VALR Company Information
VALR has built South Africa’s leading cryptocurrency platform serving over 250,000 customers. We are proud to offer a suite of products that are helping build crypto adoption and increase economic freedom.
There are a few things we look for across all hires we make at VALR, regardless of role or team. First, we look for signals that a candidate will thrive in a culture where we default to trust, embrace feedback, disrupt ourselves, and expect sustained high performance. Second, we seek people with the desire and capacity to build and share expertise in the frontier technologies of crypto and blockchain, in whatever way is most relevant to their role.
VALR aims to build a financial system that recognises the oneness of humankind. Our first step on that journey is making digital currency accessible and approachable for everyone, which we’re working to achieve with our suite of products that serve South African and eventually customers globally.
Product Manager
VALR is looking for an experienced Product Manager to join our Engineering Team to help us continue to deliver the best trading experience possible for our customers.
What would you be doing?
- Build relationships with key stakeholders to understand product vision & strategy
- Create and articulate a vision for product development
- Align teams on a shared vision and steer execution on that vision
- Manage ideation, business cases, demand, and roadmaps
- Own product development from conception to launch
- Effectively communicate with all levels of staff, including executive level stakeholders
- Ensure Engineering teams have 4-6 weeks worth of refined backlog in each area
- Document non-functional requirements (Automation, CI/CD, Security)
- Work within and plan against a defined release schedule
- Write technical specs, manage technical backlogs, and effectively prioritize new features vs. tech debt.
- Conduct demos of new and upcoming product capabilities
- Run User Acceptance Testing and Sign-off on behalf of the business, as needed
- Plan and coordinate across multiple engineering teams
- Work closely with fellow engineering, design, and business leadership to define our product vision and strategy across your product areas, and deliver tangible business outcomes
- Collaborate cross-functionally with engineering, design, and cross-functional teams to develop and steer product roadmaps
- Work with a full-stack engineering team to build internal products that eliminate workflow friction, maximize output, and improve the employee experience
- Identify and resolve inefficiencies in product management tools, process,es and workflows
- Recommend new methods for efficiency
- Define and analyze metrics that mature the Product Management function
- Define and analyze metrics to guide product development
- Perform business operational activities, as needed
What we look for in you
- 5+ years experience, preferably in business applications development or product management
- Background working within an Agile environment
- Experience with non-functional requirements (Automation, CI/CD, Security)
- A track record of building exceptional products that delight your users and produce a clear business impact
- Demonstrated ability to lead projects affecting many functions, including product, engineering, finance, compliance, and support. Ability to direct major cross-functional initiatives with effective prioritization and influence
- Experience collecting both internal and external customer feedback and requests, empathizing with their challenges and opportunities, and prioritizing roadmaps to optimize results
- Exceptional interpersonal communication, relationship management, and organizational skills
- Deep analytical, prioritization, and problem-solving skills
- Demonstrated passion for cryptocurrency and financial markets
- An entrepreneurial mindset with the ability to succeed in a fast-paced environment
Nice to haves
- Passion for cryptocurrencies and alternative financial systems
- Experience working remotely in an early-stage startup environment
- Experience working in regulated industries collaborating with legal, compliance, and customer support teams
- A natural inclination to help people and the ability to explain technical details simply
Core Strengths
- Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal
- Ability to operate independently in a demanding and dynamic environment
- Strong sense of ownership
- Driven by a passion to learn constantly
- Critical thinkers not afraid to make quick decisions and follow-through
- Ability to move quickly and adapt to a changing environment
What you can expect from VALR
- Competitive salary: Get paid well to work in an exciting industry
- Leave: Flexible leave policy with 3 weeks minimum
- Remote work: Work from wherever you like
- Home office setup: Mac laptop and a discretionary allowance to buy all the extras needed to work happily from home - all of it yours to keep after 3 years
- Learning fund: R10,000 per employee per year for anything that helps you upskill for work, in addition to scheduled VALR training
- Performance bonus: When you contribute to VALR’s success, you’ll be rewarded with lucrative bonuses
- 3 months maternity and 1-month paternity paid leave
- Regular get-togethers outside of work (COVID permitting)
- Annual company retreats (COVID permitting)
