At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead the optimisation of shared platforms and enhance customer interaction journeys.
- Company: Join a leading UK pension group with a tech-driven culture.
- Benefits: Flexible hybrid working, competitive pay, and opportunities for professional growth.
- Other info: Dynamic role with potential for significant career advancement.
- Why this job: Make a real impact by aligning technology across multiple business units.
- Qualifications: Experience in technical product ownership and strong stakeholder management skills.
The predicted salary is between 50000 - 60000 £ per year.
Location: Manchester (Hybrid)
Contract Type: Contract
Duration: 6 months
Role Overview
One of the UK's leading pension groups are seeking a Technical Product Owner to join its Engagement Services platform team. This is a technology-led role focused on the ownership, optimisation, and alignment of shared enterprise platforms across multiple value streams. Unlike traditional Product Owner roles, this position operates purely from a technology perspective, ensuring that platforms are used effectively, consistently, and in a scalable manner across the organisation.
The role plays a critical part in enabling a coherent and efficient Customer Interaction Journey (CIJ) across marketing, sales, and customer servicing functions.
Programme Context
The Engagement Services team supports several shared platforms used across the business, including:
- Microsoft Dynamics (CRM and customer journeys)
- Optimizely (Content Management Platform & Digital Asset Management)
- Smart Communications (SmartComms) (customer communications)
These platforms underpin the end-to-end Customer Interaction Journey, covering:
- Marketing and campaign management
- Sales and advisor journeys
- Customer servicing and ongoing engagement
This is a shared platform model, with multiple business units leveraging the same technologies.
Key Objective
The core objective of this role is to provide centralised, technology-led product ownership across shared platforms, ensuring:
- Consistent and correct platform usage
- Alignment across business areas
- Scalable and reusable solutions
- Reduction of duplication and inefficiencies
Currently, ownership is fragmented, with multiple business Product Owners driving platform usage independently. This role will act as the central coordinating authority, aligning demand and ensuring strategic consistency.
Key Responsibilities
- Platform Product Ownership (Technology Lens)
- Develop a deep understanding of platform capabilities (Dynamics, Optimizely, SmartComms)
- Ensure solutions are:
- Scalable
- Reusable
- Aligned to platform architecture and standards
- Act as the authority on how platforms should be used across the organisation
- Demand Alignment Across Value Streams
- Collaborate with multiple business Product Owners
- Consolidate and rationalise requirements into a unified platform roadmap
- Identify and prevent:
- Duplicate solutions
- Conflicting requirements
- Inefficient use of technology
- Technical Prioritisation
- Lead or support prioritisation decisions across platform backlogs
- Balance:
- Business value
- Technical feasibility
- Platform constraints
- Act on behalf of senior product leadership where required
- Cross-Functional Coordination
- Act as the key connector between:
- Product
- Architecture
- Engineering
- Delivery
- Ensure these disciplines operate in alignment, reducing delivery risk and improving outcomes.
Key Challenges This Role Will Address
- Fragmented platform usage across business units
- Lack of consistent technical product ownership
- Over-reliance on key individuals to align teams
- Misalignment between product, engineering, and architecture
- Inefficient use of shared platforms leading to duplication and cost
Required Experience & Skills
Essential Experience as:
- Technical Product Owner, or
- Platform Product Manager, or
- Senior Functional Consultant moving into product ownership
Strong understanding of:
- CRM platforms (ideally Microsoft Dynamics)
- Customer engagement / journey platforms
Proven ability to:
- Align multiple stakeholders across teams
- Translate business requirements into technology decisions
- Make clear, confident prioritisation decisions
Desirable
- Consulting or advisory background
- Experience working across multiple teams or value streams
- Comfortable engaging with:
- Engineers and architects
- Senior stakeholders and leadership
Candidate Profile
The ideal candidate will be a technology-led Product Owner who:
- Understands platform architecture and capabilities (not just user-level interaction)
- Can operate effectively in complex, multi-team environments
- Is confident making decisions and driving alignment
- Brings structure and clarity to ambiguous or fragmented environments
Unsuitable Profiles
- Pure business-facing Product Owners without technical depth
- Backlog administrators or Jira-focused roles
- Candidates with only end-user exposure to platforms
- Individuals who avoid ownership or decision-making
Summary
This role is a strategic, technology-focused Product Owner position responsible for governing and optimising shared enterprise platforms. It requires strong stakeholder alignment, platform expertise, and the ability to drive scalable, coherent product decisions across the organisation.
Platform Tech Product Owner - Shared Platforms Lead in Manchester employer: Teksystems
Join one of the UK's leading pension groups as a Technical Product Owner in Manchester, where you'll be at the forefront of optimising shared enterprise platforms. Our hybrid work culture promotes collaboration and innovation, while offering ample opportunities for professional growth and development within a supportive environment. With a focus on technology-led solutions, you'll play a pivotal role in enhancing customer interaction journeys across multiple business units, making this an exciting and rewarding opportunity for those looking to make a meaningful impact.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Platform Tech Product Owner - Shared Platforms Lead in Manchester
✨Tip Number 1
Get to know the company inside out! Research their platforms like Microsoft Dynamics and Optimizely. This will help you speak their language during interviews and show that you're genuinely interested in how they operate.
✨Tip Number 2
Network, network, network! Connect with current employees on LinkedIn or attend industry events. Building relationships can give you insider info and might even lead to a referral, which is always a bonus!
✨Tip Number 3
Prepare for technical questions! Brush up on your knowledge of platform architecture and customer engagement strategies. Being able to discuss these topics confidently will set you apart from other candidates.
✨Tip Number 4
Apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen by the right people. Plus, it shows you’re proactive and serious about landing the role.
We think you need these skills to ace Platform Tech Product Owner - Shared Platforms Lead in Manchester
Some tips for your application 🫡
Know Your Platforms:Before you start your application, make sure you have a solid understanding of the platforms mentioned in the job description, like Microsoft Dynamics and Optimizely. This will help you tailor your application to show how your experience aligns with the role.
Showcase Your Technical Skills:Highlight your technical product ownership experience in your application. Use specific examples that demonstrate your ability to align stakeholders and make prioritisation decisions, as this is key for the role.
Be Clear and Concise:When writing your application, keep it clear and to the point. Avoid jargon and focus on how your skills and experiences directly relate to the responsibilities outlined in the job description.
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply through our website for a smoother process. It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you don’t miss out on any important updates!
How to prepare for a job interview at Teksystems
✨Know Your Platforms Inside Out
Before the interview, dive deep into the platforms mentioned in the job description, like Microsoft Dynamics and Optimizely. Understand their capabilities and how they fit into the Customer Interaction Journey. This knowledge will help you demonstrate your technical depth and show that you're ready to take ownership.
✨Align with Stakeholders
Prepare to discuss how you would align multiple stakeholders across different teams. Think of examples from your past experience where you successfully consolidated requirements or resolved conflicts. This will showcase your ability to act as a key connector between product, engineering, and architecture.
✨Prioritisation is Key
Be ready to talk about how you approach prioritisation decisions. Consider bringing a framework or method you've used in the past to balance business value, technical feasibility, and platform constraints. This will highlight your decision-making skills and strategic thinking.
✨Bring Structure to Ambiguity
Think about times when you've had to bring clarity to a fragmented environment. Prepare to share specific examples of how you structured processes or improved efficiency in previous roles. This will demonstrate your capability to thrive in complex, multi-team settings.
