VP, Product Management - Tokenization & Identity

VP, Product Management – Tokenization & Identity

At Early Warning, we've powered and protected the U.S. financial system for over thirty years with cutting-edge solutions like Zelle®, Paze℠, and so much more. As a trusted name in payments, we partner with thousands of institutions to increase access to financial services and protect transactions for hundreds of millions of consumers and small businesses.

Positions located in Scottsdale, San Francisco, Chicago, or New York follow a hybrid work model to allow for a more collaborative working environment.

Candidates responding to this posting must independently possess the eligibility to work in the United States, for any employer, at the date of hire. This position is ineligible for employment Visa sponsorship.

Overall Purpose

The VP, Product Management – Tokenization & Identity is responsible for defining and executing the tokenization and identity strategy as a foundational platform capability that enables and scales all Paze experiences and use cases.

This leader drives the transformation of the directory and token infrastructure into a modern, flexible, and extensible platform designed to support emerging payment experiences, evolving business models, and future growth opportunities. The role establishes strong governance frameworks, data standards, operational controls, and risk management practices while creating a unified approach to token lifecycle management and digital identity across multiple channels, including eCommerce, NFC, agentic commerce, and other emerging ecosystems.

In this role, the VP serves as a highly cross-functional leader, partnering closely with Partnership, Engineering, Risk, Data & Analytics, and Operations teams to align strategic priorities and execute against a shared roadmap. The position also requires deep collaboration with financial institutions, payment networks, issuer processors, merchants, and strategic technology partners to influence industry direction, evaluate tradeoffs, and deliver scalable, secure, and market-leading solutions that drive adoption, interoperability, and long-term platform value.

Essential Functions

Integrated Product Strategy and Vision

• Define and champion the product vision, strategy, and roadmap for the token directory & identity services.
• Translate market needs, customer expectations, partner requirements, regulatory considerations, and business priorities into a clear product direction and execution plan.
• Harmonize tokenization and identity capabilities across e-commerce, NFC, agentic, and emerging channels.
• Establish product priorities that balance customer experience, partner adoption, platform scalability, revenue growth, risk controls, and operational feasibility.
• Continuously monitor the payments, digital identity, e-commerce, wallet, authentication, and emerging technology landscape to identify opportunities for innovation and differentiation.

Platform Capability Development and Execution

• Lead the build, evolution, and scale of secure, extensible, and interoperable product and platform capabilities that support current and future Paze products.
• Own the evolution of token, directory, and identity infrastructure into modern platform services with clear governance, data standards, operating models, and risk controls.
• Oversee the product development lifecycle from strategy, discovery, concept validation, and requirements through development, launch, post-launch analysis, and continuous improvement.
• Partner with Engineering teams to define product requirements, groom user stories, manage tradeoffs, and ensure timely delivery of high-quality market solutions.
• Apply design thinking, agile methodologies, customer insights, operating metrics, and data-driven decision making to improve delivery quality and product outcomes.

Partner, Ecosystem, and Cross-Functional Leadership

• Work closely with Partnerships to drive optimal product and commercial outcomes across issuers, owner and non-owner financial institutions, payment networks, issuer processors, merchants, channels, agents, and strategic technology partners.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Engineering, Risk, Marketing, Sales, Data, Legal, Compliance, Operations, and other stakeholders to ensure alignment and effective execution of the product roadmap.
• Influence senior leaders and external partners to drive adoption, resolve ambiguity, align on priorities, and scale platform capabilities across complex ecosystems.
• Break down organizational silos, make clear tradeoffs, and create accountability for measurable customer, partner, platform, and revenue outcomes.
• Represent the product strategy and roadmap in executive forums, partner discussions, planning processes, and business reviews.

Leadership, Talent, and Operating Discipline

• Lead and mentor a high-performing product organization, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, accountability, practical problem solving, and responsible risk management.
• Set clear goals, provide regular coaching and feedback, and empower team members to execute with ownership and sound judgment.
• Recruit, develop, and retain top tier talent.
• Operate with a hands-on builder mindset appropriate for evolving and early-stage product environments while maintaining VP-level strategic leadership and executive presence.
• Support the company's commitment to risk management by protecting the integrity, security, availability, and confidentiality of systems, data, and product capabilities.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in business, engineering, technology, product management, quantitative field, or related discipline, or equivalent work experience.
• Typically, 15 or more years of progressive product management or related experience in consumer payments, digital commerce, platform products, financial services technology, or a related field.
• Deep experience with consumer payments, including online checkout solutions, wallets, card tokenization, authentication, identity, directory, or data platform capabilities.
• Demonstrated ability to define and execute multi-product or cross-vertical product and platform strategies in complex, regulated environments.
• Proven experience building, scaling, and delivering successful products and platform services, including setting product strategy, developing roadmaps, and achieving business outcomes.
• Experience designing or scaling token lifecycle, identity, directory, authentication, or related platform frameworks across channels.
• Demonstrated leadership experience, including direct people management, cross-functional leadership, executive alignment, and talent development.
• Experience influencing financial institutions, payment networks, processors, merchants, channels, or strategic technology partners to drive adoption at scale.
• Demonstrated use of operating metrics, customer insights, consumer data, analytics, and business performance data to define, test, and optimize growth strategies.
• Experience working closely with Engineering, Technology, UX, Marketing, Sales, Risk, Compliance, Legal, Data, Operations, and Partnerships in a cross-functional operating model.
• Strong understanding of design thinking, agile development processes, product discovery, requirements definition, and iterative delivery methodologies.
• Strong communication, executive presence, decision-making, and influencing skills, with the ability to translate complex product, platform, partner, and technical topics into clear business direction.
• Background and drug screen.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree or advanced degree in a relevant discipline.
• Strong understanding of the changing financial services, payments, legal, regulatory, privacy, security, and risk environment.
• Experience establishing platform governance, data standards, operating models, risk controls, and measurement practices for scaled product capabilities.
• Experience building and scaling platform services that include data architecture, insights, identity, directory, tokenization, or related infrastructure.
• Experience operating in evolving, ambiguous, or early-stage product environments that require strategic direction, hands-on problem solving, and disciplined execution.

The above job description is not intended to be an all-inclusive list of duties and standards of the position.

Physical Requirements

Early Warning works together in a highly collaborative office environment. As such, working conditions consist of a normal office environment. Work is primarily sedentary and requires extensive use of a computer and involves sitting for periods of approximately four hours. Work may require occasional standing, walking, kneeling and reaching. Must be able to lift 10 pounds occasionally and/or negligible amount of force frequently. Requires visual acuity and dexterity to view, prepare, and manipulate documents and office equipment including personal computers. Requires the ability to communicate with internal and/or external customers.

Employee must be able to perform essential functions and physical requirements of position with or without reasonable accommodation.

Candidates responding to this posting must independently possess the eligibility to work in the United States at the date of hire.

The base pay scale for this position in: Phoenix, AZ/ Chicago, IL / Washington, DC in USD per year is: $248,000 - $330,000. New York, NY/ San Francisco, CA in USD per year is: $272,000 - $363,000. Additionally, candidates are eligible for a discretionary incentive plan and benefits.

This pay scale is subject to change and is not necessarily reflective of actual compensation