Description

This position will act as Product Owner II on a production team utilizing Scrum methodology and implementing Agile ideology. The Product Owner II serves as a bridge between the product development process, business stakeholders, and clients. The Product Owner's primary goal is to provide value for the business/customers and align the business needs with the overall business strategy. These responsibilities include meeting with stakeholders, developing and adapting product vision, writing user stories, prioritizing and grooming the backlog, release planning, etc. This position attends daily stand up, sprint planning, and retro. The ultimate goal of an Agile team is to understand business needs and develop optimal business and/or IT solutions in partnership with department stakeholders and functional experts.

ORGANIZATIONAL SUMMARY:

Located in the vibrant and diverse Tampa Bay region of Florida's gulf coast, the University of South Florida (USF) is a Preeminent State Research University with campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg and Sarasota-Manatee. Rated as one of the top places to live in the U.S., Tampa Bay offers a high quality of life, year-round sunshine, and easy access to top-rated entertainment. USF is one of the nation's largest public universities, serving more than 50,000 students with an annual budget of $1.8 billon. Over the past five years, USF has been the fastest-rising university in the nation, public or private, on the U.S. News and World Report's list of best universities, which it ranks as the 44th best public university in America.

USF is proud to be an innovating partner within the Tampa Bay region, listed by Forbes as the top emerging tech city in the country.

USF Information Technology (USF IT) provides technology services and support for the University of South Florida. The IT team, led by the Vice President and CIO, provides the following services: Administrative Services, Client Support, Communication Services, Teaching and Learning, Analytics and Reporting, Mobile and Web Services, Consulting Services, Cybersecurity Service and Research Technologies. For more information, please visit: Information Technology | University of South Florida (usf.edu)

ADDITIONAL INFO FOR APPLICANTS:

The selected candidate must have current work authorization in the United States. This position is not eligible for Visa Sponsorship.

USF offers GREAT BENEFITS to full time employees!!

• Medical Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Vision Insurance
• Paid Vacation Days
• Paid Sick Days
• 11 Paid Holidays
• Various Retirement Options , including 401K employer match
• Tuition Assistance (available for yourself, spouse, partner or dependent)

Bachelor's degree in Business, Engineering, Computer Science or IT related field and one year of IT or Project Management experience, OR five years of IT or Project Management experience, or a combination of relevant experience and education.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES (KSAS):

• Jira/Confluence proficiency for story/feature/backlog management
• Experience writing clear user stories, acceptance criteria, process mapping
• Ability to interpret agile metrics (velocity, burn-down, throughput)
• QA/UAT/test oversight knowledge including rollout/production monitoring
• Vendor/technical stakeholder collaboration skills
• Exposure to scaled agile frameworks (SAFe, Release Train, multi-team dependencies)
• Ability to define success metrics and monitor feature adoption/value delivery

• Clear, empathetic, and transparent communication
• Strong stakeholder management and alignment
• Servant leadership and influence across teams
• Analytical judgment guided by data and business value
• Adaptability and resilience in complex, changing environments
• Commitment to inclusive collaboration and continuous improvement

• SAFe
• Agile
• Scrum

Degree Equivalency Clause: Four years of direct experience for a bachelor's degree.
• Senate Bill 1310- The Florida Senate (https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2023/1310) is conditional upon meeting all employment eligibility requirements in the U.S.
• SB 1310: Substitution of Work Experience for Postsecondary Education Requirements
• A public employer may include a postsecondary degree as a baseline requirement only as an alternative to the number of years of direct experience required, not to exceed:
• (a) Two years of direct experience for an associate degree;
• (b) Four years of direct experience for a bachelor's degree;
• (c) Six years of direct experience for a master's degree;
• (d) Seven years of direct experience for a professional degree; or
• (e) Nine years of direct experience for a doctoral degree
• Related work experience may not substitute for any required licensure, certification, or registration required for the position of employment as established by the public employer and indicated in the advertised description of the position of employment.
• Minimum Qualifications that require a high school diploma are exempt from SB 1310.Working at USF
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With approximately 16,000 employees, the University of South Florida is one of the largest employers in the Tampa Bay area. We are dedicated to cultivating a talented, engaged and driven workforce that strives to be bold. Employees excel in USF's rich academic environment, which fosters their development and advancement. In 2025, Forbes recognized USF as one of Florida's best large employers, ranked No. 1 among the state's 12 public universities. Our first-class benefits package includes medical, dental and life insurance plans, retirement plan options, employee and dependent tuition programs, generous leave, and hundreds of employee perks and discounts.
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About USF
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The University of South Florida is a top-ranked research university serving approximately 50,000 students from across the globe at campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota-Manatee and USF Health. USF is recognized by U.S. News & World Report as a top 50 public university and the best value in Florida. U.S. News also ranks the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine as the No. 1 medical school in Florida and in the highest tier nationwide. USF is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), a group that includes only the top 3% of universities in the U.S. With an all-time high of $738 million in research funding in 2024 and as a top 20 public university for producing U.S. patents, USF uses innovation to transform lives and shape a better future. The university generates an annual economic impact of more than $6 billion. USF's Division I athletics teams compete in the American Athletic Conference. Learn more at www.usf.edu .
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Compliance and Federal Notices
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This position may be subject to a Level 1 or Level 2 criminal background check.
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Applicants have rights under Federal Employment Laws :
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The University of South Florida is an equal opportunity employer that does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment based on any characteristic protected by law. The University maintains programs for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities in accordance with all applicable federal and state laws.
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Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
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Applicants for USF employment are entitled to request reasonable accommodation(s) in the application process. A request is to be made at least five (5) working days prior to the time the accommodation(s) is needed. Visit the Central Human Resources ADA Accommodations webpage for more information on requesting an accommodation during the application/interview process.
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Equal Employment Opportunity
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The University of South Florida is an equal opportunity employer that does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment based on any characteristic protected by law. The University maintains affirmative action programs for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities in accordance with all applicable federal and state laws. This job description does not constitute an employment contract.

• Serves as a liaison between stakeholders, vendors and senior management.
• Works with the Stakeholder and Strategic Product Owner to define and articulate a clear product vision aligned to the overall strategy for the product.
• Negotiates and mediates problems with stakeholders.
• Identifies problems that require more strategic analysis and works with the Strategic Product Owner to mediate or escalate.
• Communicates the needs of all internal stakeholders and works with the team to identify solutions based on the need of the audience.
• Identifies barriers that impact customer service.
• Leads small to medium programs or projects with moderate to complex tasks in support of one or more projects that require a singular area of expertise.
• Identifies domain constraints (characteristics of the business environment specific to the application domain) that limit the functionality or performance of the system or product to be built.
• Conducts Strengths and Weaknesses portion of SWOT internal analysis.
• Employs MoSCoW, Scorecard, Kano Analysis and other prioritization techniques to build and refine the product backlog.
• Uses Story Mapping on small projects and creates Impact Maps.
• Writes and communicates well-written User Stories and Acceptance Criteria.
• Writes and approves Acceptance Criteria.
• Provides final acceptance of the User Story.
• Creates and validates prototypes.
• Understands and keeps abreast of Scrum and other Agile methodologies.
• Works closely with the Scrum Master who is the owner of the Scrum process.