Principal Product Manager, Affiliate Product Group - Global Ad Technology Supervisory Department (GATD)

Job Description:

Department Overview

The Ad Product Development Department and Product Management Section are primarily responsible for the planning, development, and operation of advertising products for stores, facilities, major companies operating domestically and internationally, and foreign-affiliated companies within Rakuten Group's advertising business.

You will gain experience in developing environments and supporting operations in large-scale system development while collaborating with business stakeholders and development teams from other platforms.

Furthermore, you will have the opportunity to work with diverse members from bases not only in Japan but also in Singapore, India, and China, and to be exposed to various system development, maintenance, and operational methods and ideas.

The team manages several Affiliate Service Providers (ASPs) utilized within the Rakuten Group. Through close collaboration with the engineering and business teams, the Affiliate Product Group focus on delivering user-focused products that support both client success and business growth.

Our ASPs have a strong market presence and are trusted by advertisers and publishers including influencers and media partners. By delivering impactful products that foster meaningful connections and broaden economic participation, we aim to contribute positively to the business and to society.

Position:

Why We Hire

Our Affiliate Service Providers (ASPs) have been in service for a quite long time supported by so many clients such as advertisers and publishers. To let ASPs grow furthermore, we are seeking a senior product manager who can drive product development considering how our product can contribute the business growth and how we can optimize the product to sustain our service for a long time.

Position Details

<Overview>

Contribute to the growth of the Affiliate service provider through product management

<Key Responsibilities>

・ Digestion & prioritization of RFP (request for proposal)

・ Create and maintain development roadmap

・ Requirement definition, specification consideration and PRD creation for assigned development projects

・ Lead communication with business team and engineering team

・ Service KPI management

Communication with engineering and business teams is primarily in English, though Japanese may be used when necessary for clarity. As this role requires bridging both technical and business stakeholders, a foundational understanding of both technology and EC business is essential.

Since we manage multiple projects simultaneously, team members are expected to exercise a high degree of autonomy and sound judgment to drive results and prioritize tasks effectively.

Work Environment

10 or more members from 5 different countries belong to our group. Most of the members are based in Tokyo, Japan.

Both new grads and mid-career are performing very good in our group. Some of them are doing very good even without experience in software development.

Mandatory Qualifications:

・ 5 years of experience as a product manager

・ At least 1 year of experience as a product lead

(Expected responsibilities: defining product strategy, creating a mid-to-long-term roadmap, and making decisions on product resource allocation)

・ At least 1 year of management experience in a PDM organization (5 or more members)

・ Very good communication & negotiation skill to keep various stakeholders on the same page

・ Problem identification skill and resolving skill

・ Basic understanding of affiliate service provider or internet advertisement product

・ Basic understanding of web applications

・ Advanced English skill (TOEIC Score 800 above or possess equivalent abilities)

Desired Qualifications:

・ Management experience in an engineering organization or a cross-functional organization

・ Experience in development or operation of affiliate service provider or internet advertisement product

・ Experience in development or operation for web application

・ Experience in collaboration between clients or subsidiaries overseas

・ Experience in data analysis using BI tools

・ Advanced Japanese skill

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