Staff Product Manager

Who you are

• 7-10 years of technical product management experience owning and shipping technical products in developer tools, API platforms, or AI infrastructure
• Demonstrated ability to translate complex technical challenges—such as Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers, request routing, data plane architectures, and transport trade-offs—into actionable product requirements
• Proven track record driving execution and managing dependencies across globally distributed R&D teams
• Strong written and verbal communication skills to articulate technical strategy across multiple functions and seniority levels
• Deep project management instincts to track work, surface blockers early, and keep cross-functional roadmaps on schedule
• If you don’t think you meet all of the criteria below but are still interested in the job, please apply. Nobody checks every box - we’re looking for candidates that are particularly strong in a few areas, and have some interest and capabilities in others
• Ownership: You act as a driver, not a passenger, holding yourself accountable for product outcomes, runtime performance, and customer success
• Urgency: You model speed and efficiency in everything you do, navigating the fast-paced pre-IPO landscape with grit and focus
• Collaboration: You lead like an API by working cross-functionally, breaking down silos, and building alignment across global teams
• Direct experience with agentic AI development, including AI agents, AI gateways, LLM routing, AI observability, prompt management, guardrails, MCP servers, and A2A communications
• Familiarity with enterprise platform engineering, Kubernetes, cloud-native architectures, control planes, and data planes

What the job involves

• At Kong, we are building the future of AI connectivity, empowering developers to connect, secure, govern, and scale their AI applications with speed and intelligence
• As a Staff Product Manager for AI Management, you will own the product direction for our fastest-growing agentic AI portfolio—including our flagship AI Gateway—serving as a critical strategic lever in the Agentic Era
• You will bridge high-impact technical innovation with enterprise runtime governance, context management, and developer platform experience to turn APIs and AI connectivity into an organizational innovation factory
• Architect and execute the product vision and roadmap for AI Management modules, driving core capabilities around agentic harnesses, LLM routing, policies, context, guardrails, and evaluation
• Lead cross-departmental strategy as a multiplier across engineering, design, product marketing, and executive leadership to align shared roadmaps without operational friction
• Own the full lifecycle of your product modules by writing precise specs, prioritizing backlogs, and balancing new feature delivery against technical debt and platform dependencies
• Drive cross-product work connecting AI Management to Kong’s core platform infrastructure, enabling seamless data plane and control plane integration
• Speed up the clock on high-velocity delivery cadences in close partnership with engineering leads to scope work, navigate trade-offs, and accelerate time to market
• Support regional field activities, customer-facing technical engagements, and sales enablement to validate product-market fit and ensure developer delight

Benefits

• Flexible time off: Take time to take care of yourself and the things that matter most
• Stock options: We want you to share in our success. That's why stock options are offered to most Kongers
• U-First Fridays: Get 4 hours a month for continuous learning with a book, podcast, or course of your choice
• Virtual events: Stay connected with Donut chats, trivia, fitness challenges, guided meditations, and more
• Dedicated unplug days: Silence those notifications. Enjoy some well-deserved long weekend where the entire team unplugs
• Home office stipend: Build a home office environment tailored to support your productivity