UVA Health is seeking a Product Owner to join the Digital Solutions Team within Marketing & Communications. This role is responsible for the day-to-day health and execution of the product backlog - ensuring stories are well-defined, prioritized, and sprint-ready so the development team can deliver with clarity and confidence.
The Product Owner operates at the intersection of business, UX, and engineering, collaborating and partnering with internal stakeholders to ensure department wide needs are met. They translate organizational needs into actionable, clearly-scoped user stories, own prioritization decisions, and serve as the team's primary point of contact for scope and acceptance during active sprints. They also work closely with the Manager of Digital Solutions to support strategy and roadmap development by bringing insights that help inform and evolve priorities.
These roles are responsible for handling a range of tasks across various communications functions. Staff and leaders in these positions may engage in digital media management, graphic design, public relations, and other activities as needed to support comprehensive communications strategies.
About the Digital Solutions Team
Our team operates using a product-led model focused on UVA Health's digital front door and the end-to-end digital patient experience. We are responsible for the strategy, user experience, and technologies that support and power UVA Health's digital ecosystem. We prioritize initiatives that advance:
Patient acquisition
Frictionless patient experience
Long-term patient loyalty
Operational efficiency
Department-wide marketing technology
Key Responsibilities
Backlog Ownership & Story Development
Own,maintain, andprioritize the product backlog at all times, ensuring itis never emptyorunsorted, and always reflects current team priorities.
Write user stories with explicit, testable acceptance criteria; no story enters a sprint without them.
Translate business requirements and stakeholder requests into actionable,appropriately-scopedbacklog items.
Prioritize the backlog based on user value, delivery effort, and strategic alignment - and defend those decisions clearly.
Maintain and enforce the team's definition of done alongside the Delivery Lead.
Sprint Execution Support
Be available to developers during active sprints to answer scope and requirements questions without changing scope mid-sprint.
Formally accept or reject sprint deliverablesagainst acceptance criteriaat review.
Participate in sprint planning, backlog refinement, daily standup, sprint review, and retrospectives.
Partner with the Delivery Lead during backlog refinement to ensure stories are estimated andsprint-ready.
Discovery & User Insight
Conduct discovery work in parallel with delivery,including user interviews, stakeholder sessions, and competitive landscape review,to ensure the backlog reflects validated user needs, not just internal requests.
Work with the UX Designer to ensure research findings and usability insights inform backlog decisions.
Track product outcome metrics alongside delivery metrics(adoption, task completion, and user satisfaction)to assess whether shipped work is creating real value.
Roadmap Contribution & Stakeholder Communication
Connects Epics and Stories to the overarching strategic intent in the backlog as it ladders up to departmental and organizational goals androadmaps.
Contribute to roadmap planning conversations by providingdelivery-informed perspective, surfacing constraints, andidentifyingopportunities uncovered during discovery.
Communicate planned work and delivery timelines to internal stakeholders; proactively manage expectations on scope and scheduling.
Keep the Manager of Digital Solutions informed on backlog direction and flag potential pivots before they become surprises.
Translate stakeholder goals into prioritized backlog items that balance business needs with team capacity.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
Collaborate closely with the UX Designer, Delivery Lead,and WebDevelopersto ensure stories are technicallyfeasibleand experientially sound before sprints begin.
Participate in UX reviews and design critiques to ensure that what is being designed aligns with what can be built and what users need.
Partner with the Delivery Lead tomaintainaccuratesprint boards and clear status reporting to leadership.
Required Qualifications
Bachelor's degree in Business, Information Systems, Communications, or a related field (or equivalent professional experience).
Fiveyears of experience in a Product Owner, Product Manager, Business Analyst, or related digital product role.
Demonstrated experience writing user stories with clear, testable acceptance criteria.
Strong backlog management skills - prioritization, grooming, and sprint readiness.
Experience working within Agile/Scrum delivery teams.
Ability to translate business goals and stakeholder needs into actionable,appropriately-scopedwork.
Strong organizational skills and attention to detail; comfortable managing multiple concurrent priorities.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills; equally effective with technical developers and non-technical stakeholders.
Experience conducting user research or stakeholder interviews to inform product decisions.
Preferred Qualifications
Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) or equivalent Agile certification.
Experience in digital product, website, or web application development @contexts.
Familiarity with platforms such as Contentstack, Epic, Kyruus, orCoveo.
Experience using Jira and/orAirtablefor backlog management, intake workflows, and stakeholder reporting.
Experience in healthcare, academic medicine, or other regulated industries.
Familiarity with digital marketing, analytics, SEO, or conversion optimization as it relates to product decision-making.
Experience coordinating work that involves third-party vendors or external development partners.
Success Measures
Success in this role will be measured by:
Backlog quality - stories are consistently well-defined, estimated, and sprint-ready with clear acceptance criteria.
Sprint stability - developers can execute sprint commitments without mid-sprintscopeambiguity.
Discovery cadence - discovery is happening in parallel with delivery, not after the fact.
Stakeholder clarity - internal stakeholders haveaccurate, up-to-date visibility into planned work and delivery timelines.
Outcome tracking - shipped work is evaluated against user and business value metrics, not just completion status.
Roadmap contribution - insights from delivery and discovery are meaningfully feeding into planning conversations with the Manager.
Physical Demands & Work Location
This is primarily a sedentary role involving extensive use of desktop computers. This position currently requires on-site presence in the Charlottesville office at least two days per week. Some travel to attend meetings or programs may occasionally be required.
The University of Virginia, including the UVA Health System which represents the UVA Medical Center, Schools of Medicine and Nursing, UVA Physician's Group, and the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, is fundamentally committed to the diversity of our faculty and staff. We believe diversity is excellence expressing itself through every person's perspectives and lived experiences. We are equal opportunity and affirmative action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, veteran status, and family medical or genetic information.
The pay range for this role is $70,600.00 - $141,201.00 annually. Individual compensation will be determined by the selected candidate's qualifications, previous work experience, and/or education.
Benefits
Comprehensive Benefits Package: Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance
Paid Time Off, Long-term and Short-term Disability, Retirement Savings
Health Saving Plans, and Flexible Spending Accounts
Certification and education support
Generous Paid Time Off
UVA Health (https://jobs.virginia.edu/why-uva-health) is a world-class Magnet Recognized academic medical center and health system with a level 1 trauma center. 2023-2024 U.S. News & World Report "Best Hospitals" guide (https://health.usnews.com/best-hospitals/area/va/university-of-virginia-medical-center-6344000) rates UVA Health University Medical Center as "High Performing" in 5 adult specialties and 14 conditions/procedures. We are one of 70 National Cancer Institute designated cancer centers. UVA Health Children's (https://jobs.virginia.edu/uva-childrens) is named by 2023-2024 U.S. News & World Report (https://health.usnews.com/best-hospitals/area/va/university-of-virginia-childrens-hospital-PA6344000) as the best children's hospital in Virginia with 9 specialties ranked among the best in the nation. Our footprint also encompasses 3 community hospitals and an integrated network of primary and specialty care clinics throughout Charlottesville, Culpeper, Northern Virginia, and beyond.
The University of Virginia is an equal opportunity employer. All interested persons are encouraged to apply, including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Learn more about UVA's commitment to non-discrimination and equal opportunity employment (https://eocr.virginia.edu/notice-non-discrimination-and-equal-opportunity) .
