Product Change Manager in Hastings

General Dynamics Mission Systems engineers a diverse portfolio of high technology solutions, products and services that enable customers to successfully execute missions across all domains of operation. With a global team of more than 13,000 top professionals, we partner with the best in industry to expand the bounds of innovation in the defence and scientific arenas. In the UK, we are leading the way in avionics and communication systems.

We are seeking an experienced and organised Product Change Manager to join our Core Technologies team in Hastings, United Kingdom. Reporting to the Engineering Manager - Core Technologies, you will have a high level of autonomy in overseeing the change management system within the team. In this position, you will be responsible for establishing and maintaining governance frameworks for product changes, ensuring that the correct level of rigour is applied to all change requests, and guaranteeing that approved changes are carried through to successful end delivery.

You will play a pivotal role in bridging the gap between product development and operational implementation across our defence customer base, whilst maintaining a focus on organisational readiness, user adoption, and cross-functional alignment.

Key Responsibilities

• Establish and oversee the change management system first within the Core Technologies team with an expectation to the responsibility growing across the company, defining governance frameworks and approval processes that ensure appropriate scrutiny of all change requests.
• Conduct thorough impact analyses to identify potential risks, dependencies, and stakeholder concerns related to product changes, with particular attention to manufacturing implications, commercial viability, and after-sales service delivery.
• Manage and coordinate stakeholder engagement across customer project teams, commercial teams, manufacturing teams, and after-sales/RM&T teams, understanding their unique priorities and ensuring their concerns are addressed throughout the change lifecycle.
• Create and maintain detailed change documentation, including communication plans tailored to each stakeholder group, training materials, and implementation timelines that account for manufacturing lead times and customer project schedules.
• Engage with customer project teams to ensure product changes align with project timelines and customer expectations, minimising disruption to ongoing defence customer deliverables.
• Liaise with commercial teams to assess market implications, pricing considerations, and customer communication strategies related to product changes.
• Collaborate with manufacturing teams to evaluate production feasibility, supply chain impacts, and implementation timelines for product modifications.
• Work with after-sales/RM&T teams to identify service delivery implications, warranty considerations, and technical support requirements arising from product changes.
• Design and deliver stakeholder communication plans, ensuring clear and timely dissemination of change-related information appropriate to each audience.
• Develop and deliver training programmes and induction materials to support user adoption across all stakeholder groups and minimise resistance to change.
• Monitor change implementation progress, track key metrics, and provide regular status updates to senior leadership, highlighting cross-team dependencies and potential bottlenecks.
• Identify and mitigate risks throughout the change process, implementing contingency plans as necessary, with particular focus on manufacturing, commercial, and customer project impacts.
• Gather feedback from all stakeholder groups and end-users, analysing data to inform continuous improvement of change processes and cross-functional coordination.
• Collaborate with project managers to ensure change management activities are integrated into broader product delivery timelines and aligned with manufacturing and commercial schedules.
• Maintain detailed documentation of all change initiatives for future reference and organisational learning, ensuring traceability and accountability throughout the change lifecycle.

Qualifications Required Skills & Experience

• Excellent stakeholder management and people skills - essential to this role, with the ability to engage and influence diverse teams across customer projects, commercial, manufacturing, and after-sales functions.
• Proven experience in change management within product or technology environments.
• Experience using change management tools and software.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to tailor messaging for diverse audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to analyse complex situations and develop strategic solutions.
• Proficiency in project management with the ability to manage multiple initiatives simultaneously.
• Expertise in risk assessment, mitigation planning, and contingency management.
• Excellent organisational skills with meticulous attention to detail.

Preferred Skills & Experience

• Strong knowledge of change management methodologies and frameworks (such as ADKAR or Kotter), including user adoption strategies and change resistance management.
• Experience developing and delivering training programmes.

Domain Expertise

• Change management.
• Product management.
• Organisational development.
• Experience working with or familiarity with AI/ML models is preferred.

This role has a salary of between 65,000 and 75,000 plus our flexible benefits package. We are open to this role being spent with time working from home and in the office (hybrid - typically 3 days working in office) on a weekly basis or fully in our offices. We pride ourselves in being a great place to work with a shared sense of purpose, offering impressive benefits:

• A compressed nine-day fortnight and compressed hours - which means every other Friday off.
• A personalized career development plan, alongside regular progress reviews - supporting and valuing your progression within the Company.
• A flexible working environment where your contributions are recognised and rewarded with flexible benefits.

We believe in maintaining a diverse workplace - inclusive of beliefs, cultural background, job experiences, thoughts and ideas. If who we are and what we do resonates with you, we welcome you to join our inclusive team! Our success is fuelled by our colleagues and the wide variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills they bring to the Company. We are a Disability Confident Employer, as such we offer an interview to disabled people who meet the minimum criteria for the job. Please email disabilityconfident@gd-ms.uk if you would like your application to be considered under the DC Scheme. All successful/appointed applicants must be able to obtain a level of UK Security clearance that is appropriate for the role and undertake suitable Right to work checks. Every application matters to us. We want you to know that each application we receive is reviewed by a real person not just an algorithm. Our screening questions are also carefully considered to help us understand your experience and fit for the role. We appreciate the time you take to apply.