Lead Associate Product Management, Statutory Disability & Paid Family and Medica

The work we do has an impact on millions of lives, and you can be a part of it. We help protect our customers against life s uncertainties. Regardless of where you work within the company, you ll be helping provide protection and peace of mind when our customers need it most. We are seeking a strategic and execution driven product management leader to serve as Lead Associate, Statutory Disability and Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) Product Management within our Employee Benefits (EB) business. This role will be responsible for the successful design, development, implementation, and maintenance of statutory disability and PFML programs, while ensuring regulatory compliance. The Lead Associate will oversee the full product lifecycle across active and emerging states and play a critical role in advancing Protective s Employee Benefits growth and expansion in the PFML market. Key Responsibilities • Lead the end-to-end product lifecycle for Statutory Disability and PFML products, including market entry and expansion, product enhancements, renewals, and ongoing optimization. • Ensure timely and accurate implementation of new state programs and legislative changes, translating regulatory requirements into actionable product, operational, and system strategies. • Lead the development and execution of product filings, including end-to-end ownership of filing strategy and coordination with Legal and Compliance. • Oversee the development, maintenance, and governance of product specifications, supporting tools, and related documentation, aligned with EB methodologies and practices. • Drive product design, standardization, and scalability, ensuring consistency across states while maintaining flexibility to meet regulatory requirements. • Lead product performance monitoring and market intelligence efforts, including profitability, growth, competitive positioning, and survey-driven insights to benchmark EB against competitors. • Partner with internal and external research teams, Marketing, and Sales to inform product positioning, value proposition development, go-to-market strategy, and sales enablement. • Partner with Actuarial and Underwriting to support pricing strategy, rate development, forecasting, and loss ratio performance. • Lead cross-functional alignment across Legal, Marketing, Claims, Operations, Underwriting, Actuarial, Finance, Technology, and Sales across all stages of the product development process. • Drive product governance routines and decision frameworks to enable effective prioritization and execution. • Serve as the central product authority and subject matter expert for statutory disability and PFML, ensuring alignment on strategy, regulatory interpretation, risk evaluation, and execution across stakeholders. • Oversee operational readiness and execution for product launches and enhancements, including systems, processes, documentation, and cross-functional training. • Represent Product, in partnership with Legal and Compliance, in engagement with industry groups and trade associations, as appropriate. • Support and lead broader product strategy initiatives as assigned by EB management. Required Skills and Abilities • Strong people skills and proven ability to lead in a highly matrixed, cross-functional environment, influencing senior stakeholders and driving execution. • Strategic mindset and strong judgment, with the ability to navigate ambiguity, define clear priorities, and drive decisions through execution; consistently contributes thoughtful continuous improvement perspectives and new ideas. • Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills, with the ability to translate complexity into clear decisions and actionable plans. • Strong product and project management capabilities, with advanced knowledge of agile methodologies and project management tools. • Ability to work autonomously and collaboratively to develop solutions and achieve objectives under limited oversight. • Executive-level communication and presentation skills. • Excellent written and verbal communication skills. • Ability to travel as needed (~10-15%). Education and Experience • 10+ years of experience in product management within the employee benefits industry, with expertise in PFML, statutory disability, and multi-state regulatory environments. • Bachelor s degree in Business Administration or related field (MS / MBA preferred). • In-depth knowledge of group insurance products. • Strong experience with product filings, legislative interpretation, and regulatory compliance. • Proven ability to effectively engage and manage external partners, including consultants, research firms, and third-party service providers, in support of product initiatives. Employee Benefits We aim to protect our employees' wellbeing through a broad benefits offering. For example, we protect physical wellbeing through health, dental and vision insurance. We protect mental wellbeing through mental health benefits and an employee assis...