Product Owner

Own and prioritize a defined product backlog, translate strategy into execution-ready requirements, and partner with Engineering, QA, and stakeholders to deliver validated software outcomes.

Responsibilities

• Own, maintain, and refine the product backlog for the assigned product area under the Sr. Director, Product Management
• Translate product strategy, roadmap priorities, business needs, and customer requirements into actionable development work
• Prioritize backlog items using business value, customer impact, dependencies, regulatory requirements, and defect severity
• Ensure backlog items are defined, sequenced, and development-ready
• Use independent judgment to set daily priorities; escalate decisions that materially impact scope, roadmap, or strategy
• Ensure development teams understand priorities and the business rationale
• Convert business, customer, operational, and technical needs into user stories, use cases, business rules, and acceptance criteria
• Clearly define problems, desired functionality, expected behavior, and intended outcomes
• Identify gaps, dependencies, edge cases, and conflicts before development begins
• Break larger initiatives into appropriately sized, actionable work and maintain accurate documentation
• Act as the primary Product representative for assigned development teams and participate in Agile ceremonies
• Partner with Engineering, developers, Scrum Masters, and QA throughout delivery to maintain requirements alignment
• Clarify requirements, resolve ambiguities, and address dependencies, risks, constraints, and competing priorities
• Partner with QA to keep acceptance criteria testable; review completed functionality and participate in demonstrations, validation, and user acceptance activities
• Detect and coordinate resolution of gaps between delivered functionality and requirements
• Prioritize defects based on customer impact, business severity, regulatory implications, and competing priorities
• Confirm requirements, documentation, acceptance criteria, and validation are complete before release
• Support release planning, communications, and knowledge transfer
• Monitor post-release feedback for defects, follow-up requirements, and enhancements; apply learnings to future backlog refinement
• Differentiate between defects, operational issues, operator-specific requests, enhancements, and broader product requirements, and route each appropriately
• Keep Product Marketing current on scope, timing, and functionality changes so external communications match what will ship
• Build relationships with Customer Operations, Field Operations, Sales, Compliance, and other stakeholders
• Evaluate stakeholder requests and translate business needs into structured product requirements
• Communicate status, scope, dependencies, and delivery expectations; manage expectations when requests conflict with roadmap priorities or capacity
• Maintain strong knowledge of Exacta’s products, platforms, architecture, and HHR environments including Exacta Connect, NXT, integrations, operator environments, and relevant product capabilities
• Understand applicable regulatory requirements and incorporate them into development work
• Understand customer workflows and operational challenges that shape product requirements
• Continuously strengthen technical and product knowledge to improve communication between business and technical stakeholders

Requirements

• Strong ability to translate business needs and product direction into clear, actionable requirements for technical teams
• Strong prioritization skills balancing business value, customer impact, defects, technical dependencies, and delivery constraints
• Ability to understand complex software systems and communicate effectively with technical and non-technical stakeholders
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including the ability to surface gaps, dependencies, edge cases, and unintended consequences before development
• Excellent written and verbal communication, with credibility to hold a position when stakeholder requests conflict with committed priorities
• Highly organized with attention to detail, documentation, and follow-through
• Comfort working in a fast-paced environment with changing priorities and competing stakeholder needs
• Demonstrated ownership from initial requirement definition through delivery and validation
• Working knowledge of Jira, Confluence, or comparable Agile/product development tools preferred

Technologies

• Jira
• Confluence
• Exacta Connect
• NXT

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related discipline preferred; equivalent combination of education and relevant professional experience considered
• 3+ years of experience in Product Ownership, Product Management, Business Analysis, software development, software quality assurance, or a related technology role preferred
• Demonstrated experience writing user stories, acceptance criteria, business rules, or comparable functional requirements
• Experience working directly with software development and Quality Assurance teams throughout the development lifecycle
• Hands-on experience working in an Agile or Scrum environment
• Experience owning or prioritizing a software development backlog
• Experience with B2B technology platforms, complex software systems, gaming technology, transaction-based systems, or regulated industries preferred
• Gaming, HHR, pari-mutuel, or wagering industry experience is a plus but not required

Physical Requirements and Work Environment

• Occasional travel may be required to customer locations, Exacta operating markets, industry events, or other Churchill Downs Incorporated locations
• Frequently required to sit (sometimes for prolonged periods) while working at a desk, on the phone, and/or on a computer; type on a keyboard; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; talk or hear; reach with hands or arms; walk or stand; and perform some repetitive motion activities
• Specific vision abilities required: close vision, color vision, color differentiation, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus
• Ability to work effectively as part of a team and concentrate on details amid interruptions and changing priorities
• Mental demands include anticipating and solving practical problems; reasoning and calculating; collecting, interpreting, and analyzing complex data; interpreting procedures and policies; and meeting schedules in a dynamic environment
• Noise level is usually moderate

Location: Austin, TX (onsite)