American Federation for Children

Senior Director, Digital Product

USA (On-site)

The Opportunity The AFC Scholarship Fund exists to turn a once-in-a-generation policy opportunity—the Education Freedom Tax Credit (EFTC)—into durable, nationwide impact for families. In 2027, up to $1.7 billion in federal tax credits will be available to fund K-12 scholarships. Success requires more than awareness—it requires infrastructure. We're building a trusted, frictionless digital system that transforms education into action, enabling hundreds of thousands of donors to participate confidently in reshaping American education. You will own the product, the experience, and the reliability of the system that turns policy into participation. What You'll Own You are the accountable leader for the Digital Conversion Platform. Your mandate is to design, build, and operate a high-trust, high-conversion digital platform that enables donors to act with clarity and confidence—from their first visit through donation completion, receipt generation, and ongoing engagement. Core Responsibilities Product Strategy & Roadmap Own the end-to-end product vision, roadmap, and execution for AFCScholarshipFund.org and all conversion-critical systems Define and prioritize features based on user research, conversion data, compliance requirements, and 2027 scale readiness Balance competing priorities: trust-building, conversion optimization, compliance infrastructure, and operational resilience Partner with Head of Growth to align product roadmap with acquisition strategy and economic targets User Experience & Conversion Design Design and optimize every step of the donor journey—from education to intent to completed donation Own information architecture, content hierarchy, and narrative flow across the platform Ensure the platform reduces cognitive load, builds trust, and enables confident action for multiple audience segments (tax-savvy professionals, faith donors, school choice advocates, HNW philanthropists) Lead user research, usability testing, and iterative refinement based on behavioral data Drive conversion rate optimization (target: 25%+ conversion from intent to donation) Platform Engineering & Reliability Oversee platform development, integrations, and technical infrastructure in partnership with agency and vendor partners Own the WordPress-based platform architecture and roadmap, ensuring it can scale to support 1M+ donors, complex donation flows, and state-specific fund selection Partner with web development agency on WordPress customization, plugin strategy, performance optimization, and headless/hybrid architecture decisions as needed Ensure platform performance meets critical thresholds: <2 second page load, zero critical outages during peak (Jan-Apr 2027), instant receipt generation Own donation flow integration with Zeffy, CRM systems, email/SMS automation, and compliance/reporting infrastructure Build for scale: platform must support 1M+ donors, peak traffic spikes, and state-specific fund selection Establish monitoring, alerting, and incident response protocols Trust, Compliance & Transparency Architecture Embed trust signals throughout the platform: transparency commitments, partner credibility, fraud prevention, audit readiness Ensure compliance with federal and state SGO requirements, IRS guidance, and donation receipt standards Work closely with Legal/Compliance to translate regulatory requirements into user-facing systems and donor-facing documentation Design and implement CPA-shareable materials, donor tax documentation, and audit trails Vendor & Agency Management Manage relationships with web development agency, CMS/hosting providers, payment processors, and analytics platforms Translate business requirements into clear technical specifications and acceptance criteria Ensure agency partners deliver on time, on budget, and aligned with AFC's quality standards Own vendor performance, escalation, and course correction when needed Measurement, Analytics & Optimization Define and instrument key conversion metrics: page load time, bounce rate, funnel drop-off, donation completion rate, error rates Build dashboards for real-time performance monitoring and decision-making Conduct A/B testing on messaging, layout, trust signals, and donation flow variations Use data to inform prioritization, identify friction points, and drive continuous improvement Who You Are | Required Experience & Expertise Product Leadership 10+ years in digital product management, with at least 3 years leading high-stakes conversion or transactional platforms (e-commerce, fintech, donations, SaaS) Experience with WordPress at scale (or similar CMS platforms) and understanding of when to extend core functionality vs. when to build custom solutions Ability to evaluate WordPress performance limitations and architect solutions for high-traffic, mission-critical applications Proven track record of shipping products that scale: from MVP to millions of users Experience managing product roadmaps, prioritization frameworks, and cross-functional delivery User Experience & Conversion Optimization Deep expertise in UX/UI design, information architecture, and conversion rate optimization Strong understanding of user research methods, usability testing, and behavioral analytics Track record of improving conversion rates through iterative testing and data-driven design Technical Acumen Comfortable working with engineers, agencies, and technical vendors—you don't need to code, but you need to speak the language Understanding of web platform architecture, API integrations, CMS systems, payment gateways, and analytics instrumentation Experience ensuring platform reliability, performance, and security at scale Mission-Driven & High-Integrity Work Alignment with AFC's mission to expand educational opportunity for families Commitment to building trust through transparency, compliance, and user-centered design Comfortable operating in a high-accountability, high-visibility environment where the work matters deeply Ideal Background (Not Required, But Highly Valued) Experience in nonprofit technology, civic tech, or mission-driven product work Familiarity with donation platforms, fundraising infrastructure, or compliance-heavy environments (fintech, healthcare, regulated industries) Background in growth marketing, lifecycle optimization, or customer journey design Prior work on products that serve diverse audiences with varying levels of digital literacy Experience building products that must withstand regulatory scrutiny or public accountability