Division and Unit Overview

The American Chemical Society (ACS) is the world’s largest scientific membership association and one of the top ten peer-reviewed science publishers in the world. The Publications Division of ACS has all the characteristics of a medium-sized commercial STM publishing company: its primary competitors for authors, market-share, and talent are Elsevier, Wiley, and Springer/Nature. It is one of two ACS divisions charged with serving a dual function: generating substantial revenue – currently over $200M - to support the Society’s programmatic activities and fulfilling a core mission of the Society by advancing knowledge in the field of chemistry and the chemical enterprise.

ACS Publications is passionate about supporting the mission of ACS through products and services that meet the most critical needs of researchers and the scientific enterprise. We are ambitious for our customers and believe transformative technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) will drive the transformation of our industry, accelerating the dissemination of the scientific discovery needed to address Earth’s greatest challenges.

We are seeking an analytical thinker with a passion for driving operational excellence to join our team as Head of Product Operations.

Role Description

The Head of Product Operations will oversee the operational aspects of our product lifecycle, ensuring seamless integration between product development, marketing, and customer support. This role requires a strategic thinker with strong leadership skills and a deep understanding of product management and operations.

Key Responsibilities:

Partners with Product Management, Technology and Program Management functions to define standardized and scalable road mapping process and lead rollout across all product areas. Manages product feedback loop (interviews, feedback, testing, experimentation) to improve product and customer experience; and prioritizes against company objectives, customer pain/experience and OKRs to ensure product teams are building the right thing at the right time. Oversees quality assurance checks on new features. Develops business processes and owns product management tech stack to streamline product development. Develop and implement operational strategies to support product development, launch, and post-launch activities. Collaborate with cross-functional teams including Product Management, Engineering, Sales, Marketing, Business, and Customer Support to align product operations with business goals. Monitor and analyze product performance metrics to identify areas for improvement and drive operational excellence. Establish and maintain processes for product documentation, training, and support. Ensure compliance with industry standards and regulations. Manage budgets and resources for the Product Operations department.

Required Skills:

Bachelor’s degree and a minimum of 8 years of related experience; or 6 years and a Master’s degree. Strong leadership skills. Excellent analytical and problem-solving abilities. Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills. Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, dynamic environment. Proficiency in project management tools and software; experience managing multiple projects simultaneously while ensuring timely delivery and quality outcomes. Proficient in analyzing complex data and metrics to make informed decisions and drive continuous improvement.

 Required Experience:

Proven experience in product operations, product management, or a related field.

Travel Expectations: 

Occasional regional and international travel is required. Estimated travel expectations are not to exceed 10%.

DC-based: This role is based in our Washington, D.C. office. A reasonable rate of compensation for this position is between $144,000 & $195,000 per year.

ACS currently provides the following benefits for this position: paid vacation leave, paid sick leave, paid holidays, health insurance, flexible spending account or health care savings account, dental insurance, life insurance, vision insurance, retirement benefits, short- and long-term disability, and 4-week work from anywhere; each benefit is subject to the terms of the applicable program. Additional benefits may apply based on skills, experience, and location.

Any actual offer of employment, reflecting the total compensation package and benefits, will be made in the sole discretion of ACS. ACS reserves the right to amend or modify its employment benefits and compensation structure at any time.