📌 Core Information
🔹 Job Title: Lead Product Manager, Reader Growth
🔹 Company: Wikimedia Foundation
🔹 Location: Remote
🔹 Job Type: Full-Time
🔹 Category: Product Management
🔹 Date Posted: May 1, 2025
🔹 Experience Level: 5-10 years
🔹 Remote Status: Remote Solely
🚀 Job Overview
Key aspects of this role include:
- Leading the development of modern and engaging Wikipedia learning experiences
- Driving a cross-functional team to build and deploy features and experiments
- Working with diverse communities and stakeholders
- Applying controlled experiments to make product decisions
ASSUMPTION: This role requires strong leadership, strategic thinking, and the ability to navigate complex ecosystems.
📋 Key Responsibilities
✅ Lead the development of modern and engaging Wikipedia learning experiences on both desktop and mobile websites
✅ Drive a cross-functional team of engineers, a designer, community specialist, and data analyst to build and deploy features and experiments
✅ Work with the team to design lightweight experiments that can scale to fully deployed features
✅ Apply the use of standardized measurement practices and develop creative approaches to learn in our privacy-sensitive environment
✅ Track and communicate progress, and maintain planning artifacts such as roadmaps, specs, and release plans
✅ Work with Communications, Marketing, and Legal functions to execute high-profile projects
✅ Proactively conduct conversations with volunteer communities to brainstorm and gather feedback on projects and ideas, and collaboratively adapt plans when needed
✅ Maintain an understanding of current developments and innovations in knowledge seeking, AI, and industry best practices
✅ Persevere through setbacks to ensure team goals are met, or communicate when a pivot may be necessary
✅ Develop an understanding of the diversity of our global user base and how it drives our work
ASSUMPTION: This role requires a high level of autonomy and the ability to manage multiple priorities and stakeholders.
🎯 Required Qualifications
Education: Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience in a professional setting
Experience: 8 years of professional experience, including at least 5 years as a product manager working with consumer-facing software development teams, preferably in an agile environment
Required Skills:
- Strong understanding of the current knowledge landscape, modern learning preferences, and content discovery trends
- Past success building and iterating high-scale consumer-facing products on both desktop and mobile websites
- Mastery of applying controlled experiments to make product decisions
- Past success leading product initiatives that coordinate multiple teams/functions across an organization
- Strong written and verbal communication skills and the ability to interact effectively with all levels of management, staff, and communities
- Capable of managing a diverse range of responsibilities in a dynamic and results-oriented environment
Preferred Skills:
- Experience applying AI and machine learning in web products
- Experience building products for multiple languages and geographies
- Experience working with large online communities
- Experience working with a fully remote globally-distributed team
- Technical data and analytics skills
- Fluency in multiple spoken languages or dialects
- Experience editing Wikipedia or with the Wikipedia, Wikidata, or Wikimedia Commons communities or other collaborative enterprises
- Familiarity with MediaWiki
ASSUMPTION: Candidates should have a strong background in product management, with a focus on consumer-facing software and a proven track record of driving results through experimentation and collaboration.
💰 Compensation & Benefits
Salary Range: The anticipated annual pay range for this position for applicants based within the United States is USD 124,463 to USD 193,900 with multiple individualized factors, including cost of living in the location, being the determinants of the offered pay. For applicants located outside of the US, the pay range will be adjusted to the country of hire.
Benefits:
- Health, dental, and vision coverage by the Wikimedia Foundation, starting on your first day
- 401(k) plan with company matching after six months of service
- Life and AD&D coverage
- Long-term disability coverage
- Flexible, generous time off – commencing after hire date: 25 paid holidays per year
- Parental leave (for employee, employee’s spouse/partner, and employee’s parents)
- Fully paid sabbatical every fifth year of service
- Fitness reimbursement – up to $170 per month
- 403(b) matching contributions
- Travel insurance
Working Hours: Full-time, with critical meetings and synchronous work required between 15:00 UTC and 18:00 UTC, and open to traveling internationally up to four times per year.
ASSUMPTION: The salary range provided is an estimate based on industry standards for a role of this level and location. The Wikimedia Foundation offers a comprehensive benefits package to support the well-being of its employees.
📌 Applicant Insights
🔍 Company Context
Industry: The Wikimedia Foundation operates in the non-profit sector, focusing on free knowledge and open-source culture. It is the nonprofit organization that operates Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects.
