Associate Product Manager

About Certn

At Certn, we’re changing how trust works with The World’s Easiest Background Check. We’ve raised $127M+, earned Deloitte Fast 50 recognition three years in a row, and we’re still only scratching the surface. Our goal is straightforward: help people move faster - into jobs, homes, and opportunities - by simplifying the path to trust.

 

We’re not a traditional background screening company. We’re a team of curious, collaborative builders who care about solving real problems for real people. We challenge each other, move fast, and have fun doing it. If you want to grow, make an impact, and help shape products used by millions, this is your place. Let’s build what’s next, together.

 

About the Role

The Associate Product Manager ("APM") works within the Product Management Team. This is a developmental product-management role with real ownership: the APM independently owns smaller, well-defined product problems and initiatives while receiving coaching and strategic direction from a Senior Product Manager or Product Leader.

The APM works across Product, Design, Engineering, Operations, Compliance and external data providers to understand problems, evaluate opportunities, define solutions, support delivery, launch improvements and measure whether they created the intended customer and business outcomes.

Key Responsibilities

Product Ownership & Delivery

• Own defined product initiatives, improvements, checks or IDV workstreams from discovery through launch and post-launch measurement, with coaching from a Senior Product Manager or Product Leader.

• Translate user, customer, operational and technical needs into clear product briefs, requirements, user stories and acceptance criteria.

• Partner with Design and Engineering to evaluate solution options, clarify trade-offs and ensure work is ready for development.

• Participate actively in planning, refinement, demos and retrospectives; maintain clear decisions, scope and follow-ups for assigned initiatives.

• Coordinate and perform product acceptance testing to confirm functionality, edge cases, data integrity and launch readiness.

• Prepare release notes, internal enablement materials and product demos as appropriate.

• Own post-launch follow-up for assigned initiatives and recommend iteration, remediation or end-of-lifecycle actions based on results.

Discovery & Problem Solving

• Investigate customer, applicant and operational problems using quantitative data, qualitative feedback, workflow observation and input from Engineering and Operations.

• Investigate recurring product-health issues such as failed or stuck transactions, low completion or verification rates, workflow friction and reliability gaps; summarize root cause and recommend action.

• Conduct customer, market and competitor research for assigned problem spaces and synthesize findings into product recommendations.

• Create user journeys, process flows or lightweight prototypes when they improve shared understanding of a problem or proposed solution.

• Use AI tools effectively to accelerate research, synthesis, analysis, prototyping, requirements development and workflow exploration, while applying appropriate judgment and validation.

• Build an understanding of background-check fulfillment and IDV workflows, including third-party data sources, applicant experiences, exceptions, manual processes and operational dependencies.

Product Performance & Prioritization

• Use product and operational data to understand performance and support prioritization decisions.

• Define and monitor success measures for assigned initiatives with coaching from the Senior Product Manager.

• Identify opportunities to improve automation, completion and verification rates, turnaround time, reliability, operational effort, support volume and gross margin

• Contribute evidence and recommendations to roadmap planning; identify high-value iterative improvements within assigned areas.

• Follow up on launched changes to determine whether the intended outcome was achieved and what should happen next.

Other Responsibilities

• Build effective working relationships across Product, Design, Engineering, Operations, Compliance, Customer Support, GTM and other internal stakeholders.

• Work with external data providers, identity partners and technology vendors to understand capabilities, APIs, limitations, service dependencies and integration opportunities.

• Coordinate stakeholder and operational testing where required and communicate decisions, risks, progress and launch readiness clearly.

• Escalate material risks, unresolved trade-offs or decisions that exceed the assigned scope, while bringing a clear recommendation whenever possible.

Key Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree or Equivalent Experience

• Experience of working in a fast paced tech environment

• Good communication skills, both written and verbal delivery

• Exposure to the software development lifecycle

• Experience in SaaS sales, customer support, account management or other form of direct client engagement

• Strong organization and follow-through; able to manage multiple defined workstreams without losing important details.

• Competent in Google/Microsoft office software (Word, Excel, Powerpoint)

Bonus

• Certifications or specialized training in product management or related fields.

• Experience in B2B2C industries

• Experience participating in SCRUM and/or Agile methodologies

• Project management experience

• Experience in drafting client facing communications

• Experience working with APIs, webhooks, integrations, data flows or third-party technology/data providers.

• Experience with product analytics, experimentation, operational metrics or structured root-cause analysis.

• Experience using AI tools to accelerate product research, analysis, prototyping or delivery workflows.

If you meet most, but not all, of the qualifications listed above, we still encourage you to apply. We recognize that strong candidates come from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, and we value the diversity of perspectives that brings.

Our Culture

Certn is a remote-first company with a high-performance edge. We value hustle, hunger, and helping each other win - but we also have a strict no-jerk policy. Ambition here is about lifting people up, not stepping on toes.

• We think like owners and execute with urgency.

• We’re customer-obsessed and always learning.

• We give real feedback and hold each other to high standards.

AI in Our Culture

We’re AI enthusiasts. From Ops to Legal, Product to People & Culture, we use AI to move faster, make smarter decisions, and build better experiences.

We believe in using AI intentionally - ethically, creatively, and always in service of delivering more for our customers and each other. Don’t worry if you’re not an expert; curiosity and a willingness to learn matter most.

 

What's in it for you?

• 32 days of paid time off per year

• Company-paid benefits that start on day 1

• Remote-friendly and supportive flexible remote arrangements

• Work-from-home allowance

• Professional development budget

• And a few more goodies!

Come As You Are

We’re committed to building a workplace that’s diverse, inclusive, and empowering for all. If you need accommodations to support any special needs at any stage of the recruitment process, just let us know - we’ve got you.

 

One Last Thing…

Just so you know, the selected candidate will be required to complete a background check. This means you will get to see first hand what we do, and trust us, we do it REALLY well!

 

How We Hire

We use AI tools to support our recruitment process, including helping us organize applications and identify early matches based on role criteria. That said, every rejection decision is made by a human. We encourage candidates to apply authentically and avoid relying solely on AI-generated responses, especially during interviews.

 

This posting is for a current, open position within Certn.

 

This opportunity is offered through HighlightTA, the on-demand talent team supporting Certn’s growth.

 

Connect with us and learn more: Certn on LinkedIn

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