Excelon Associates  ·  Sample Job Description  ·  Higher Education Technology Leadership  ·  September 2025

Sample Job Description · Higher Education Technology

Product Manager, Digital Credentialing

Employment TypeFull-Time
SectorHigher Education Technology
Experience5+ Years
EducationBachelor’s Required
Position Summary

About the Role

The Product Manager, Digital Credentialing leads the strategy, development, and implementation of digital credentialing and student record systems within higher education institutions. This role is critical in transforming how colleges and universities issue, verify, and manage transcripts, diplomas, micro-credentials, and certificates by leveraging secure, modern technology platforms.

The Product Manager serves as the bridge between academic stakeholders, registrars, IT teams, and external technology partners, ensuring solutions meet institutional priorities while maintaining compliance with accreditation and regulatory standards. Beyond overseeing the design and rollout of digital credentialing tools, this leader drives adoption across faculty and administrative departments, improves student mobility, and enables seamless verification for employers and graduate schools.

This role is not only about technology implementation — it is about shaping the future of credential transparency and portability. By advancing secure, efficient, and accessible student record systems, the Product Manager helps institutions strengthen trust with students, alumni, and external stakeholders while positioning the university as an innovator in higher education.

Responsibilities

Key Responsibilities

  • Develop and implement a product roadmap for digital credentialing and academic records platforms, aligned with institutional strategy and stakeholder needs.
  • Collaborate with registrars, faculty, and accreditation bodies to design features that meet institutional, regulatory, and compliance requirements.
  • Oversee integration with student information systems (SIS) and learning management system (LMS) platforms to ensure seamless data flow and accuracy.
  • Prioritize features that improve student mobility, transferability of credits, and long-term employability outcomes for graduates.
  • Ensure full compliance with FERPA, accessibility requirements, and institutional data governance policies across all credentialing systems.
  • Conduct stakeholder workshops, discovery sessions, and user research to gather insights and ensure broad institutional adoption.
  • Manage vendor relationships and technology partner contracts related to digital credentialing platforms, digital badges, and secure transcript systems.
  • Define and track key performance indicators for platform usage, student adoption, and employer engagement with digital credentials.
  • Lead change management and communication efforts to support faculty, staff, and student transitions to new credentialing systems.
  • Stay current on emerging trends in digital credentials, open badges, blockchain verification, and higher education technology standards.
Qualifications

Education and Experience Requirements

Education
Bachelor’s degree in Education Administration, Business, Information Systems, or a closely related field. A Master’s degree is strongly preferred.
Experience
Five or more years of experience in product management, student services technology, or higher education IT leadership, with demonstrated accountability for technology platform outcomes.
Technical Knowledge
Strong working knowledge of student information systems, registrar operations, accreditation requirements, and FERPA compliance. Familiarity with digital badge standards and secure credential verification platforms.
Skills
Ability to bridge technical requirements with academic and administrative needs. Excellent stakeholder management, project leadership, and written and verbal communication skills.
Institutional Context

Why This Role Matters

Student credentials are one of the most consequential outputs a higher education institution produces. How a diploma, transcript, or micro-credential is issued, stored, verified, and shared directly affects a graduate’s ability to access employment, pursue advanced study, and demonstrate their achievements in a competitive marketplace.

As institutions move from paper-based and siloed digital records to interoperable, secure, and portable credentialing systems, the Product Manager, Digital Credentialing becomes a strategic institutional asset. This individual ensures that the technology infrastructure supporting credentials keeps pace with employer expectations, accreditor requirements, and student needs.

Credentials are not just records — they are a student’s proof of achievement and a university’s promise kept. Getting that infrastructure right matters enormously.

About This Search

Retained Search by Excelon Associates

Excelon Associates is a retained executive search firm headquartered in Asheville, NC, with additional offices in Boca Raton and Delray Beach, FL. Since 2007 we have placed technology leaders, product managers, and senior administrators at universities, colleges, and post-secondary institutions across the United States.

For universities committed to modernizing academic records, institutions seeking to improve student mobility, or those ready to implement future-ready credentialing infrastructure, Excelon Associates is a trusted recruitment partner. We identify professionals who combine technical expertise, stakeholder fluency, and a genuine commitment to student outcomes. Reach out today to start a confidential conversation.

Hiring a Product Manager, Digital Credentialing?

Excelon Associates places technology and product leaders at higher education institutions nationwide. Headquartered in Asheville, NC. Retained search since 2007.

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