Company Size: The Wikimedia Foundation has 501-1,000 employees, making it a mid-sized organization with a significant global presence.
Founded: The Wikimedia Foundation was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California, USA.
Company Description:
- The Wikimedia Foundation is dedicated to the vision of a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge.
- It hosts Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, builds software experiences for reading, contributing, and sharing Wikimedia content, supports volunteer communities and partners, and advocates for policies that enable Wikimedia and free knowledge to thrive.
- The Wikimedia Foundation is a charitable, not-for-profit organization that relies on donations from millions of individuals around the world, with an average donation of about $15. It also receives donations through institutional grants and gifts.
Company Specialties:
- Non-Profit
- Free knowledge
- Open Source Culture
- Internet
- Technology
- Mobile
- Open Source
- Education
- Free Knowledge and Wikipedia
Company Website: Wikimedia Foundation
ASSUMPTION: The Wikimedia Foundation is a unique organization with a global impact, operating at the intersection of technology, non-profit, and open-source culture. Its mission and values guide its work and culture.
📊 Role Analysis
Career Level: This role is a senior-level position, requiring extensive experience and a proven track record in product management.
Reporting Structure: The role reports directly to the Group Product Manager, Readers.
Work Arrangement: This role is remote solely, with critical meetings and synchronous work required between 15:00 UTC and 18:00 UTC, and open to traveling internationally up to four times per year.
Growth Opportunities:
- Potential to lead and grow the Reader Growth team as it evolves
- Opportunity to work on high-impact projects with a global reach
- Chance to collaborate with and learn from a diverse range of stakeholders, including volunteer communities and Wikimedia Foundation staff
ASSUMPTION: This role offers significant growth potential, both in terms of team leadership and impact on the Wikimedia projects.
🌍 Location & Work Environment
Office Type: Remote
Office Location(s): The Wikimedia Foundation has its headquarters in San Francisco, California, USA, but this role can be performed remotely from one of the approved locations.
Geographic Context:
- The Wikimedia Foundation has a global user base, with over 1 billion people visiting Wikipedia each month across over 300 different languages.
- The Reader Growth team will focus on engaging new generations of internet users, building features that enable readers to browse and discover content more intuitively, contextualize and frame knowledge in novel ways, and engage with visual, audio, and other multimedia formats that align with modern preferences.
- The role requires a strong understanding of the diversity of the global user base and how it drives the team's work.
Work Schedule: Full-time, with critical meetings and synchronous work required between 15:00 UTC and 18:00 UTC, and open to traveling internationally up to four times per year.
ASSUMPTION: This role requires a high degree of flexibility and adaptability, with a strong focus on results and delivery.
💼 Interview & Application Insights
Typical Process:
- Phone or video screen with the hiring manager
- Technical assessment or case study
- Final interview with the hiring manager and other team members
- Background check and reference check
Key Assessment Areas:
- Product management skills and experience
- Strategic thinking and problem-solving abilities
- Communication and collaboration skills
- Adaptability and resilience in a dynamic environment
- Understanding of the Wikimedia Foundation's mission and values
Application Tips:
- Tailor your resume and cover letter to highlight your relevant experience and skills for this role
- Be prepared to discuss your approach to product management, experimentation, and stakeholder communication
- Showcase your understanding of the Wikimedia Foundation's mission and the role's impact on Wikipedia's global user base
- Demonstrate your ability to work effectively in a remote, globally-distributed team
ATS Keywords: Product Management, Consumer-Facing Software, Agile Environment, Content Discovery, High-Scale Products, Controlled Experiments, Cross-Functional Leadership, Communication Skills, Dynamic Environment, Diversity Awareness, AI Experience, Multilingual Products, Online Communities, Remote Teamwork, Data Analytics, MediaWiki Familiarity
ASSUMPTION: The application process for this role is likely to be competitive, with a strong focus on product management skills and experience, as well as a cultural fit with the Wikimedia Foundation's mission and values.
🛠️ Tools & Technologies
- MediaWiki
- Wikimedia Foundation's tech stack (see Our Tech Stack)
- Standard project management and collaboration tools (e.g., JIRA, Confluence, Slack)
ASSUMPTION: The Wikimedia Foundation uses a variety of tools and technologies to support its projects and teams. Familiarity with MediaWiki and the Wikimedia Foundation's tech stack is beneficial but not required.
