Senior API Platform Product Manager

Summary

The Wikimedia Foundation is looking for a Senior API Platform Product Manager to join our newly formed Platform Product management team, reporting to the Director of Platform Product Management. As the Senior API Platform Product Manager, you will be responsible for working closely with our engineering teams across the foundation to build and deliver the WMF API Gateway, API portal, and API Management services. Additionally, you will partner closely with internal and external stakeholders to understand their API-related needs and develop innovative solutions that create value, support our mission, and position our technical stack to sustainably grow and scale, while empowering the free-knowledge community. Platform Product Managers possess deep expertise in various areas of technology, serving as Subject Matter Experts to development and non-development audiences alike.   

Wikipedia is one of the largest internet properties in the world, visited by 1 billion people a month across 280 different languages. Our foundational technology supports all of our properties, products, and offerings that empower the global free-knowledge community to produce and consume knowledge. 

Due to our scale, commitment to open source, and our desire to support the infrastructure of free knowledge, it is no easy task to build and maintain foundational technology. To deliver key capabilities that are needed, Platform Product Managers must develop strong understandings of internal and external clients, leverage their product management skills to distill capabilities from user needs, and partner closely with partners in engineering to identify, design, and build technical capabilities that support products and services that unlock value. 

As we build a high-performing Platform Product Management team, we are seeking individuals with varying areas of technical expertise such as working with AI platforms, APIs, cloud technology, caching, big data, etc. Platform Product Managers will be working closely with one or more engineering teams on a daily basis and will have to collaborate closely within the team in order to deliver solutions at scale.

You are responsible for:

• Guiding the development of integration of the WMF API Gateway, including:
• Feature identification and implementation (ex: rate limiting, throttling, etc.)
• API Protocols and Architecture Style support guidelines (ex: REST, SOAP, RPC, Kafka, etc.) 
• Migration of existing APIs to the API Gateway
• Integration of the API Gateway into our security strategy
• Defining clear user journeys for API producers and API consumers, both internally and externally
• Developing easy-to-use self service pathways for API consumers via our web API portal
• Educating stakeholders, supporting API producers, and managing the API lifecycle and API readiness
• Development of a GraphQL data platform that can be leveraged by web and native app feature teams to build consumer-driven products
• Developing a deep understanding of critical areas of our foundational technology stack, identifying opportunities to improve, extend, and/or leverage existing and new technologies to deliver against our mission and strategy.
• Translating product/technical strategy into a roadmap containing well-defined and prioritized user stories and features 
• Managing incoming requests to engineering, including triaging, clarifying, generating estimates, prioritizing, and managing stakeholder expectations
• Uncovering and understanding client needs and translate them into requirements and user stories
• Ensuring that requirements are fully understood and implementation plans match expectations
• Assessing and addressing technical risks
• Working closely with engineering teams to communicate the product vision, clarify use cases and requirements, and resolve questions and issues that arise during development.
• Clearly defining success criteria for testing and product acceptance
• Use both qualitative and quantitative methods to measure the impact of your work
• Serve as a product evangelist and subject matter expert to the technical community

Skills and Experience:

• 3+ years of experience designing and building APIs for internal and external stakeholders as a technical product manager, software engineer, or equivalent role
• Expertise in SOAP and REST web services
• Experience building or managing an API Gateway (ideally with Envoy experience)
• Experience designing API guidelines and interfaces
• A deep understanding of how to integrate API Gateways into a legacy technology stack and the ability to execute this
• Direct experience in companies or initiatives that have pulled together disparate products or services into a common experience for customers.
• Demonstrated experience building out API Gateway features including, rate limiting, authentication, throttling, etc.
• Proven project, communication, and time management skills
• Agility and flexibility to work with multiple different teams, projects, and technologies while delivering value and impact
• Ability to partner and work closely with internal teams, including developers, engineers, architects, security, and product teams. 
• Demonstrated experience prioritizing work
• Ability to solve complex business problems to maximize value while balancing technical constraints
• Ability  to draft documentation and visualizations that clarify technical concepts to non-technical audiences and vice-versa
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in relevant work experience

Qualities that are important to us:

• Problem-solver with a passion and willingness to learn and dive-deep into technical details
• Possess a growth mindset with ability to identify additional skills, knowledge, and/or expertise required and the drive to develop themselves where needed

Additionally, we’d love it if you have:

• Familiarity with Envoy API Gateways
• Working with on-premise technology stacks
• Experience working with microservice architectures
• Experience with open-source technology 
• Experience managing or developing a GraphQL data platform for web and native app feature teams
• Experience interacting with free and open-source software projects and communities
• Experience editing Wikipedia or contributing to other wiki projects

About the Wikimedia Foundation

The Wikimedia Foundation is the nonprofit organization that operates Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects. Our vision is a world in which every single human can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. We believe that everyone has the potential to contribute something to our shared knowledge, and that everyone should be able to access that knowledge freely. We host Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, build software experiences for reading, contributing, and sharing Wikimedia content, support the volunteer communities and partners who make Wikimedia possible, and advocate for policies that enable Wikimedia and free knowledge to thrive. 

The Wikimedia Foundation is a charitable, not-for-profit organization that relies on donations. We receive donations from millions of individuals around the world, with an average donation of about $15. We also receive donations through institutional grants and gifts. The Wikimedia Foundation is a United States 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization with offices in San Francisco, California, USA.

As an equal opportunity employer, the Wikimedia Foundation values having a diverse workforce and continuously strives to maintain an inclusive and equitable workplace. We encourage people with a diverse range of backgrounds to apply. We do not discriminate against any person based upon their race, traits historically associated with race, religion, color, national origin, sex, pregnancy or related medical conditions, parental status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, genetic information, or any other legally protected characteristics.

If you are a qualified applicant requiring assistance or an accommodation to complete any step of the application process due to a disability, you may contact us at recruiting@wikimedia.org or +1 (415) 839-6885.

U.S. Benefits & Perks*

• Health Care Benefits Covered at 100%: We cover 100% of premiums for medical, dental and vision plans for all full time employees and eligible dependents
• Wellness Reimbursement Program: Up to 1,800.00 USD per year for reimbursement for staff wellness expenses, such as gym fees, educational expenses, and more
• Technology and Equipment Stipend: In addition to receiving a brand new laptop, monitor, & docking station, all new hires receive 600.00 USD stipend to set up their space for working virtually 
• Professional Development Program: Up to 750.00 USD reimbursement per year to encourage continuous learning through attending conferences, courses, workshops and the purchase of educational materials 
• 401(k) Retirement Plan: Employer match of up to 4% of employee contributions dollar for dollar with no vesting period
• Paid Time Off: Generous paid time off policy of over 45 days, which includes: vacation days, at least one observed holiday a month, sick leave, and volunteer days
• Flexible Schedules: Options available to balance your personal and remote-work life
• Silent Fridays: No scheduled meetings so you can get caught up at the end of each week
• New Parent Leave: Fully paid new parent leave for seven weeks plus an additional five weeks for pregnancy, and flexible options as you embark on your return to work
• Fertility and Adoption Reimbursement Plan: Reimburses staff up to 5,000.00 USD in expenses per year, with a lifetime maximum of 10,000.00 USD
• Assistance for those unexpected life events: Long and short term disability, life insurance, and an employee assistance program
• Pre-tax Savings Plans: Generously funded health savings accounts (HSAs), pre-tax contribution options for health care, child care & elder care, public transportation and parking expenses

*Please note that for remote roles located outside of the U.S., we defer to our PEO (Professional Employee Organization) to ensure alignment with local labor laws.

More information

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