Career Spotlight: Becoming a Product Manager with Eric S.

By: Joe S., Sr. Specialist, Employer Branding 

I first met Eric when he was hired to work in Digital Marketing at Schwab in 2018. Like a lot of Schwabbies, he had a diverse background of experiences. He was well versed in finance and technology, but he also had some unique and valuable experience in entrepreneurship and startups. I could tell right away that he was a person with strong character, goals, and initiative. Fast forward 7 years later, Eric is now a Senior Product Manager. I sat down with him recently to learn more about him, his career, and what it is like working in finance technology as a Product Manager at Schwab.

I started off by asking Eric if he always wanted to work in finance. He said yes but mentioned that he wasn’t quite sure of why until more recently. Early on, his parents taught him the importance of finance and stressed how financial literacy can be a tool for success, however it took him time and experience to realize that his love for analyzing, planning, and building things would be the perfect prerequisite for becoming a Product Manager in financial services. Eric in turn, took his passion for learning and ran with it.

“I was always drawn to finance, stocks, and trading. In high school, my parents helped me setup a trading account and buy my first share of stock, I saw it going up and from there I was hooked.”

Eric’s role at Schwab is to build and improve digital products, tools, and interactive experiences on Schwab.com. He helps research, plan, create, and manage everything from financial calculators, to search indexes, to database connections (APIs). These are complex projects that take a lot of time, effort, and personnel to complete. It’s Eric’s role to coordinate and gain buy-in from numerous departments, leaders, and developers to ensure the project is done correctly and in the proper order, the first time through.

He didn’t know at the time but his previous experience in teaching and sales provided an excellent foundation for being a successful Product Manager. It’s a role that requires the ability to learn, understand, teach, influence, motivate, and manage - all qualities that his formal education and prior roles helped instill in him. He also subscribes to a lifelong learning philosophy - a belief that learning is a never-ending journey because there will always be something new and exciting to educate yourself on. That is why he’s earned his MBA, PMP (Product Management Professional) certification and with Schwab's support, he's gained his FINRA Series 7 license as well. If the endeavor makes him more informed, he is going pursue it.

To help explain how Eric works and what keeps him motivated - I think it’s important to hear his advice for anyone that is curious about becoming a Product Manager.

"The relationship is more important than the project". 

Eric is always thinking big picture. He mentions that when he was first learning how to be a Product Manager, he would often be too eager to complete the project. Instead of taking time to better understand business and developer needs, he would be too focused on reaching the finish line. He notes that a good relationship is built on equal parts trust. He continues:

“In order to be a good Product Manager, you have to build something that will equally help everyone involved. That is what keeps everyone motivated. If the end product helps every single person involved – our clients, branches, employees, partners, and leadership team - that is how you can create something truly long-lasting and meaningful.”

The last questions I posed for Eric were how do you and your team stay nimble in the ever-changing world of financial services? How can you complete your work quickly in such a large corporate environment? Again, Eric presses me to see the bigger picture.

“Frankly, projects can be done fast. If you have one hundred people helping you, you can get something done really quickly. But the problem is not completing it quickly – it’s doing the right thing in the first place.”

Eric often responds in ways that make you 'think bigger'. Given his dedication to being a lifelong learner, this fact comes as no surprise - when talking to him, you can't help but benefit from listening to his rational and well-informed perspective. It’s also what makes him such a great Product Manager.

To learn more about what it’s like to work at Schwab and its benefits, read our Schwab Stories.

To find roles in technology at Schwab, search our technology jobs.

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