At Pearson, we’re committed to a world that’s always learning and to our talented team who makes it all possible. We are bold thinkers and standout innovators who motivate each other to explore new frontiers in an environment that supports and inspires us to always be better.

We are looking for a Commercial Product Manager for the Sociology and Political Science disciplines to join a highly collaborative team in the Higher Education Courseware division. We are dedicated to prioritizing customer value in the products we build. We focus on market opportunities to meet customer needs and deliver successful learner outcomes. The Commercial Product Manager is accountable for delivering products that meet market expectations and drive value for our customers and revenue for Pearson. We value teamwork, trust, flexibility, achievement, and solving difficult problems while enjoying the camaraderie of a driven team. The role reports to the Manager of Product Management: Humanities and Social Sciences.

What you’ll do

• Be the voice of the higher education customer and constantly place customer value at the center of decision-making. Work with authors and colleagues in North America and around the globe to identify, assess, and prioritize market opportunity and customer pain points in Sociology and Political Science to ensure maximizing both commercial and learner outcomes.
• Create and execute product P&L plans and drive achievement of the financial targets for your products.
• Own the author relationship, and partner closely with them to create best-in-class content. Build relationships with potential new authors, thought-leaders, and market shapers to create leading content and bring their teaching models to Pearson.
• Lead on the creation of new products and features and drive them through the product lifecycle, with a focus on developing a strategy and product plan from the short term to the long term.
• Gather and use research and customer feedback leading to deep market insight for both your products and competitor products, along with digital experience and analytics to design product strategy and identify which customers to target. This includes traveling to visit instructors at college campuses across the country, as well as to other events such as customer focus groups, academic conferences, or other venues for customer interaction.
• Collaborate closely on projects with colleagues from many internal stakeholder teams, including Content Production, Sales, Marketing, UX, Application and Platform teams to create products that improve outcomes for learners while driving business value for Pearson.
• Be accountable for the execution of the customer experience for your products including implementation in the classroom and drive continuous improvement once products have been launched to optimize customer experience, adapt to specific geography/market segment requirements, respond to competitor actions and improve learner, and commercial outcomes.

Key Requirements and Attributes

Degree (or equivalent experience)

Product management experience, including managing digital products preferred.

Good understanding of education and learning from a consumer viewpoint: ability to translate the winning product management strategies into actionable plans and products that drive value for customers and learners.

Great insight into the needs of different markets and the opportunities within them, capability to execute product strategies that serve various market needs.

Deep comprehension of the digital world and ability to translate this into product realization.

High competence to balance strategic thinking with a focus on operational delivery.

Able to maintain a ruthless prioritization to deliver product, ensuring that the product stays on track to achieve its strategic objectives.

Ability to communicate objectives to constituent teams, delegate assignments / deliverables appropriately and trust teams to deliver.

Expertise – You have a depth and breadth of expertise in your specialized field and can provide expertise to various stakeholders. You demonstrate knowledge of best practices within your area of specialty and how it integrates with related areas of the business.

Accountability and Ownership – You take ownership and accountability for targets and drive achievement through effective leadership, determination and motivation to succeed. You demonstrate sound judgment in assessing business risks and make decisions that balance a variety of factors taking into consideration set goals. You solve problems by using expertise to evaluate multiple sources of information and create innovative solutions to problems. You seek information from internal and external sources, prioritizing and analyzing potential solutions in complex or new situations.

Building Partnerships – You identify opportunities and take action to build strategic relationships between your area and other teams, departments and organizations to help achieve business goals.

Communication and Collaboration – You are able to clearly convey information and ideas through a variety of media to individuals and groups in a manner that engages the audience and helps them to understand and retain the message. You communicate points of view in a compelling way and with expertise across a wide range of projects as well as across internal & external clients. You have great collaboration skills and are able to work effectively across teams regardless of reporting lines.

Aligning Performance for Success – You lead through providing direction across the business and/or through a team and achieve the completion of substantial projects, operations or customer objectives. You can guide others in accomplishing work objectives, setting performance goals; achieving targets and creating a learning environment comes naturally to you. You recognize the impact of change on others, and lead through positive behavior and coaching.

Analytical Skill and Learning Agility – You take a systematic, structured view of situations, while staying focused on the execution and delivery. You have the capacity to be open to new ideas and comfortable exploring areas where there is ambiguity.

Innovation – Generating innovative solutions in work situations; out-of-the-box approaches; trying different and novel ways to deal with challenges and focusing on opportunities to aid achievement of product delivery are reflected in your ways of working.

Deliver Results – You have a track record of transforming strategy into executable action plans and also a great track record of successful achievement against set execution .

Time Management & Organization – You possess excellent organizational and time management skills, coupled with the proven ability to set priorities, manage deadlines as well as manage resources effectively and make data-driven decisions.

Accountable – You have ntegrity, set clear expectations and deliver what is promised.

Compensation at Pearson is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, and specific location. As required by the Colorado and New York City laws, the pay range for this position is as follows:

Minimum full-time salary range start at $95,000.

This position is eligible to participate in an annual incentive program, and information on benefits offered is here.

What to expect from Pearson

Did you know Pearson is one of the 10 most innovative education companies of 2022?

At Pearson, we add life to a lifetime of learning so everyone can realize the life they imagine. We do this by creating vibrant and enriching learning experiences designed for real-life impact. We are on a journey to be 100 percent digital to meet the changing needs of the global population by developing a new strategy with ambitious targets. To deliver on our strategic vision, we have five business divisions that are the foundation for the long-term growth of the company: Assessment & Qualifications, Virtual Learning, English Language Learning, Workforce Skills and Higher Education. Alongside these, we have our corporate divisions: Digital & Technology, Finance, Global Corporate Marketing & Communications, Human Resources, Legal, Strategy and Direct to Consumer. Learn more at We are Pearson.

We value the power of an inclusive culture and also a strong sense of belonging. We promote a culture where differences are embraced, opportunities are accessible, consideration and respect are the norm and all individuals are supported in reaching their full potential. Through our talent, we believe that diversity, equity and inclusion make us a more innovative and vibrant place to work. People are at the center, and we are committed to building a workplace where talent can learn, grow and thrive.

Pearson is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer and a member of E-Verify. We want a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives and skills. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. All employment decisions are based on qualifications, merit and business need. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status or any other group protected by law. We strive for a workforce that reflects the diversity of our communities.

To learn more about Pearson’s commitment to a diverse and inclusive workforce, navigate to: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Pearson.

If you are an individual with a disability and are unable or limited in your ability to use or access our career site as a result of your disability, you may request reasonable accommodations by emailing ppsmhr@pearson.com.

Note that the information you provide will stay confidential and will be stored securely. It will not be seen by those involved in making decisions as part of the recruitment process.

Job: PRODUCT MANAGEMENT

Organization: Higher Education

Schedule: FULL\_TIME

Req ID: 10731

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