Senior Product Manager, International Rapid Response Payment Systems

Senior Product Manager, International Rapid Response Payment Systems

About GiveDirectly

GiveDirectly (GD) aims to reshape international giving and millions of lives by providing cash grants directly to the worlds poorest. The Brookings Institution estimates that $70B of cash transfers would be required to eliminate the poverty gap; the aid sector currently spends $135B each year, much of it on evidence-free interventions. GiveDirectly wants to change that, establishing cash transfers as a benchmark for foreign aid as the index fund is a benchmark for the financial industry and in the process accelerating the end of extreme poverty.

GD has raised over $1B since launching in 2011, delivered cash to more than 1.5 million people in 15 different countries. We've also supported large-scale, experimental research that indicates strong recipient impact of our programs. As a result, GD has been celebrated as one of the most innovative non-profit companies by Fast Company, while the growing cash transfer movement (and GD's leading role within it) have been featured in the New York Times Magazine, This American Life, Foreign Affairs, and The Economist.

Our culture is candid, analytical, agile, and non-hierarchical. Our global team of ~150, and country operations teams of ~650, together come from 21 different countries speaking 69 different languages. From software engineers to seasoned humanitarian workers, former management consultants to public servants, researchers to field operations it's an incredible group of people.

Our values are central and deliberately opinionated. We genuinely center the people we serve in our decision making, and strive to build an ambitious, dynamic and high performing environment. We strongly encourage you to read through our values carefully, if they reflect how you like to work and energize you, this could be a great fit.

We work hard to create an environment in which all our team members can thrive, succeed and grow. We support flexibility, take care of each other, have fun, and create professional growth opportunities.

Priority application deadline : August 25, 2025 or until we reach a critical mass of applications

Location : This role is fully remote but must overlap with an East Africa timezone by at least 3 hours. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of employment Visas in the U.S. or U.K. at this time.

About this role

GiveDirectly is seeking a Senior Product Manager to drive the design, evaluation, and deployment of cutting-edge payment solutions that support cash transfers to people affected by crises or in extreme povertyanywhere in the world. This individual will serve as the technical and strategic lead on payment rails and digital transfer mechanisms within the International Rapid Response (IRR) Product team, with a strong focus on reaching displaced and crisis-affected populations with unconditional cash assistance efficiently, securely, and with dignity.

The ideal candidate will combine technical knowledge of global payment systemsincluding aggregator platforms and blockchain-based solutionswith a deep curiosity for solving complex financial and technology challenges. They will play a pivotal role in identifying, testing, and scaling solutions that allow GiveDirectly to deliver cash directly to individuals in emergency settings across the globe.

Reports to : Senior Product Director, International Rapid Response

Level : Senior Manager

Travel Requirement : Must be able to travel ~1-2 times per year to one of our countries of operation for team retreats or field visits

What you'll do :

• Payments Product Strategy and Roadmapping
• Own the product vision, roadmap, and prioritization for international payments infrastructure.
• Translate strategic objectives into actionable product goals, features, and success metrics.
• Regularly evaluate and refine product-market fit in the context of fast-evolving program and country needs.
• Investigate and Innovate Global Payment Channels :
• Identify, assess, and recommend international payment solutions that can reach populations in fragile and underserved markets.
• Develop partnerships with global and regional payment aggregators, mobile money platforms, remittance providers, and stablecoin or crypto partners.
• Pilot and evaluate alternative transfer modalities, including blockchain-based or decentralized finance (DeFi) approaches, particularly in contexts where traditional banking access is limited.
• Build and Scale Payment Infrastructure :
• Design systems for integrating new payment rails into GD's operations, ensuring compliance, security, and scalability.
• Define and document technical and operational requirements for payment implementation in humanitarian and development settings.
• Collaborate with engineers and data teams to ensure seamless integration with targeting, verification, monitoring, and payments systems.
• Research & Landscape Analysis :
• Map and compare emerging technologies and vendors in the payments space, with a focus on rapid deployment and cross-border capabilities.
• Conduct technical due diligence on vendors and track trends in stablecoin, mobile finance, and blockchain applications.
• Cross-functional Collaboration :
• Work closely with program managers, engineers, field teams, and finance / legal teams to ensure payment strategies align with on-the-ground realities and compliance frameworks.
• Ensure excellent handoff of provider execution, oversight and compliance to implementation teams.
• Support crisis response deployments with technical insight and problem-solving on-the-fly to ensure people get paid.
• Performance and Reliability Management :
• Define and monitor key metrics (e.g., transaction success rates, payment speeds, reconciliation gaps).
• Coordinate root cause analyses and mitigation planning for issues affecting reliability, latency, or compliance, and feed this into the product and FSP strategy
• Drive Efficiency and Creativity :
• Leverage your creativity to solve the unique challenges of delivering money in unpredictable, unstable, or disconnected environments.
• Continuously refine internal payment playbooks and propose systemic improvements to speed, reliability, and recipient experience.

What you'll bring :

Nice to Have

Compensation

At GiveDirectly, we strive to pay our employees generously and equitably. We use an accredited third party salary aggregator to ensure that staff's total compensation package (base compensation + bonus) falls within the 75th percentile of similar roles, at similar organizations. We also have a no negotiation