IFC: Product Owner – Washington, DC

Description

Build a career with impact. Working at the World Bank Group (WBG) provides a unique opportunity to help countries solve their greatest development challenges. As one of the largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries, the WBG is a unique partnership of five global institutions dedicated to ending poverty, increasing shared prosperity, and promoting sustainable development. With 189 member countries and more than 120 offices worldwide, the WBG works with public and private sector partners, investing in groundbreaking projects and using data, research, and technology to develop solutions to the most urgent global challenges.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2025, IFC committed a record $71.7 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging private sector solutions, and mobilizing private capital to create a world free of poverty on a livable planet. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

Department Context

The mission of the Corporate Information Technologies Department (CIT) is to leverage technology to enable IFC’s strategic priorities and to support IFC’s business and operations. By acting as the technology partner and business enabler, the department provides state-of-art information and technology solutions to support IFC’s Investment & Advisory Services, Financial Operations, Treasury & the Asset Management Company. We work closely with the business to design solutions that automate business processes, help enable business responsiveness to clients, improve operational efficiency and organizational effectiveness, and manage risks. CIT aims to ensure that our solutions meet the business needs of users across a range of functions, including operations and corporate business processes, information, knowledge and learning, data and analytics, and more.

We are looking for an Associate Scrum Master to join our team. This role focuses on helping teams deliver high-quality, trusted, and scalable solutions that empower private sector operational staff, TTLs, and sector experts to access, synthesize, and apply institutional knowledge more effectively.

We are looking for an individual who will bring a sense of client and product obsession to the team and who will ensure that our solutions meet or exceed expectations and deliver tangible business value.

Duties and accountabilities

Coaching the Agile Team

• Facilitate Agile ceremonies — daily stand-ups, sprint planning, sprint reviews, and

retrospectives — for one or more delivery teams.

• Helps teams self-organize, self-manage, and deliver via effective Lean-Agile methods

• Fosters an environment for high-performing team dynamics, continuous flow, and relentless improvement

Team Performance Improvement

• Define, monitor, and report on team performance metrics (velocity, cycle time,

throughput, predictability) to leadership.

• Proactively identify, track, and resolve impediments affecting team delivery; escalate systemic issues to management as needed.

• Facilitate cross-team collaboration to improve the performance of the Agile Team

• Program Increment (PI) Planning Facilitation

• Guides the preparation process for PI planning, and drafts PI plans in coordination with the Product Manager, Release Train Engineer and rest of Agile team

• Assists the product owner with refining and prioritizing the product backlog, aligning team efforts with strategic objectives

• Identifies, tracks, and manages dependencies to ensure sprints are executed as planned

Selection Criteria

• Master’s degree with 5 years of experience

• Proven experience as a Scrum Master managing multiple/complex products in a highly Agile environment

• SAFe Scrum Master certification

Note: This internal requisition is open to WB and IMF staff only (including short-term and extended term consultants/ temporaries). External candidates are requested not to apply. In case an external candidate applies, their application will not be considered.

WBG Culture Attributes:

1. Sense of urgency: Anticipate and quickly respond to the needs of internal and external stakeholders.
2. Thoughtful risk-taking: Challenge the status quo and push boundaries to achieve greater impact.
3. Empowerment and accountability: Empower yourself and others to act and hold each other accountable for results.

World Bank Group Core Competencies

The World Bank Group offers comprehensive benefits, including a retirement plan; medical, life and disability insurance; and paid leave, including parental leave, as well as reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities.

We are proud to be an equal opportunity and inclusive employer with a dedicated and committed workforce, and do not discriminate based on gender, gender identity, religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability.

Learn more about working at the World Bank and IFC including our values and inspiring stories.