Senior Product Manager

Job summary

UK Export Finance (UKEF) is seeking a Senior Product Manager to lead the development and use of high‑quality performance insight across digital services and wider organisational performance.

You will work across product teams, operational areas and senior stakeholders to ensure that performance is clearly defined, measured and actively used to drive better outcomes, value for money and continuous improvement.

About the Role

We are looking for a highly motivated and experienced Senior Product Manager who can actively participate and contribute to the Department’s growing digital capability. Working with multidisciplined teams you will make platforms and services for UKEF that meet user needs. We work using agile methods and continuous improvement. Our teams research, analyse, prototype and make measurable changes. As a Senior Product Manager at UKEF you'll have the opportunity to build the right things, in the right order. You'll work on exciting digital products and services that are relevant to our customers

Job description

As a Grade 7 Senior Product Manager, you:

• Will manage a product or products through discovery, alpha, beta and live states of our digital services.
• Apply experience of using agile tools and techniques to deliver UKEF’s digital services
• Will be developing expert skills in and knowledge of product management techniques
• You can help teams to manage and visualise outcomes, prioritise work and work to agreed minimum viable product (MVP), print and scope.
• You can demonstrate a working understanding of design, technology and data principles.
• You understand the variety and complexity of users’ digital needs and how the product will meet those needs.
• You know about assisted digital support and can explain why it’s important. You can design services and make decisions to meet users needs.
• You can identify constraints and can communicate about these and work within them. You know how to challenge the validity of constraints. You can ensure standards are being met.
• You understand the marketplace, realising the benefit and persuading others that a product is the right one to use. You know how to integrate a product with other services. You can ensure that products get used. You can realise benefits by linking work in progress back to the business case. You can build business cases based on user needs.
• You recognise when to move from one stage of a product life cycle to another. You can ensure the team is working towards the appropriate service standards for the relevant phase. You can manage delivery products and services at different phases.
• You know how to design operational processes for the running and maintenance of products or services throughout their product life cycle. You can redesign operational processes, amend existing processes, and plan and put into operation the stages of a new product or service development.
• You can act as the escalation point for operational issues and can fix complex operational issues. You know how to overcome operational constraints to deliver a successful product or service. You can work closely with operational delivery teams in digital, data and technology (DDaT).
• You know how to ensure that the right actions are taken to investigate, resolve and anticipate problems. You can coordinate the team to investigate problems and implement solutions and preventative measures.
• You know how to apply tools, terms and concepts in a variety of ways. You can be flexible, consider new ways of working and adapt to change.
• You know how to get buy-in from the organisation. You can work with scant information and explain it in abstract terms. You can develop a strategy.
• You know how to collaborate with user researchers and can represent users internally. You understand the difference between user needs and the desires of the user. You can champion user research to focus on all users. You can prioritise and define approaches to understand the user story, guiding others in doing so. You can offer recommendations on the best tools and methods to be used.
• Actively participate in the agile product manager community – learning, sharing knowledge and bringing in good practice to the UKEF PM community.
• Work to create a diverse, inclusive, supportive culture that stimulates innovation and enables high-performing teams to build and sustain high quality products and delivery; and
• Work within the UKEF Project Management Governance Framework for elements of the service that are in 'Project mode', including monthly highlight reporting, financial reporting and checkpoint signoffs

This list is not exhaustive, other duties and tasks may need to be performed in line with the needs of the business.

Person specification

UK Export Finance is looking for motivated individuals with a desire to learn about the business. Successful candidates will be provided not only with functional training to enable them to do well in their role, but also with personal development to help them to achieve their career ambitions. Please note that the person specification below outlines at which stage(s) you will be assessed on how you meet the criteria for the role(s) including:-

A = assessed at application stage I = assessed at interview stage

T = assessed by test stage = assessed at presentation stage

Essential

Knowledge

• Knowledge of Agile project methodology (A, I)
• Knowledge of Scrum (A, I)
• Knowledge of the Government Digital Service Standard and Technology Code of Practice (A, I, P)

Skills/Ability

• Agile and Lean practices (A, I, P)
• Communicating between the technical and non-technical teams(A)
• Maintaining delivery momentum (A, I, P)
• Making the process work (I)
• Planning (A, I, P)
• Team dynamics and collaboration (A, I, P)
• The following skills will also be assessed throughout the Application, Presentation, and Interview stages, this is against the Senior Product Manager skillset (A, I, P)
  • Agile working (Expert)
  • DDaT perspective (Practitioner)
  • Experience of working within constraints (Expert)
  • Financial ownership (Practitioner)
  • Life-cycle perspective (Practitioner)
  • Operational management (Expert)
  • Problem management (Expert)
  • Product ownership (Expert)
  • Strategic ownership (Practitioner)
  • User focus (Expert)

