Product manager, hands-on

About SmartRunningSmartRunning is a mobile coach that builds personalised marathon training plans from a physiological model of the runner. The plan adapts to what the runner actually does, read from their watch, so each runner trains at the right load and reaches the start line fit and uninjured. The model is our own: a training-plan engine built on scientifically supported training stress and fitness-fatigue modelling. We are currently ready to launch version 1 to our athletes. The platform (Flutter app, Python backend, Google Cloud) has just been brought in-house, and we are building the team that takes it to market. The roleYou will become SmartRunning’s internal Product Owner and take end-to-end responsibility for translating our product strategy, runner needs, training science and business priorities into a validated and buildable product roadmap. You will work side by side with our current Product Strategist during a structured transition until the end of 2026. During this period, you will progressively take over the roadmap, backlog, product specifications, prioritisation, acceptance criteria and day-to-day product decisions. After the transition, you will be the primary internal owner of the SmartRunning product. As the organisation grows, you will collaborate closely with two full-stack engineers, a data scientist and a sports physiologist. You will also work with customer support, marketing and social media to ensure that runner feedback, product data and market insights are translated into clear product decisions. You own product direction and priorities. The engineering team owns technical architecture and implementation, while the data scientist and sports physiologist are responsible for model validation, physiological correctness and scientific guardrails. You bring these perspectives together into one coherent product. What you will do
• Own the backlog. Write clear, problem-first tickets, set priorities and plan iterations on GitHub Projects.
• Own the training logic. Decide how plans are built and how they adapt: session library, paces relative to critical speed, load progression, recovery weeks, taper, heart-rate zones. You will get access to data scientists and top coaches to help make the right calls.
• Validate with data. Query runner and activity data (SQL, BigQuery, Metabase), check that plans behave as intended and find where they do not.
• Work on the model. Read and reason about the Python algorithm, spec changes to it, and review its releases. Run the simulations that show what a change does across runner profiles.
• Own the integrations from the product side. Wearables (Garmin and others via an aggregator), coaching-platform partners, and how workouts land on the runner’s watch.
• Shape the internal tools. Including the admin dashboard we are building now for coaches and support.
• Be the voice of the runner. Talk to runners, run the product yourself, and turn what you learn into decisions. What you bring
• Several years in product management, product ownership or a closely related role on a software product, preferably mobile or data-driven.
• A working understanding of endurance physiology. You can explain lactate thresholds and their pace, training stress and load, heart-rate zones, periodisation and why recovery weeks and tapers exist, and you know where these models break.
• Personal endurance experience. You train for marathons, triathlons or similar events, or have coached athletes who do. This weighs heavily in our selection.
• Comfortable with data wrangling: you write SQL, work in notebooks and spreadsheets, and can read Python well enough to follow and question an algorithm.
• Precise writing. Your tickets and specs leave no room for guesswork.
• Judgement to decide on your own, and the discipline to base decisions on evidence.
• Fluent in English, Dutch is a plus. Nice to have
• Experience with sports-tech data: FIT files, Garmin Connect IQ, wearable APIs.
• A background in sports science, exercise physiology or coaching certification.
• Experience working with external development or integration partners.

What we offer
A full-time role in a small team, hybrid in Belgium. Salary and benefits in line with your experience and fit.

How to apply
Send your resume and cover letter to vacancy@smartrunning.coach. We promise it won’t be read by an AI if you make sure it isn’t written by AI. Show us how much you understand about what we are trying to achieve with your own experience.