience with Agile delivery methods, such as Scrum or Kanban, and backlog management tools such as Azure DevOps or Jira.
• Strong analytical judgment, including the ability to assess competing priorities and explain scope, capacity, and delivery tradeoffs.
• Clear communication skills and the ability to work effectively with technical teams, end users, and government leaders.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently, coordinate across teams, escalate issues appropriately, and follow commitments through to closure.
• A collaborative approach, openness to feedback, and a commitment to learning emerging technologies and applying them thoughtfully.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience moving AI capabilities from prototype or pilot into production use.
• Familiarity with large language models, retrieval-augmented generation, AI-assisted workflows, and evaluation of AI-generated outputs.
• Experience with Databricks or comparable enterprise data and AI platforms.
• Experience with products that depend on shared data, integrations, or multiple delivery teams.
• Experience defining product metrics and using user research or performance data to guide improvements.
• Familiarity with federal technology delivery constraints, including access approvals, deployment processes, accessibility, and security reviews.
• Product Owner or product management certification, such as CSPO or PSPO.

Employment Requirements

• U.S. citizenship is required. Authorization to work in the United States alone does not meet this requirement.
• Active security clearance (public trust or higher) is required.
• On-site attendance in Rockville, MD, two days per week is required.
• Ability to successfully complete multiple federal and local background and employment checks.
• Upon accepting the position, the candidate must report to the IvoryCloud office to complete paperwork, verify identification, and collect a laptop.
• Candidates outside the Rockville, MD area are responsible for upfront travel expenses associated with this onboarding visit. Reimbursement is provided after successful completion of the 90-day probationary period, consistent with company policy.

About IvoryCloud

IvoryCloud is a purpose-driven enterprise. We work every day to achieve results for our customers, build our expertise, and invest in the success of those around us.

We seek people who take ownership, pursue team and personal excellence, and bring curiosity and sound judgment to challenging problems. Our team values continuous learning, flexible thinking, and a shared commitment to delivering high-quality work.

Benefits

We offer a competitive benefits package, including:

• Competitive salary with performance-based bonus opportunities
• Professional and personal development through our mentor program
• Competitive paid time off
• Individual and family health insurance plans, including dental coverage
• Short-term and long-term disability coverage
• Matching 401(k)
• Training and certification opportunities eligible for expense reimbursement
• Catered lunches twice a week at our Rockville, MD headquarters
• Team-building and social activities

Pay: $100,000.00 - $140,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Flexible schedule
• Health insurance
• Health savings account
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Referral program
• Vision insurance

Application Question(s):

• This role requires U.S. Citizenship. If you meet this requirement, type citizen below.
• Can you meet the hybrid requirement of 2 days a week in office in Rockville, MD?

Experience:

• Federal agencies or government programs: 3 years (Required)

Work Location: In person