Matt Barnes

About Matt Barnes

Senior-level product leader with a proven record of transforming data into business value by building crucial infrastructure for AI-enabled, data-centric products. Expertise lies in translating complex data concepts into actionable insights and strategic decisions, bridging the gap between technical teams and business leaders. Proven history of success cultivating high-performance teams, driving measurable growth, and championing data-based decision-making to deliver impactful outcomes. Core competencies include: • Agile Product Management: Leading cross-functional teams using agile methodologies and tools (Jira, Confluence, Jira Product Discovery) to drive alignment and deliver complex, mission-critical initiatives.• Data Engineering: Writing requirements for data projects using cloud platforms (AWS, Google Cloud), data pipelines (Spark, Airflow, Kafka), and data warehouses (BigQuery, Snowflake).• Technical Expertise: Firsthand experience with SQL, Python, machine learning (supervised, unsupervised, deep learning), AI / LLMs, and a wide range of databases (relational, NoSQL, vector).• Data Product Strategy: Developing strategies that drive measurable results for data and AI applications. Skilled at defining KPIs, identifying new business opportunities, and validating concepts with research.• Data-Driven Decisions: Using qualitative research and quantitative data to inform product decisions and derive insights with Python and AI. Experience with Tableau, Python, and Grafana dashboards.• Technical Communication: Translating complex data topics into clear business context for leadership, crafting compelling narratives and data-driven stories.• Team and Resource Leadership: Cultivating high-performance product teams through strategic guidance and collaborative leadership, empowering team members to realize their full potential.

Experience

1. Senior Product Manager, Data

   Nava Benefits

   Feb 2026 — Present · Vancouver, WA, US

   Delivering scalable, secure, and AI-enabled data infrastructure that enables Nava Benefits to #fixhealthcare through the delivery of innovative benefits solutions that decrease costs for employers and improves coverage for employees. • Own the roadmap spanning data pipelines, integrations, and internal APIs used by our product teams to build Nava’s suite of benefits applications.• Drive integrations with HRIS, payroll, and insurance carrier systems to ensure consistent, trustworthy data across our platform.• Define metrics and SLAs for platform performance, availability, and developer satisfaction.• Collaborate with AI engineers to ensure Nava’s data infrastructure supports AI use cases and feature development.• Think creatively about using AI to retrieve, transform, and clean data. Work with the engineering team to test and ship these features.• Oversee data ops – Design process and technology improvements, with the eventual goal of automation (using either traditional methods or AI browser use) for the last mile challenges inherent to HRIS and insurance carrier integrations.• Create “super fans” – Both internal and external users rely on our software for mission critical daily tasks. When we have data issues, import failures, and bugs, you will swarm with relevant stakeholders and feature teams to address these issues as quickly as possible.

Education

• Vanderbilt University

  Generative AI Strategic Leader Specialization Certificate

• University of Michigan

  Python for Everybody - Specialization Certificate

• Wharton Online

  Business Analytics - Specialization Certificate

  2016

• Washington State University

  BA, Political Science - Public Law

• Google

  Advanced Data Analytics - Google Professional Certificate

• University of Washington

  Database Management - Certificate

  2015

• Washington State University

  Master of Business Administration - MBA

Skills

• Strategic Planning
• Product Development
• Marketing
• Project Planning
• Account Management
• Product Management
• Team Building
• Sales Management
• Business Strategy
• Management
• Competitive Analysis
• Marketing Strategy
• Content Management
• Online Publishing
• Product Marketing
• Public Speaking
• Saas
• Email Marketing
• Leadership
• Market Research
• Program Management
• Sales
• Salesforce.com
• Strategic Partnerships
• Strategy
• Business Development
• Digital Publishing