Product Owner, College Pads

Product Owner, College Pads

StarRez is the global leader in student housing software, providing innovative solutions for on and off-campus housing management, resident wellness and experience, and revenue generation. Trusted by 1,400+ clients across 25+ countries, StarRez supports more than 4 million beds annually with its user-friendly, all-in-one platform, delivering seamless experiences for students and administrators. With offices in the United States, Australia, the UK, and India, StarRez blends the robust capabilities of a global organization with the personalized care and service of a trusted partner.

College Pads is transforming the way students navigate the transition from on-campus to off-campus life. Our platform enables universities to support their students by streamlining the process of finding and securing off-campus housing. By working closely with higher education institutions, we offer a trusted tool for students to connect with property managers and rental listings, helping to foster a foundation for wellbeing and success. As of January 2025, College Pads is part of StarRez.

The Role

StarRez is seeking a Product Owner to join the College Pads rebuild team in the UK, helping lead a 0→1 product build through to market launch.

This is not a typical PO role. You'll be working on a greenfield product with ambitious timelines, high visibility, and real impact, partnering closely with a US-based Product Manager and cross-functional teams in the UK and India. You'll play a critical role in translating product vision into execution, driving day-to-day delivery, ensuring the team ships high-quality product at speed and owning the backlog.

You'll operate in a fast-moving, AI-first environment, helping the team move quickly, stay aligned, and iterate toward product-market fit and launch readiness.

Role Details

• Work Location: Remote (UK)
• Travel: 5% (The percentage of travel is an estimation and may vary based on business needs.)
• Reporting Structure: This role reports to the Senior Director, Product Engineering.

What You'll Do

• Own delivery from zero to one: Translate product vision into clear, actionable work, owning day-to-day execution, sprint planning, backlog, and launch readiness
• Turn strategy into shipped product: Partner closely with the US-based Product Manager to break down priorities into deliverable increments that drive real progress toward launch
• Prioritise ruthlessly: Make clear decisions about what matters most, balancing customer value, business impact, speed, scope, and risk
• Drive outcomes, not just output: Ensure the team is focused on delivering features that impact acquisition, conversion, engagement, and business outcomes, not just completing tickets
• Keep the team moving fast: Remove blockers, clarify requirements, and maintain momentum in a high-urgency environment
• Work iteratively: Ship in small increments, gather feedback quickly, and continuously refine based on real usage
• Partner with Engineering & Design: Align on scope, trade-offs, and sequencing to balance speed, quality, and impact and launch goals
• Operate AI-first: Use AI tools to improve overall team efficiency, accelerate backlog creation and refinement, and streamline documentation
• Maintain clarity in ambiguity: Bring structure to evolving priorities, ensuring the team always knows what matters most and why, and what can wait

Required Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience as a Product Owner, Product Analyst, or similar role
• Strong experience in B2B2C or B2C products
• Experience working on 0→1 or rebuild products in high ambiguity and fast iteration
• Strong backlog management and prioritisation skills
• Proven ability to drive delivery and make sound trade-off decisions in fast-paced, cross-functional teams
• Experience translating high-level product direction into clear, actionable requirements
• Strong collaboration with Engineering, Design, and Product stakeholders
• Clear communicator who can align teams and surface trade-offs effectively
• Comfortable working with a distributed team
• A mindset focused on outcomes, customer value, and business impact, not just output

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in property technology or ILS-style products
• Experience in lead-based, conversion focused environments
• Background in scale-ups or high-growth environments
• Familiarity with agile delivery in fast-moving teams
• Experience using AI tools to improve product delivery workflows

Reasons to Join Our Team:

• Opportunity to be a part of a well-established, high-performance company that has been in business for over 30+ years
• A supportive team environment with emphasis on learning and development opportunities
• Our Promise: You will learn, grow, and be appreciated for your impact and contributions.
• Z-Factor: Our most celebrated value, you will work with a team of caring, high-performing, and passionate people who have fun supporting our vision, innovation, and continuous improvement.

Even if you don't have all of the Preferred Qualifications listed above, but feel you have what it takes to succeed in the role, we would love to hear from you!

We are proud of our diverse workforce and are dedicated to creating a safe and welcoming environment for all employees. People from various ethnicities, ages, genders, and abilities are encouraged to apply.