Experience

• Experience of managing teams to deliver outcomes. (A, I, P)
• Experience of being a Scrum Master (A, I)

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Making Effective Decisions
• Communicating and Influencing

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Technical Question
• Presentation - a short presentation, this will be a topic determined by UKEF and will need to be prepared in advanced
• Question(s) - you will be assessed across your technical expertise and acumen, in relation to the essential criteria and the DDaT Capability Framework - Senior Product Manager

We only ask for evidence of these technical skills on your application form:

• Technical Question

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £63,500, UK Export Finance contributes £18,395 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.

We are assessing candidates using Success Profiles (see Appendix 1) and across the whole process we will assess your Experience, Technical and Behaviours as highlighted below.

The application must be completed by 23.55 on the day of the closing date for it to be accepted.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Please ensure that you read through the Candidate Information Pack attached to this advert, before applying.

All applications will be sifted against our essential criteria outlined in the personal specification.

• Statement of suitability - you should fully articulate in 750 words how you meet the essential criteria outlined in the person specification within the Information Pack.
• Technical Question - 250 Words
  • You are responsible for a digital service that depends on several internal systems and APIs. Users and operational teams have reported that the service can sometimes be slow or unreliable. The technical team believes some of the underlying technology needs improving. In no more than 250 words, explain how you would approach the situation. What would you want to understand, who would you involve, and how would you decide what should be prioritised?

For the initial sift your application will be evaluated against:

1. Experience - CV / Application and Statement of Suitability
2. Technical - 250 word statement
   • You are responsible for a digital service that depends on several internal systems and APIs. Users and operational teams have reported that the service can sometimes be slow or unreliable. The technical team believes some of the underlying technology needs improving. In no more than 250 words, explain how you would approach the situation. What would you want to understand, who would you involve, and how would you decide what should be prioritised?

In the event of a high volume of applications, there will be a pre-sift on the following essential criteria's;

• Essential Criteria's
  • You can help teams to manage and visualise outcomes, prioritise work and work to agreed minimum viable product (MVP), print and scope
  • Apply experience of using agile tools and techniques to deliver UKEF’s digital services
  • You recognise when to move from one stage of a product life cycle to another. You can ensure the team is working towards the appropriate service standards for the relevant phase. You can manage delivery products and services at different phases.
• Technical - 250 Word statement
  • You are responsible for a digital service that depends on several internal systems and APIs. Users and operational teams have reported that the service can sometimes be slow or unreliable. The technical team believes some of the underlying technology needs improving. In no more than 250 words, explain how you would approach the situation. What would you want to understand, who would you involve, and how would you decide what should be prioritised?

If you are successful following the sift stage, you will be invited to an initial interview, to be held onsite at 1 Horse Guards Road or via MS Teams; this will include the following assessment:

1. Behaviours / Experience - a formal panel interview where you will be interviewed across all three behaviours highlighted in Appendix 1.
   1. Behaviour - Seeing the Big Picture
   2. Behaviour - Making Effective Decisions
   3. Behaviour - Communicating and Influencing
2. Technical - you will be assessed across your technical expertise and acumen, in relation to the essential criteria
   1. Presentation - a short presentation, this will be a topic determined by UKEF and will need to be prepared in advanced
   2. Question(s) - you will be assessed across your technical expertise and acumen, in relation to the essential criteria and the DDaT Capability Framework - Senior Product Manager

Details of interview panel members will be e-mailed to all successful candidates who are invited for interview.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : UKEF Recruitment
• Email : Recruitment2@ukexportfinance.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : Recruitment2@ukexportfinance.gov.uk

Further information

Should you have a complaint or wish to raise any concerns regarding the recruitment process, please e-mail your complaint to the Head of Pay and Resourcing (UKEF) at Recruitment2@ukexportfinance.gov.uk and include “Complaint” in the subject heading. Should you remain dissatisfied following UKEF’s investigation then you can refer your complaint to the Commission - http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/making-complaint.

Attachments

Information Pack - Senior Product Manager Opens in new window (pdf, 1796kB)