How to apply for Chief Product Officer

About The 19th

The 19th is a news organization focused on journalism that serves specific audiences on and off-platform, including readers, publishing partners, fellows, and donors. The role reports into the Strategy department and partners directly with the editor-in-chief, so product work is tied to editorial and audience goals rather than a standalone tech function.

About the role

As chief product officer, you translate The 19th's organizational strategy into a prioritized product and technology vision, then own the roadmap and team that deliver it. You decide what gets built based on journalistic priorities, audience needs, and business goals, and you explain trade-offs so stakeholders across departments trust the decisions. You manage a technical product manager, product designer, product operations manager, and two full-stack engineers, and you serve as a strategic partner to the editor-in-chief on audience strategy.

A typical day

A typical day likely involves meeting with the editor-in-chief or chief strategy officer on audience priorities, reviewing roadmap items with the technical product manager and product designer, and making build-versus-defer decisions with the full-stack engineers. You would also spend time with stakeholders in other departments and programs to understand their needs and explain why certain product work is prioritized over others. Because the team is remote, most of this happens over video calls and written updates, with travel 2-3 times per year for in-person team activities.

Who The 19th is looking for

• Has led product and technology strategy at a senior level, ideally in media, publishing, or a mission-driven organization where editorial and business goals intersect.
• Can set a roadmap and make explicit trade-off decisions, then communicate those decisions clearly to non-technical stakeholders across editorial, programs, and development.
• Has directly managed a cross-functional product team, including engineers, designers, and product managers, and can point to products they launched and iterated on.
• Understands how journalism reaches audiences both on-platform and off-platform, including publishing partners and other distribution channels.
• Is comfortable working remotely in the U.S. and traveling 2-3 times per year for in-person team activities.

Tips for this application

• Address the salary range and remote U.S. requirement directly in your application if relevant, since the posting lists a specific band of $190,000-$215,000 and restricts the role to U.S. candidates.
• Reference The 19th's specific audience groups (readers, publishing partners, fellows, donors) and describe how you would prioritize product work across them.
• Explain how you have partnered with an editor-in-chief or equivalent editorial leader, since this role reports to the chief strategy officer but works closely with the editor-in-chief.
• Name the direct reports you have managed before (technical product manager, product designer, product operations manager, full-stack engineers) and how you structured that team.
• Submit before the October 19, 2026 application deadline and note in your materials that you understand this is a full-time W-2 role with benefits, not a contract engagement.

What to cover in your cover letter

Describe a product roadmap you set and the trade-offs you made when editorial priorities, audience needs, and business goals conflicted. Explain how you have worked with an editor-in-chief or senior editorial leader to execute an audience strategy. Show how you decide what not to build, since the role description emphasizes explaining trade-offs to stakeholders. State your experience managing a team that includes engineering, design, and product operations, since those are the listed direct reports.

Research before applying

• Review The 19th's published journalism and product surfaces to understand how their work currently reaches readers and publishing partners.
• Look at how The 19th describes its audience strategy, fellows program, and donor relationships, since the role explicitly serves those groups.
• Check whether The 19th has publicly discussed its technology stack, off-platform distribution, or past product launches, so you can speak to specific systems and gaps.
• Find any public statements from the chief strategy officer or editor-in-chief about priorities, since the role reports to one and partners with the other.

Likely interview topics

Based on the job description, expect questions about:

• How would you translate The 19th's organizational strategy into a product and technology vision, and what would your first 90-day roadmap look like?
• Walk through a time you decided not to build something and how you explained that trade-off to stakeholders who wanted it.
• How have you partnered with an editor-in-chief or editorial leadership to execute an audience strategy across on-platform and off-platform channels?
• How would you manage and structure a team of a technical product manager, product designer, product operations manager, and two full-stack engineers in a remote setting?
• How do you prioritize product work across different audience groups, such as readers, publishing partners, fellows, and donors, when their needs conflict?

Common mistakes to avoid

• Treating this as a generic tech product role and ignoring the journalism and audience strategy context that shapes what gets built.
• Claiming you can set product vision without showing how you have made and explained trade-offs to non-technical stakeholders.
• Applying without addressing the remote U.S. restriction or the listed salary range, which suggests you have not read the posting carefully.