About Shega 

Shega is on a mission of elevating decision-making in Africa, starting with Ethiopia, through a data & Intelligence platform that aggregates and contextualizes information, along with a Media & Audience Ecosystem offering high-quality media and analysis driven content. We also provide Insights & Advisory, merging market intelligence with local expertise for strategic growth and social impact, and Agency Services to help brands and organizations connect with our expanding audience. By combining intelligence, an audience ecosystem, and tailored advisory, Shega partners local and international private and development actors to catalyze innovation and informed growth.  

Position Summary 

We are looking for a technical and user-focused Product Manager to join our AI and Technology team. The Product Manager is responsible for the product planning and execution throughout Product Lifecycles. This includes gathering and prioritizing product and customer requirements, defining the product vision, and working closely with engineering, sales, marketing, and support to ensure revenue and customer satisfaction goals are met. The Product Manager’s job also includes ensuring that the product supports the company’s overall strategy and goals. As a Product Manager at Shega, you will drive the development and market introduction of Shega products by analyzing market needs, working with engineering on product requirements, and ensuring smooth integration with existing software. You will advocate for developer needs, launch products, and create marketing materials to communicate product value. In general, the product manager oversees, develops, advocates for, and advances Shega product development processes from start to finish.  

Primary Responsibilities: 

Product Strategy and Vision 

• Define the long-term vision and strategy for the product, ensuring alignment with the company’s overall goals. Define the product vision, strategy, and roadmap in alignment with Shega’s business objectives. 

• Identify potential product opportunities by analyzing market trends, customer needs, and competitive products. Use this information to inform product decisions. Conduct market research, and competitive analysis to identify opportunities and refine product positioning. 

• Develop and execute product strategies for Microsoft products, including Windows, Office, Azure, Dynamics 365, and other related products 

• Lead the development of product roadmaps, feature sets, pricing models, and go-to-market plans, and develop clear, data-driven business cases for new product initiatives and enhancements. 

• Create detailed business cases to support product decisions and inform the product strategy while working closely with customers and internal partners. 

• Engage with technical, sales, engineering, field and marketing executives to gather input and garner support for product vision, strategy, and roadmap. 

• Communicate product plans and updates regularly and executives on product plans, strategies, and progress. Ensure that everyone is informed and aligned on the product’s direction. 

Product Development & Management 

• Develop comprehensive product requirements documents, including user stories, use cases, wireframes, and prototypes. Ensure that these documents clearly communicate the desired functionality to the engineering team. 

• Work closely with engineering teams to develop, test, and launch new product features and updates. Ensure that the product is built to specification and meets quality standards. 

• Oversee the entire product lifecycle, from ideation to launch and beyond. Continuously monitor product performance and gather customer feedback to inform ongoing improvements. 

• Organize and conduct user testing sessions to validate product concepts and gather feedback. Use this feedback to refine product features and improve the user experience. 

• Participate in user research and usability testing to gain insights into customer needs 

• Create a prioritized list of features and capabilities that align with business goals and customer demands. Ensure that the product roadmap reflects these priorities. 

• Define and prioritize product features and capabilities to align with Shega’s business goals and customer demands. Develop clear, data-driven business cases for new product initiatives and enhancements. 

• Manage product launches, ensuring successful execution of all activities, and perform product demos to customers and develop relationships in key clients 

• Proactively anticipate customer needs and market opportunities through quantitative and qualitative analyses. 

Collaboration cross-functional teams 

• Work closely with cross-functional teams and ensure alignment on product objectives and deliverables by collaborating with teams across the organization, including engineering, sales, audience engagement, marketing etc. 

• Collaborate with and influence cross functional teams across engineers, marketing, sales, customer success, data science, and finance to drive customer understanding and business growth strategy. 

• Develop product positioning and messaging and collaborate with the sales and marketing teams to create compelling product positioning and messaging that resonates with target customers. 

• Work with engineering teams to ensure that product requirements are met on time and within budget. 

• Develop and maintain relationships with key stakeholders, such as customers, partners, and vendors, and collaborate with design teams to ensure intuitive and user-friendly product experiences. 

• Collect, analyze and interpret customer feedback to identify opportunities for improvement in existing products or new features 

• Collaborate closely with the Product Managers, Business Development, and other customer focused architects to drive the end-to-end product vision. Advocate priorities and resources, working across divisional boundaries to ensure successful execution. 

Data Analysis & Reporting: 

• Track product performance using data analytics tools. Identify key performance indicators (KPIs) and use them to measure the success of the product. 

• Regularly analyze competitive products to ensure that the product remains relevant and competitive in the market. Identify areas for improvement and differentiation. 

• Monitor industry trends and competitive landscape to inform product strategy 

• Collaborate with marketing teams to develop effective messaging and positioning for products 

• Create detailed reports on product performance, including insights and recommendations for improvement. Share these reports with the management team to inform strategic decisions. 

• Defines key metrics for product success and monitor, report and improve product performance 

• Track and analyze product performance metrics to measure success and identify areas for improvement 

• Leverage data-driven insights to guide decision-making. 

Team Leadership 

• Lead project and commercial teams by fostering innovation, collaboration, and excellence. Mentor team members, conduct performance evaluations, and create a positive, creative work environment. 

• Provide technical guidance and training to internal and external teams 

• Drive execution against the strategic plan and OKRs, accelerating adoption, usage, and Microsoft’s security portfolio business. 

• Mentor members of the team and model Microsoft values and role best practices. 

Knowledge and Skills 

• Be able to understand, break down and clearly articulate complex functional technical and business challenges. 

• Identify patterns across a portfolio of feature areas and define the impact and prioritization of challenges. 

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills. 

• Excellent communication and presentation skills. 

• Ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams. 

• Proficiency in product management software tools. 

• Familiarity with agile development methodologies. 

• Ability to understand and analyze market trends, customer needs, and competitive products. Experience in developing business cases, pricing strategies, and go-to-market plans 

• Strong understanding of technology and the ability to communicate effectively with engineering teams. Ability to make informed decisions about product capabilities and understand technical constraints 

Education and Work Experience 

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, Software Engineering, or a related field. A Master’s degree is a plus. 

• Minimum of 3 - 5 years of experience in product management, preferably in the data analytics or technology industry. 

• Proven track record of successfully launching and scaling products. 

• Experience working with agile methodologies and cross-functional teams. 

• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to influence and inspire stakeholders. 

• Familiarity with tools such as Azure DevOps, JIRA, Confluence, Tableau, or similar.