Principal Product Manager - Payments

About the role

In this position, you will shape the strategic vision and execution plan for our worldwide payments platform, concentrating on acceptance, coverage, and infrastructure. This senior individual contributor role demands extensive technical knowledge to oversee intricate integrations and enhance payment functionalities for our enterprise clientele. You will serve as the principal subject matter expert, working closely with engineering and leadership teams across the United States, Beijing, and India to propel our global payment initiatives forward.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Take ownership of a comprehensive, multi-year product strategy aimed at enhancing global payment acceptance and platform functionalities.
• Oversee the entire lifecycle of integrations with various payment processors, acquirers, and orchestration partners, ensuring operations.
• Design and implement global features, including new payment methods, digital wallets, and local schemes, to optimize authorization rates and improve customer experience.
• Analyze transaction processing data to pinpoint and rectify failures, while simultaneously enhancing the resiliency of the payment systems.
• Set technical standards for APIs, reconciliation processes, error management, and system observability to ensure high-quality service delivery.
• Act as the main point of contact for key customers and partners regarding payment coverage and integration issues, fostering strong relationships.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to align product development with business objectives, ensuring that technical requirements translate into tangible outcomes.
• data-driven insights to inform product decisions and prioritize features that deliver the most value to customers.
• Stay abreast of industry trends and innovations to continuously enhance the payment platform and maintain competitive advantage.
• Mentor junior team members, sharing knowledge and best practices to elevate the overall capability of the product management team.
• Participate in strategic planning sessions to align payment initiatives with the broader company goals and objectives.

Requirements

• A minimum of 10 years of direct experience in the payments industry, demonstrating a deep understanding of the landscape.
• A proven history of successfully building and launching payment platforms or global features at scale in previous roles.
• Expertise in managing complex technical integrations, including API specification mapping, tokenization, 3DS/SCA, and idempotency.
• Significant experience in senior-level product management, including ownership of roadmaps and making informed trade-offs across platform and coverage initiatives.
• Strong ability to connect technical requirements with business outcomes, collaborating effectively with architects and engineers to achieve shared goals.
• Familiarity with leveraging AI or machine learning to enhance processes such as automated reconciliation, forecasting, or churn analytics.
• Comprehensive understanding of global market dynamics, including regional regulations and data residency requirements that impact payment solutions.

Nice to have

• Experience in recurring billing, subscription management, or usage-based business models, adding depth to your understanding of payment needs.
• Knowledge of global regulations such as PSD2, SCA, and PCI-DSS, which are crucial for compliance in the payments sector.
• Previous roles as a solution architect or engineer within the payments industry, providing a well-rounded perspective on technical challenges.
• Familiarity with payment orchestration platforms and strategies for multi-processor routing, enhancing the efficiency of payment processing.

Skills & tools

• Proficiency in Java, Spring, Rest API, Microservices, Kafka, Spark, NodeJS, AWS, Kubernetes, Terraform, and AngularJS, which are essential for developing and managing payment solutions.

Practical notes

• The base salary for this position begins at $185,400, with the final compensation determined by factors such as experience, skills, and geographic location.
• The total rewards package includes opportunities for variable bonuses, equity, comprehensive medical/dental/vision insurance, and a learning stipend to support professional growth.
• Benefits also encompass flexible time off, paid parental leave, and resources for mental wellbeing, promoting a healthy work-life balance.
• If you need assistance or accommodations during the application process, please reach out to assistance@zuora.com for support.