At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead strategic product direction and drive impactful digital services for Central Government.
- Company: Join Hippo Digital, a forward-thinking tech company focused on public sector innovation.
- Benefits: Enjoy a competitive salary, generous holiday, and flexible benefits tailored to your needs.
- Other info: Be part of a diverse team committed to innovation and continuous learning.
- Why this job: Make a real difference in citizens' lives while shaping government policy and digital transformation.
- Qualifications: Proven experience in agile delivery and strategic product management within government sectors.
The predicted salary is between 81400 - 103000 £ per year.
Hippo Digital is recruiting for Principal Product Managers to join our growing Central Government Sector. As a strategic product leader in the public sector, you will be instrumental in shaping portfolio visions, navigating and influencing complex policy environments, and overseeing the delivery of impactful digital services at scale. You’ll champion strategic product direction across portfolios, empower leaders and multi-disciplinary teams, and drive the delivery of high-value outcomes for citizens.
As a Principal Consultant, specialising in Product, you’ll already be an expert in agile delivery at a strategic scale within government. You will bring proven portfolio-level experience working across major Central Government departments, such as DWP, MoJ, DfE, MoD, and ONS. You will be a leader of leaders, coaching Senior Product Managers and advocating for user-centred design across government. Hippo will provide exciting opportunities to represent the product function at the executive level, influence key departmental stakeholders, shape policy, and lead public sector digital transformation.
Your role in a nutshell:
- Owning and leading the strategic direction of areas within the Hippo product community.
- Defining and leading the overarching strategic vision, roadmap, and business models for entire product portfolios within Central Government.
- Representing the product function at the executive level, shaping government policy, and advocating for product-centric changes with senior departmental leadership.
- Establishing overarching strategy and objectives for a portfolio, cascading objectives from government mandates and departmental missions down to individual product goals.
- Defining and implementing delivery and risk management frameworks across a portfolio, proactively mitigating strategic challenges in highly regulated environments.
- Driving the improvement of organisational standards for user research, ensuring citizen needs are at the heart of all public sector product work.
- Defining the data, AI, and innovation strategies for the portfolio, ensuring the ethical application of emerging technologies and strict adherence to central government standards.
- Mentoring and coaching Senior leaders, fostering institutional learning and building capability across the public sector product profession.
Skills and experience that you need:
People are at the centre of everything we do. We’re a diverse and close-knit community united by a love for solving complex problems for public sector clients and citizens. We take a common sense approach to getting things done. We get things wrong, we learn from experience and we adapt. We stay curious and never stop learning.
We don’t need you to have specific certificates, but we do need strong strategic GDS experience and evidence of your ability to:
- Translate complex public policy, external context, and emerging technology trends, including public sector AI adoption, into actionable strategic decisions and product investment areas for a government portfolio.
- Architect and lead change strategies that align project delivery with long-term departmental goals, addressing underlying processes, tools, and cultural norms.
- Build portfolio-level strategy and establish metrics frameworks to regularly review performance against citizen value and initiate strategic pivots based on data-driven insights.
- Define and influence organisational structure, processes, and culture to enable effective cross-departmental collaboration and psychological safety.
- Anticipate long-term threats and opportunities, influencing government policy and investment to embed resilience and security as foundational principles.
- Lead collaboration efforts with a wide range of internal teams, external partners, and senior stakeholders, successfully presenting compelling, evidence-based business cases to senior civil servants.
- Demonstrate authoritative knowledge of the GDS Service Standard, championing best practices at an organisational level, and successfully overseeing portfolios of products through GDS service assessments across Discovery, Alpha, Beta, and Live phases.
What makes us great:
Alongside working with some of the most talented people out there and on-top of a competitive salary, which we’re transparent about from the outset, you can also expect a range of benefits:
- Contributory Pension Scheme (Hippo 6% & Employee 2%)
- 25 Days Holiday plus UK Public Holidays
- Perkbox access for a wide range of discounts
- Critical illness cover
- Life assurance and death in service cover
- Volunteer days
- Cycle-to-work scheme for the avid cyclists
- Salary sacrifice electric vehicles scheme
- Season ticket loans
- Financial and general wellbeing sessions
- Flexible benefits scheme with options of:
- Private health cover
- Private dental cover
- Additional company pension contributions
- Additional holidays (up to an extra 2 days)
- Wellbeing contribution
- Charity contributions
- Tree planting
Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at Hippo:
At Hippo, we’re dedicated to creating a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace that works for everyone. We understand that having a diverse team unlocks our capacity for innovation, creativity and problem solving. Only by building a community of diverse perspectives, cultures and socio-economic backgrounds can we create an environment where all can contribute and thrive.
We actively encourage applications from underrepresented groups including women, ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+, neurodivergent and people with disabilities. We are committed to providing an inclusive and accessible recruitment process that reflects our workplace culture. We are a registered Disability Confident Employer, Mindful Employer, Endometriosis Friendly Employer and a member of the Armed Forces Covenant. Hippo continually strives to remove barriers, provide accommodations and offer reasonable adjustments to ensure equity throughout our practices.
