At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead product vision and delivery for innovative trading products in a dynamic environment.
- Company: Join a forward-thinking insurance company focused on digital transformation.
- Benefits: Enjoy a competitive salary, great benefits, and opportunities for professional growth.
- Other info: Collaborative culture with excellent career advancement opportunities.
- Why this job: Make an impact by driving product strategy in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.
- Qualifications: Experience in product management and strong understanding of insurance systems required.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 80000 € per year.
We're looking for a Product Owner to own the vision and delivery roadmap for our trading products across speciality lines including Aviation, Marine, Liability, and other classes of business. You'll lead a team of Business Analysts and configuration analysts who work on your products day-to-day, ensuring they have clear direction and priorities. You'll be responsible for driving product strategy, managing stakeholder relationships with brokers and senior underwriting leadership, and prioritising configuration work to ensure we deliver competitive, compliant products to market efficiently. As we evolve towards API‑first and headless architecture, you'll champion how our products are consumed through both traditional interfaces and programmatic integrations, ensuring our products remain competitive in an increasingly digital trading environment. This role requires strong technical understanding of insurance systems, configuration capabilities, and API‑driven product delivery.
Key Responsibilities
- Define and communicate product vision and strategy for assigned trading products (Aviation, Marine, Liability, etc.)
- Identify market opportunities and competitive differentiators through broker and market feedback
- Make strategic decisions on product investment and resource allocation
- Monitor market trends, competitor product offerings, and broker requirements
- Champion the transition to API‑first product delivery and headless architecture
- Ensure products support both traditional UI and programmatic consumption
- Balance broker experience with underwriting control and operational efficiency
- Lead and coordinate teams of Business Analysts and configuration analysts working on your products
- Provide day‑to‑day direction and priorities to ensure team focus and productivity
- Ensure BAs and config analysts have clarity on what needs to be delivered and why
- Unblock teams when they encounter obstacles or need decisions
- Coordinate work across multiple BAs and config analysts working on different products
- Manage team capacity and workload to meet delivery commitments
- Foster collaborative environment and ensure knowledge sharing across the team
- Shield team from conflicting priorities and provide clear focus
- Ensure team understands the business context and broker/underwriting needs behind their work
- Review and approve work produced by BAs and config analysts before release
Stakeholder Management
- Build and maintain relationships with key brokers and broker networks
- Manage expectations across multiple stakeholders with competing priorities
- Present roadmaps and business cases to leadership and approval committees
- Facilitate product governance meetings and steering committees
- Communicate product updates, timelines, and delivery progress
- Balance demands from brokers, underwriters, distribution, operations, and compliance teams
- Gather and synthesize broker feedback to drive product improvements
- Articulate the value of API‑first architecture to business stakeholders
Roadmap & Prioritisation
- Own and prioritise the product backlog based on business value, broker needs, and strategic importance
- Manage product delivery timelines and coordinate dependencies
- Prioritise configuration work across multiple products and workstreams for your team
- Understand technical constraints and configuration limitations when prioritising
- Balance new product launches with enhancements to existing products
- Sequence product releases to optimise time‑to‑market and risk
- Prioritise API capabilities and headless integration features alongside UI improvements
- Distinguish between what can be achieved through configuration vs custom development
- Work with platform teams to ensure product needs requiring platform enhancements are addressed
Product Delivery
- Define product requirements and success criteria for new products and features
- Work with Business Analysts to translate requirements into configurations and technical specifications
- Lead product planning sessions and requirements workshops
- Review and approve configuration work and product releases
- Understand configuration capabilities and technical architecture to make informed decisions
- Review API specifications, data models, and integration patterns
- Coordinate product launches and go‑to‑market activities
- Monitor product performance and adoption post‑launch and drive continuous improvement
- Ensure products are designed for both UI‑based and API‑based consumption
- Validate that configurations meet broker needs and underwriting requirements
- Understand technical trade‑offs between speed‑to‑market and technical debt
- Conduct sprint planning, reviews, and ensure delivery momentum
Business Case & Commercial Management
- Work with broking teams and leadership to build business cases for new product investments
- Support distribution with product positioning and competitive analysis for broker presentations
- Identify opportunities for product rationalisation or consolidation
- Articulate commercial benefits of API‑enabled distribution channels
- Work with brokers to understand market pricing and product competitiveness
Must Have
- Experience leading cross‑functional teams and coordinating multiple workstreams
- Strong understanding of insurance products, particularly speciality lines
- Experience managing stakeholder relationships with brokers and senior leadership
- Demonstrated ability to prioritise and manage competing demands
- Ability to provide clear direction and unblock teams effectively