👔 Cultural Fit Considerations
Company Values:
- Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge.
- Everyone has something to contribute to our shared knowledge.
- Knowledge should be free and open to everyone with no discrimination.
- In the spirit of openness, we welcome contributions from everyone to the sum of all human knowledge.
- Donors and volunteers power our work. Together, we create and distribute a free encyclopedia for every single person on the planet.
- We believe that everyone is capable of making meaningful contributions and that every voice matters.
Work Style:
- Collaborative and inclusive, with a strong focus on community engagement and open communication
- Adaptable and resilient, with a willingness to pivot and iterate based on feedback and data
- Committed to the Wikimedia Foundation's mission and values
- Global in perspective, with a deep understanding of and appreciation for the diversity of the Wikimedia Foundation's user base
Self-Assessment Questions:
- How do your personal values align with the Wikimedia Foundation's mission and values?
- Describe a time when you successfully navigated a complex, dynamic environment, and how your approach might translate to this role?
- How do you ensure that your work remains focused and impactful when faced with multiple priorities and stakeholders?
ASSUMPTION: The Wikimedia Foundation values candidates who are passionate about its mission, committed to its values, and capable of thriving in a dynamic, collaborative environment.
⚠️ Potential Challenges
- Navigating a large, complex ecosystem of stakeholders, including volunteer communities and Wikimedia Foundation staff
- Balancing the need for innovation with the responsibility to maintain Wikipedia's high standards and quality
- Working with a globally-distributed team, spanning multiple time zones and cultures
- Managing the expectations and feedback of a large, passionate user base
ASSUMPTION: This role presents unique challenges and opportunities, requiring a strong leader who can navigate complexity, adapt to change, and drive results through collaboration and experimentation.
📈 Similar Roles Comparison
- Unlike traditional product management roles, this position focuses on driving growth and engagement for a global user base, rather than a specific product or service
- The Wikimedia Foundation's non-profit status and open-source culture differentiate it from for-profit tech companies and other non-profits
- This role offers significant growth potential, both in terms of team leadership and impact on the Wikimedia projects, making it an attractive opportunity for experienced product managers looking to make a meaningful impact on a global scale
ASSUMPTION: This role is unique in its focus on driving growth and engagement for a global user base, with a strong emphasis on collaboration, experimentation, and community engagement.
📝 Sample Projects
- Developing a new feature to improve the mobile reading experience for users in emerging markets
- Creating a pilot program to test the integration of multimedia content into Wikipedia articles
- Collaborating with volunteer communities to design and implement a new system for curating and highlighting high-quality content
ASSUMPTION: The Reader Growth team will work on a variety of projects, each with its own unique challenges and opportunities. Successful candidates will be able to adapt their approach to each project, tailoring their strategies to the specific needs and goals of the team and its users.
❓ Key Questions to Ask During Interview
- Can you describe the Wikimedia Foundation's approach to product development and how this role fits into that process?
- How does the Wikimedia Foundation balance the need for innovation with the responsibility to maintain Wikipedia's high standards and quality?
- Can you provide an example of a successful product initiative that required significant collaboration and community engagement?
- How does the Wikimedia Foundation support the professional growth and development of its employees?
- What are the key priorities for this role in the first 90 days?
ASSUMPTION: Candidates should use the interview process to gain a deep understanding of the Wikimedia Foundation's approach to product development, its culture, and the specific challenges and opportunities presented by this role.
📌 Next Steps for Applicants
To apply for this position:
- Submit your application through this link
- Tailor your resume and cover letter to highlight your relevant experience and skills for this role
- Prepare for a phone or video screen with the hiring manager, focusing on your product management skills, strategic thinking, and cultural fit with the Wikimedia Foundation
- Complete a technical assessment or case study, demonstrating your ability to apply controlled experiments and make data-driven decisions
- Prepare for a final interview with the hiring manager and other team members, showcasing your communication and collaboration skills, as well as your understanding of the Wikimedia Foundation's mission and values
- Follow up with the hiring manager after the interview, reiterating your interest in the role and addressing any concerns or questions
⚠️ This job description contains AI-assisted information. Details should be verified directly with the employer before making decisions.