Hi, we’re Hippo:
At Hippo, we design with empathy and build for impact. We do this by combining data-informed evidence, human-centred design and software engineering. We're a digital services partner who is genuinely invested in helping our clients thrive as modern organisations. Our delivery methodology is truly agile, from concept to reality, supporting innovation and continuous improvement to achieve your desired outcomes.
We firmly believe that technology should serve humanity, not the other way around. We take a human-centred approach to everything we do because we understand that complex problems require a service design approach. This means understanding how users behave and ensuring our solutions work for them in the real world. Our combination of data, design, and engineering delivers bespoke digital services that make a positive and meaningful impact on organisations and society.
Hippo Locations:
We are headquartered in Leeds and have offices across the UK in Glasgow, Manchester, Birmingham, London and Bristol. We're on the lookout for top talent nationwide but you need to be located within reasonable travelling distance from one of our offices. Given the dynamic nature of a consulting business, you may be required to work on-site at a Hippo office or at an in/out of town client location for a number of days per week (client dependent) and therefore candidates will need to be open/flexible to travel and working on one of those sites at least 2 days per week. We offer a generous relocation support package of up to 8,000 (please ask for terms and conditions) to help make your move a smooth one.
Location: Various Locations
Advertising Salary: 81,400 - 103,000 + Benefits
Vacancy Type: Permanent
Division: Product Management
Level: Principal Consultant
Principal Product Manager - Central Gov in Manchester employer: Hippo Digital
Hippo is an exceptional employer that fosters a collaborative and agile work culture, empowering employees to make a meaningful impact through innovative digital solutions. With a strong commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, Hippo offers extensive benefits including a contributory pension scheme, flexible working options, and professional development opportunities, making it an ideal place for talented individuals to thrive in their careers. The fully remote nature of the Principal Software Engineer role allows for flexibility while still being part of a dynamic team dedicated to delivering high-quality services to both public and private sector clients.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Principal Product Manager - Central Gov in Manchester
✨Join Product Management Meetups
Get involved in local product management meetups or workshops. These events are perfect for meeting industry folks, sharing ideas, and staying updated on trends. Plus, you never know who might be hiring—it's a fantastic way to make connections that could lead to a job at places like Hippo Digital!
✨Show Off Your Product Sense
Create case studies or mini-projects showcasing your product management skills, and share them on platforms like Medium or LinkedIn. This not only puts your skills on display but also boosts your visibility in the product community. Imagine how impressed the hiring team at Hippo Digital would be by your initiative!
✨Utilise Online Communities
Dive into online product management communities like Product Coalition or Mind the Product. Engage in discussions, ask questions, and share your insights. These platforms are goldmines for networking and finding hidden job opportunities—many companies often scout talent from within these circles.
✨Leverage Your University Network
If you’ve recently graduated or are still in uni, tap into your alumni network for connections in product management. Many universities have their own job boards and affinity resources to help graduates land roles. Don't forget to keep an eye out for job openings at Hippo Digital through your school's career services!
We think you need these skills to ace Principal Product Manager - Central Gov in Manchester
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Off Your Product Passion:When applying for a product management role like Principal Product Manager - Central Gov, let your passion for developing products shine through in your cover letter. Share specific examples of products you've managed, how you solved user needs, and any successful outcomes you've achieved. This is your chance to showcase your understanding of the product lifecycle!
Highlight Your Cross-Functional Skills:Product management isn't just about understanding the product; it’s about collaborating with different teams! Make sure to emphasise your experience working with developers, designers, and marketers. Use your CV to showcase your ability to bridge gaps between these areas, and include relevant experiences that demonstrate your communication and leadership skills!
Include Your Metrics and Achievements:In a full-time product management application, data speaks volumes! Quantify your achievements wherever possible. Did you increase user retention by a certain percentage? Launch a product ahead of schedule? Include these metrics in your CV to paint a picture of your impact and effectiveness in previous roles.
Tailor Your CV to the Role:Make sure your CV is tailored for the Principal Product Manager - Central Gov position at Hippo Digital. Use keywords from the job description and ensure your relevant experiences are front and centre. Highlight any certifications or relevant training you’ve completed that will make you stand out as a strong candidate for the role. And remember, we’re excited to see your application on our website!
How to prepare for a job interview at Hippo Digital
✨Understand the Product Life Cycle
As a product management candidate, we need to get our head around the complete product life cycle. Be prepared to discuss real-world examples of how you’ve managed product development from ideation to launch. Bring specific insights on tools like JIRA or Trello that can help streamline these processes.
✨Showcase Your Cross-Functional Skills
Product management is all about collaboration. We should be ready to highlight how we’ve worked across teams—think marketing, engineering, and design. Prepare to discuss scenarios where you had to mediate differing opinions and how you got everyone on board with a shared vision.
✨Prepare for Case Studies
In a full-time role, we can expect to encounter case study questions during our interviews. Practise solving hypothetical product problems on the spot, such as prioritising features for a new app or improving user engagement metrics. This will show our analytical thinking and decision-making skills.
✨Know Your Metrics
Let’s face it, numbers are our best friends in product management. We should prepare to discuss key performance indicators (KPIs) and how we've used analytics to inform product decisions. Dive into examples where data has driven our strategy for improvements or justified product changes.
