Product Owner

Manulife is redefining our US Retirement business to enhance customer savings for retirement. The Product Owner partners closely with the Product Manager and Business Analyst to understand strategic priorities and translate them into clear, actionable priorities and plans for delivery. Acting as the voice of both the business and the customer, the Product Owner guides the delivery of value through an agile model—ensuring that work is aligned to customer needs, business outcomes, and enterprise priorities. This role is critical in connecting strategy to execution and driving measurable results that support the US Retirement vision, strategy, and OKRs

If you enjoy a dynamic, highly collaborative environment - this is the place for you!

Position Responsibilities:

• Own and prioritize the squad backlog; translate business needs into clear user stories with detailed acceptance criteria 

• Ensure user stories are well‑defined, properly scoped, and ready for development team intake

• Partner with stakeholders, User Experience (UX) /Design, and engineering to further refine requirements and deliver customer-centric solutions

• Support Agile ceremonies (refinement, sprint planning, reviews) and provide ongoing clarifications to the team

• Define test scenarios and acceptance criteria; collaborate with QA and participate in UAT to ensure quality delivery

• Act as the primary liaison between business and the squad, managing priorities and dependencies

• Provide effective communication and progress updates with stakeholders and business partners

• Drive continuous improvement through feedback, metrics, and iterative delivery

Qualifications:

• Business knowledge and understanding of the US Retirement business.

• Minimum of 5 years of experience in a business role or project management, along with at least 2 years of Agile experience as a Business Product Owner.

• Previous or active role as a SAFe Product Owner is strongly preferred.

• Preferred proficiency with requirements management tools, such as Jira, Azure DevOps, Confluence, or similar platforms (even if not in an Agile context)

• Preference for background in OMNI recordkeeping

• Experience in building capabilities and driving initiatives.

• Proficient in analyzing complex problems and implementing solutions that drive business results.

• Strong skills in user story requirement gathering and documentation.

• Excellent partner management and communication skills.

• Proficient in Excel and PowerPoint.

• Understanding of system design, analysis, and user testing.

• Outstanding organization and communication, 

• Ability to cultivate relationships with key team members across various functions and levels.

When you join our team:

• We’ll empower you to learn and grow the career you want.

• We’ll recognize and support you in a flexible environment where well-being and inclusion are more than just words.

• As part of our global team, we’ll support you in shaping the future you want to see

The role being advertised is an existing vacancy.

About Manulife and John Hancock

Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping people make their decisions easier and lives better. To learn more about us, visit https://www.manulife.com/en/about/our-story.html.

Manulife is an Equal Opportunity Employer

At Manulife/John Hancock, we embrace our diversity. We strive to attract, develop and retain a workforce that is as diverse as the customers we serve and to foster an inclusive work environment that embraces the strength of cultures and individuals. We are committed to fair recruitment, retention, advancement and compensation, and we administer all of our practices and programs without discrimination on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, religion or religious beliefs, creed, sex (including pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions), sexual orientation, genetic characteristics, veteran status, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status, disability, or any other ground protected by applicable law.

It is our priority to remove barriers to provide equal access to employment. A Human Resources representative will work with applicants who request a reasonable accommodation during the application process. All information shared during the accommodation request process will be stored and used in a manner that is consistent with applicable laws and Manulife/John Hancock policies. To request a reasonable accommodation in the application process, contact hr@manulife.com.

Referenced Salary Location

USA, Massachusetts - Full Time RemoteRemote

Salary range is expected to be between

$92,475.00 USD - $160,290.00 USD

Employees also have the opportunity to participate in incentive programs and earn incentive compensation tied to business and individual performance. The actual salary will vary depending on local market conditions, geography and relevant job-related factors such as knowledge, skills, qualifications, experience, and education/training. If you are applying for this role outside of the primary location, please contact hr@manulife.com for the salary range for your location.

Manulife/John Hancock offers eligible employees a wide array of customizable benefits, including health, dental, mental health, vision, short- and long-term disability, life and AD&D insurance coverage, adoption/surrogacy and wellness benefits, and employee/family assistance plans. We also offer eligible employees various retirement savings plans (including pension/401(k) savings plans and a global share ownership plan with employer matching contributions) and financial education and counseling resources. Our generous paid time off program in the U.S. includes up to 11 paid holidays, 3 personal days, 150 hours of vacation, and 40 hours of sick time (or more where required by law) each year, and we offer the full range of statutory leaves of absence.

We use data and analytics technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), and automated processing tools, to analyze and process the information you provide to us or third parties in the application process. For more information, please refer to our personal information collection statement.

Know Your Rights I Family & Medical Leave I Employee Polygraph Protection I Right to Work I E-Verify

Company: John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.)