Product Manager, UGC Community

About NewsBreak

NewsBreak is redefining the way users interact with local news and their communities. By bridging local users, local content creators, and local businesses, our mission is to foster safer, more vibrant, and authentically connected lives. Through robust collaborations with thousands of local publishers and businesses across the nation, NewsBreak is revolutionizing how a new wave of readers access and engage with essential, locally sourced content & information.

Since our inception in 2015, our trajectory has been nothing short of remarkable. We proudly stand as the nation’s premier local news app.

As a Series-C unicorn startup, our headquarter nestles in the tech hub of Mountain View, California, with other offices in New York City and Seattle. For more information, visit www.newsbreak.com/about

About the Role

We are seeking a talented and driven Product Manager to join our team, focusing on the early-stage optimization of our UGC ecosystem from both the creator and user perspectives. In this pivotal role, you will be instrumental in shaping the foundational product experience for our community. You'll work closely with engineering, design, and content operations to identify critical pain points, build intuitive features, and drive the growth and engagement of our UGC platform.

Responsibilities

UGC Ecosystem Product Strategy & Execution:

• Own the product roadmap for the early stages of our UGC ecosystem, focusing on empowering creators and enhancing the user experience.
• Conduct in-depth user research, market analysis, and competitive benchmarking to identify key opportunities and pain points for both content creators and consumers.
• Translate user needs, business goals, and technical capabilities into clear, concise product requirements, user stories, and acceptance criteria.
• Collaborate closely with engineering, design, and content operations teams throughout the product development lifecycle, from ideation to launch and iteration.

Creator-Centric Product Optimization:

• Design and optimize features that streamline the creator onboarding process, content creation tools, and content submission workflows.
• Develop and iterate on mechanisms that help creators understand their audience, track performance, and grow their influence on the platform.
• Identify and address friction points that hinder creator retention and content output, focusing on building a positive and supportive creator environment.

User-Side Engagement & Discovery:

• Enhance the user experience for discovering, consuming, and interacting with UGC content.
• Develop features that foster user engagement with UGC, including commenting, sharing, following creators, and personalized content feeds.
• Optimize content distribution and recommendation algorithms to ensure relevant and high-quality UGC reaches the right users.

Data Analysis & Iteration:

• Define and monitor key product metrics (KPIs) related to UGC growth, creator activity, and user engagement.
• Utilize data analytics to evaluate product performance, identify areas for improvement, and inform future product decisions.
• Conduct A/B testing and other experimentation methods to validate hypotheses and optimize features.

Requirements

Experience:

• Bachelor's degree or higher in a relevant field (e.g., Computer Science, Engineering, Business, Design).
• 3+ years of product management experience in the internet industry, with a strong focus on UGC products or community platforms.
• Demonstrated experience in the early-stage (0-1 or 1-N) development and optimization of product features, ideally for creator-facing tools or user engagement within a community context.
• Strong understanding of content ecosystems, creator motivations, and user behavior in a social or community setting.
• Proven ability to translate complex user needs and business requirements into clear, actionable product specifications.

Key Qualities:

• Product Vision & Strategy: Ability to think strategically about product direction and translate vision into actionable roadmaps.
• User Empathy: Deep understanding of user psychology and a passion for solving user problems.
• Data-Driven Decision Maker: Proficient in using data analytics to inform product decisions and measure success.
• Technical Acumen: Ability to understand technical complexities and effectively communicate with engineering teams.
• Execution & Collaboration: Excellent project management skills, with a proven ability to lead cross-functional teams to deliver high-quality products on time.
• Communication: Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, able to articulate complex ideas clearly to diverse audiences.
• Language Proficiency: Fluent in both Chinese and English (verbal, reading, and writing), able to adapt to a cross-cultural work environment.

Bonus Points:

• Experience with news, local content, or short-form video platforms.
• Familiarity with creator economy trends and best practices.
• Experience working in a fast-paced, agile development environment.

Benefits

We offer competitive benefits package:

• Health, dental, and vision care for you and your family
• Top-tier 401(K) plan with company matching
• Paid time off and paid holidays
• Paid parental leave
• FSA and commuter benefits programs
• Team activity budget

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