Application Guide
How to Apply for Staff Product Manager, Agentic Systems
at Recursion
🏢 About Recursion
Humane World for Animals is a unique animal advocacy organization dedicated to ending animal cruelty in all forms, with a specific focus on ending experiments on dogs and creating lasting systemic change. Unlike generic nonprofits, they combine grassroots activism with legislative advocacy and public education, offering a mission-driven environment where every role directly contributes to building a more humane world for animals.
About This Role
As Staff Product Manager for Agentic Systems, you'll lead the development of technology-driven advocacy tools (like action platforms, volunteer management systems, or educational resources) that amplify the organization's impact. This role is impactful because you'll be creating scalable systems that mobilize supporters, drive legislative change, and directly reduce animal suffering through technology.
💡 A Day in the Life
A typical day might involve collaborating with advocacy teams to understand urgent campaign needs, working with engineers to prioritize features for their action platforms, analyzing data on volunteer engagement and campaign effectiveness, and designing systems that make it easier for supporters to take meaningful action for animals. You'll bridge technical implementation with mission impact throughout your workday.
🚀 Application Tools
🎯 Who Recursion Is Looking For
- Experience building advocacy platforms, volunteer management systems, or mission-driven technology products that drive user action and engagement
- Proven ability to translate animal welfare goals into technical requirements and product roadmaps that create measurable impact
- Strong understanding of how to design systems that motivate and retain volunteers, donors, and activists in the animal advocacy space
- Passion for animal welfare with knowledge of current issues like dog testing, fur farming, and legislative advocacy methods
📝 Tips for Applying to Recursion
Demonstrate specific examples of how you've built technology products that drove real-world action or behavior change (not just engagement metrics)
Research and reference specific Humane World campaigns (like their dog testing or fur-free initiatives) in your application materials
Show how you've managed products with both technical complexity and strong emotional/mission-driven user motivations
Highlight experience with platforms that manage volunteers, coordinate advocacy actions, or deliver educational content at scale
Connect your product management philosophy to their mission by explaining how you'd measure success beyond typical business metrics
✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter
['Your experience building technology that drives real-world action and behavior change (not just engagement)', 'Specific knowledge of animal advocacy issues and how technology can address them', 'Examples of managing products with both technical stakeholders and mission-driven users/volunteers', 'How you would approach creating systems that scale their volunteer and advocacy efforts']
Generate Cover Letter →🔍 Research Before Applying
To stand out, make sure you've researched:
- → Study their current digital platforms and identify specific opportunities for improvement in user experience or functionality
- → Research their key campaigns (ending dog testing, going fur-free) and understand the legislative and advocacy strategies involved
- → Review Kitty Block's blog 'A Humane World' to understand organizational priorities and communication style
- → Analyze how they currently mobilize supporters through their website and identify technology gaps
💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics
Based on this role, you may be asked about:
⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Focusing only on commercial product experience without connecting it to mission-driven or advocacy contexts
- Using generic product management frameworks without adapting them to the unique challenges of animal welfare advocacy
- Failing to demonstrate knowledge of their specific campaigns or the animal advocacy landscape
📅 Application Timeline
This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.
Typical hiring timeline:
Application Review
1-2 weeks
Initial Screening
Phone call or written assessment
Interviews
1-2 rounds, usually virtual
Offer
Congratulations!