Technical Product Owner

Nelnet Business Services (NBS), a division of Nelnet, Inc., provides payment technology, education services, and learning management solutions to education and faith-based organizations, serving more than 1,300 higher education institutions, 11,500 K-12 schools, 3,500 churches, and millions of individual students, families, and supporters across the globe. Our culture of service enables us to form long-lasting and trusted partnerships, while our focus on creativity and innovative solutions empowers our customer communities to thrive.

 

As a Nelnet company, the perks at NBS go beyond our benefits package. You’re part of a community, invested in you as an individual and united by our mission to create opportunities for people where they live, learn and work.

This position analyzes how software development happens across the organization — including tools, processes, metrics, and artificial intelligence (AI) adoption — and using that analysis to drive meaningful improvements. The improvements created by this role are internal technical capabilities that make software teams more effective, scalable, and modern. This position will then coordinate the development and delivery of these capabilities. Additionally, this role helps define the strategic vision and roadmap for integrating AI into technology, tools and standards to enhance software capabilities, drive innovation and measurably improve the developer experience (DevEx) at every stage of the Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC).

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Collaborate with engineering teams and internal stakeholders to understand development workflows, tooling and pain points, and then scope, prioritize and iterate on AI-driven solutions and technical improvements.

• Shape the vision and roadmap for AI integration throughout the SDLC, from coding and testing to CI/CD and deployment

• Analyze team workflows and AI adoption patterns to identify high-impact opportunities for AI tools, automation productivity gains, and enhanced developer experience (DevEx)

• Define and track success metrics to measure the impact, ROI, and adoption of AI-integrated tools and processes

• Translate findings into technically sound user stories, acceptance criteria, and prioritized backlog items that clearly link AI solutions to DevEx outcomes.

• Manage product backlogs, write user stories, define acceptance criteria, and prioritize the most impactful improvements

• Stay current on AI-assisted development trends and competitive tools (GitHub Copilot, VS IntelliCode, etc.) to inform innovation and strategy.

• Promote a culture of continuous improvement, maintaining accurate documentation and driving developer empowerment through AI integration

• Conduct user research, gather feedback, and analyze workflows to validate assumptions and inform AI-related product decisions.

• Validate UX mocks, other prototypes and early-stage simulations with development teams

Salary range for this role is: $85,000- $110,000 depending on experience

EDUCATION:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field, or commensurate experience

EXPERIENCE:

• 5+ years’ experience in technical roles (e.g., software engineering, systems analysis, dev tooling)

• 5+ years’ experience writing clear, actionable, and technically sound user stories or requirements for engineering teams

• Experience with agile methodologies in highly technical environments

• Hands-on experience with modern AI or developer tooling including exposure to tools such as GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, CI/CD bots, and how they are used in software teams

COMPETENCIES – SKILLS/KNOWLEDGE/ABILITIES:

• Strong understanding of the complete software development lifecycle and understanding of AI integration opportunities at each stage

• Demonstrated ability to analyze technical systems, development workflows, and performance metrics

• Understanding of AI coding assistants, models, and context management

• Ability to define and measure success metrics for developer productivity and AI tool effectiveness

• Strong collaboration and listening skills — comfortable refining ideas based on feedback from technical experts

• Excellent communication ability, especially when synthesizing data and insights into narratives that drive action

• Ability to prioritize and manage multiple concurrent projects

• Working knowledge of generative AI, LLMs, and prompt engineering principles

• Flexibility to adapt quickly to new requirements, situations, programs, and services

• Good time management and organizational skills

• Strong problem-solving skills

• A love of learning and a thirst for knowledge, with a constant drive to expand understanding of the world

• A passion for all things at the intersection of developer experience and emerging AI technologies

• A vision for AI integration that uplifts the entire engineering organization.

• brings new, creative perspectives to solving problems and reshaping how developers interact with AI tools.

• All team members are expected to have a mindset of respect, collaboration, improvement and learning cycles, pride in ownership, focus on delivering value, and the ability to adapt to change.

Our benefits package includes medical, dental, vision, HSA and FSA, generous earned time off, 401K/student loan repayment, life insurance & AD&D insurance, employee assistance program, employee stock purchase program, tuition reimbursement, performance-based incentive pay, short- and long-term disability, and a robust wellness program. Click here to learn more about our benefits: LINK.

Nelnet is committed to providing a welcoming and respectful workplace where all associates have the opportunity to succeed. As an Equal Opportunity Employer, we ensure that all qualified applicants are considered for employment. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion/creed, national origin, gender, sex, marital status, age, disability, use of a guide dog or service animal, sexual orientation, military/veteran status, or any other status protected by federal, state, or local law. We value the unique contributions of every team member and believe that a positive work environment benefits everyone.  

Qualified individuals with disabilities who require reasonable accommodations in order to apply or compete for positions at Nelnet may request such accommodations by contacting Corporate Recruiting at 402-486-5725 or corporaterecruiting@nelnet.net.

Nelnet is a Drug Free and Tobacco Free Workplace.