CoBEES (Colorado Benefits Eligibility & Enrollment Systems)
CoBEES is seeking a Senior Product Manager to own and execute the roadmap for the core component of Colorado's complex government benefits system: the integrated Benefits and Eligibility Manager (BEM). The BEM is the future-state replacement for CBMS — the system used by eligibility technicians at all 64 Colorado counties and medical assistance sites to process applications, changes, and renewals.
This role is ideal for someone passionate about human-centered technology and building products that help real people access critical services like food assistance and health coverage.
The contractor will collaborate closely with human-centered designers, engineers, data analysts,
subject-matter experts, and individuals with lived experience to understand real-world problems,
break down barriers, and recommend technically feasible software solutions that deliver user-friendly outcomes. Initial work includes partnering with Code for America on a "steel thread" prototype that enables a caseworker to review a straightforward combo Medicaid/SNAP application end-to-end (get a task, review application, verify information, edit details, get a
determination, close out), with subsequent work expanding to more complex scenarios and the full BEM roadmap through procurement, vendor selection, and implementation.
This is a fast-moving space that will require flexibility and a player-coach mentality. Successful candidates will be excited to coach team members and roll up their sleeves, and will benefit greatly from existing knowledge of the benefits ecosystem for Medicaid and SNAP. Navigating ambiguity is a core part of this role.
Key Responsibilities
• Product vision and strategy: Develop and maintain a clear product vision, strategy, and roadmap for the entire worker-facing portion of Colorado's government benefits system, aligning multiple stakeholders' needs, different program policies, and broader
organizational goals
• Solution development: Collaborate with cross-functional teams to thoroughly understand problems and recommend user-friendly, tested, compliant software solutions for the government benefits system
• Roadmapping: Create, maintain, and prioritize a product roadmap, considering end-user experience, stakeholder needs, administrative priorities, technical feasibility, and system certification requirements; coordinate with product and program leaders to ensure alignment with the larger product portfolio
• Maintaining user focus: Work closely with design and CX to understand user needs and incorporate user research findings and customer experience data into product prioritization
• Rollout planning: Work with the Head of Product and other teams to ensure that there
is a clear, consistent, and realistic plan for system transformation and rollout
• Prioritization: Synthesize multiple business units' different and sometimes competing priorities against user impact to maintain a properly prioritized backlog of work
• Agile product development: Use agile methodologies and experimentation to validate solutions before large-scale builds, quickly iterate, pivot, and minimize risk
• Measurement: Define and track key performance indicators (KPIs) for the system; gather and synthesize data in collaboration with data analysts and other team members
• Stakeholder management: Build alignment and manage relationships with internal and external stakeholders, including agency leadership and frontline county staff
• Leadership and mentorship: Oversee and mentor associate product managers, product managers, and non-technical team members; support the onboarding of new product staff
• Cross-functional collaboration: Work closely with design and engineering teams to develop rapid prototypes, test solutions, and iterate based on insights
Working Arrangement
• Contractor will be available for scheduled meetings during Mountain Time core business hours of 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM; otherwise, contractor sets their own schedule to deliver
against agreed milestones.
• Sprint cadence: two-week sprints aligned with the broader CoBEES delivery rhythm
• All work products (roadmaps, requirements, research synthesis, prototypes, documentation) are owned by the State and delivered to State-owned tooling and repositories on a continuous basis
Qualifications
Required Qualifications
• 6–8+ years of experience in product management, preferably with complex systems
• Proven ability to define product vision, strategy, and roadmaps
• Strong analytical skills and experience with KPI definition and tracking
• Excellent stakeholder management and written and verbal communication skills, with the
ability to brief executives, translate complex topics for non-technical audiences, and build alignment across diverse stakeholder groups
• Experience with agile methodologies and experimentation
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate effectively with diverse teams, including designers, engineers, and data analysts
• Comfortable navigating ambiguity, evolving requirements, and competing stakeholder priorities
Preferred Qualifications
• Direct product management experience in the eligibility, benefits, or human services spaces
• Understanding of government processes and the needs of beneficiaries
• Familiarity with Medicaid, SNAP, TANF, CCCAP, or related federal/state benefits programs and the regulatory environment that shapes them
• Experience working with frontline county or caseworker users to understand operational pain points and translate them into product requirements
• Experience supporting major platform builds, system migrations, or legacy system
replacements
Key Competencies
• Player-coach mentality — excited to mentor team members and roll up your sleeves
• Comfortable operating with ambiguity and incomplete information
• Strong product judgment with a bias toward user impact
• Pragmatic and outcome-focused; able to balance speed, quality, and sustainability
• Systems-thinking mindset — able to see how decisions in one program area ripple across the broader benefits ecosystem
• Commitment to user-centered design and equitable outcomes for the people Colorado's benefits programs serve