Head of Product Development (m/w/d)

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is North America's largest transportation network, serving a population of 15.3 million people across a 5,000-square-mile travel area surrounding New York City, Long Island, southeastern New York State, and Connecticut. The MTA network comprises the nation’s largest bus fleet and more subway and commuter rail cars than all other U.MTA strives to provide a safe and reliable commute, excellent customer service, and rewarding opportunities.

The MTA IT Department is centrally responsible for providing a full range of Information and Operational Technology services to the MTA agencies and administrative units through its operating and support units. The MTA transportation network has a very large system and infrastructure for financial, business, automated train, transportation, power, and physical security. The MTA IT Department is centrally responsible for providing a full range of Information and Operational Technology services to the MTA agencies and administrative units through its operating and support units. MTA IT’s Product Development group is empowered, multi-functional teams focused on the end-to-end management of development products from strategy to delivery. Using innovative processes and tools, the teams are responsible for developing and maintaining highly effective, secure, and innovative transportation, operational, and back-end information systems to support MTA goals and priorities.

This role is responsible for developing and maintaining product lifecycles from inception/innovation through design, build, and ultimately the ongoing run stage before an eventual product retirement. Corp Finance/ Capital Planning & Budget

Workforce Products (Payroll, Pension, Timekeeping, Recruitment)

Platforms/Back-End Operations/DBA

Bus & Paratransit

Scheduling Crew Pick

Customer Experience

Revenue Fare Collections

Oversees rigorous quality assurance processes to deliver reliability, performance, and safety objectives

Oversees staff workload and quality of work, addressing performance issues when needed.

Implements the product vision and strategy into the product development team’s work.

Identifies potential risks to the product and develops mitigation strategies. Escalates risks to leadership as needed.

Manages through change, including the ability to adapt to shifting priorities and market conditions.

Translates strategies and policies into operational plans, ensuring alignment with company objectives.

Delivers monthly or quarterly results, with performance subject to regular review against targets.

Collaborates with IT and business leaders to create and manage product roadmaps aligned with digital strategies.

Develops, manages, and monitors system support processes to maintain product quality and sustainability.

Understands customer needs, market trends, and the competitive landscape to inform product strategy and feature prioritization.

Manages day-to-day operations and motivates team(s) to achieve results; Supervises a professional team of IT staff in its selection, adoption, development, and support of one or more product lines through all stages of the product lifecycle, from ideation, definition, prototyping, design, validation & testing, launch, run stage, and eventual product retirement.

Develops and maintains personal knowledge of relevant industry models, methods, and tools, emerging technologies, and high-impact regulatory changes.

Observes the work performed by contractors.

Addresses performance issues with contractors when possible.

Ability to prioritize, handle multitasking, and work in an agile environment. Strong experience in managing projects and initiatives.

Strong experience with constant shifting needs and demands of the business Departments.

Experience in at least one software engineering methodology, including but not limited to: Waterfall, Agile, Scrum, DevOps, Extreme Programming (XP), Kanban, Lean, Rapid Application Development (RAD)

Experience with the following language(s): Job Specific ( e.g., Ruby, Python, Java, C++, COBOL, etc. )

Familiarity with the following vendor‑specific platforms: Azure, Windows Server platforms, or Linux).

Expert leadership in leading people by working with staff to develop systems to ensure consistent, high‑quality project management discipline for all technology‑related initiatives and endeavors.

Expert leadership in driving results by meeting organizational goals and customer expectations, and making decisions that produce high‑quality results by applying technical knowledge, analyzing problems, and calculating risks.

Expert leadership in business acumen by providing direction on evaluation, selection, implementation, and maintenance of information systems, ensuring appropriate investment in strategic and operational systems.

Expert leadership in building coalitions by internally and externally building partnerships with key stakeholders to help achieve the MTA’s mission or common goals through influence or negotiations.

Demonstrated ability to lead teams, provide coaching, and direct feedback.

Expert in active listening, attention to detail, customer service, prioritization, and problem‑solving skills.

Expert in identifying and analyzing risks and developing effective mitigation strategies.

Expert technical knowledge and a diverse skillset to understand various technologies, systems, and potential risks.

Expert in managing multiple projects simultaneously and prioritizing tasks based on urgency and impact.

Expert in identifying complex business and technology risks and associated vulnerabilities.

Expert in communicating effectively, both orally and in writing, to interact with team members, customers, management, and support personnel (technical and non‑technical).

Expert in establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with employees at all levels within the organization, and with both internal and external customers.

Bachelor’s degree. evenings and weekends)

Travel may be required to other MTA locations or other external sites .

According to the New York State Public Officers Law & the MTA Code of Ethics, all employees who hold a policymaking position must file an Annual Statement of Financial Disclosure (FDS) with the NYS Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government (the “Commission”).

MTA and its subsidiary and affiliated agencies are Equal Opportunity Employers, including those concerning veteran status and individuals with disabilities.