- Strategic thinker with strong commercial acumen
- Excellent communication and influencing skills across all organisational levels
- Experience managing product timelines and delivery roadmaps
- Strong technical understanding of insurance systems and product configuration
- Ability to understand and discuss API specifications, data structures, and system architecture
- Experience working with technical teams and understanding configuration capabilities
Highly Desirable
- Previous product management or product owner role
- Experience leading Business Analysts or configuration teams
- Experience with insurance transformation or digitalisation initiatives
- Knowledge of Lloyd's market operations and standards
- Track record of successful product launches
- Experience with agile delivery methodologies and sprint management
- Understanding of insurance rating, pricing, and actuarial principles
- Background in both broking and underwriting environments
- Understanding of API‑first product strategy and headless architecture
- Familiarity with digital distribution channels and integration patterns
- Experience with policy administration systems and understanding of configuration vs custom development
- Technical understanding of how configurations translate to system behaviour
- Product Owner certification (CSPO) or product management training
- Hands‑on experience with insurance policy administration platforms or rating engines
- Knowledge of MGA, delegated authority, or binding authority models
- Understanding of reinsurance and capacity management
- Experience with product analytics and MI tools
- Exposure to API specifications (Swagger, OpenAPI, YAML)
- Understanding of RESTful APIs, JSON data structures, and modern integration patterns
- Experience reviewing technical documentation and system designs
- Understanding of data modelling and database concepts
What We Offer
- Competitive salary and benefits package
- Opportunity to work with cutting‑edge integration technologies
- Professional development and training opportunities
Product Owner employer: Howden
Join a forward-thinking company that values innovation and collaboration, where as a Product Owner, you'll lead a dynamic team in shaping the future of trading products across specialty lines. With a competitive salary and benefits package, along with ample opportunities for professional development, you'll thrive in a culture that encourages growth and embraces cutting-edge technologies. Located in a vibrant area, this role offers a unique chance to make a significant impact in an evolving digital landscape while fostering strong relationships with key stakeholders.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Product Owner
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to people in the industry, attend events, and connect with potential colleagues on LinkedIn. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings or can put in a good word for you.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for interviews by researching the company and its products. Understand their market position and be ready to discuss how your experience aligns with their needs. This shows you're genuinely interested and can hit the ground running.
✨Tip Number 3
Practice your pitch! Be clear about your product vision and how you can contribute to their team. Highlight your experience with API-driven product delivery and stakeholder management to make a strong impression.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen by the right people. Plus, it shows you’re keen on joining our team and ready to take on the challenge.
We think you need these skills to ace Product Owner
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion for Product Ownership:When writing your application, let your enthusiasm for product ownership shine through! Share specific examples of how you've driven product strategy and managed teams in the past. We want to see your passion for delivering top-notch products that meet broker needs.
Tailor Your Application:Make sure to customise your application to highlight your experience with insurance products, especially in speciality lines like Aviation and Marine. We love seeing candidates who understand our market and can articulate how their skills align with our goals.
Be Clear and Concise:Keep your application straightforward and to the point. Use bullet points where possible to make it easy for us to see your key achievements and skills. Remember, clarity is key when communicating your product vision and strategy!
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you’re considered for the role. Plus, it shows you’re keen on joining our team at StudySmarter!
How to prepare for a job interview at Howden
✨Know Your Product Inside Out
Before the interview, dive deep into the specifics of the trading products you'll be managing. Understand the nuances of Aviation, Marine, and Liability lines. This knowledge will help you articulate your vision and strategy clearly, showing that you're not just familiar with the products but passionate about them.
✨Showcase Your Stakeholder Management Skills
Prepare examples of how you've successfully managed relationships with brokers and senior leadership in the past. Highlight your ability to balance competing demands and communicate effectively across different organisational levels. This will demonstrate your readiness to handle the diverse stakeholder landscape in this role.
✨Demonstrate Technical Understanding
Brush up on your technical knowledge regarding insurance systems and API-driven product delivery. Be ready to discuss how configurations translate to system behaviour and how you can champion the transition to an API-first architecture. This will show that you can bridge the gap between technical teams and business needs.
✨Prepare for Scenario-Based Questions
Expect questions that assess your problem-solving skills and strategic thinking. Think of scenarios where you've had to prioritise product backlogs or manage multiple workstreams. Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to structure your responses, making it easier for the interviewers to see your thought process.
