Product Manager

JOB PURPOSE:

The Product Manager is responsible for formulating and taking ownership of the product vision. She/he possess a profound understanding of the target market or industry and establish strong relationships with key stakeholders to ensure that the efforts of various product teams align with the business objectives. Managing dependencies with other product teams, the Product Manager identifies, establishes, and oversees strategic partnerships across different teams.

She/he collaborate closely within their product teams to ensure development focused on delivering business value and incorporating user feedback.

Additionally, the Product Manager possesses a comprehensive understanding of the product portfolio and assumes responsibility for providing technical guidance and overseeing the development of products at an enterprise level. Positioned at the intersection of vision, strategy, business, and software engineering, the Product Manager ensures that the product progresses according to plan.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES:

General

• Develop and articulate a clear product vision, effectively communicating it to stakeholders and the wider team. Collaborate with stakeholders to ensure alignment between the product vision and business objectives. Prioritize product features based on the vision and business priorities, overseeing the entire product development process from inception to production.
• Take accountability for scaling the solution across the organization and gaining buy-in from business users.
• Organize, facilitate, and support prioritization sessions with the leadership team to establish goals.
• Review business cases for proposed projects and track and communicate the realized value.
• Estimate the work effort required, create a resource plan, and adjust program plans based on dependencies and capacity constraints.
• Engage with individuals at all levels within the organization to manage relationships and expectations.
• Proactively identify, understand, and mitigate issues and risks in collaboration with project teams, business partners, and leadership.
• Develop change management and communication plans for key initiatives.
• Manage budget, timeline, and scope throughout all assigned projects.
• Identify interdependencies within a dynamic product landscape and complex organization and create awareness & understanding around it
• Oversee all stages of the product development lifecycle, from concept to launch.
• Employ a progressive stakeholder management approach, cultivating strong relationships and coordinating with stakeholders to promote the vision and priorities of the products.
• Embrace and work in an agile environment, keeping track of changing business needs and refining priorities accordingly. Lead and coordinate change activities, working with lead translators to maintain a strategic delivery roadmap.
• Facilitate release planning sessions with stakeholders, conduct regular demos, and manage a backlog of items across product teams, prioritizing them according to business objectives.
• Maintain momentum and direction while balancing scope, time, and budget in alignment with dynamic business priorities and objectives. Actively manage project risks, issues, and dependencies across product teams.
• Manage multiple concurrent projects of varying scale and business backlog items from ideation to delivery, including responsibility for business change elements. Apply appropriate governance and established change delivery frameworks.
• Leverage market and industry knowledge to translate user needs into product acceptance criteria. Incorporate usability studies into product requirements to ensure customer-driven design.
• Coordinate work with other internal departments to ensure understanding of internal resource requirements and availability.
• Manage and lead the team's day-to-day operations using a performance management process and drive continuous process improvement.
• Coach, mentor, and guide the team in accordance with EGA's values, policies, and procedures.
• Product shall be Industry 4.0 products in nature and representing value added solutions that have an impact on the business unit KPIs.
• Business unit KPIs represents financial and no financial KPIs inline with industry 4.0 classification of impacts.
• The product manager is responsible to manage different products with multiple use cases and across multiple business units

AUTHORITY/ DECISION MAKING:

• Operate within established policies, standards, and objectives while exercising discretion in determining the necessary actions. The incumbent is responsible for developing a plan, setting priorities, and defining the required processes to achieve the objectives.
• Takes the ownership of the product backlog, which is a prioritized list of features, enhancements, and tasks to be addressed in the product development process.
• collaborate with stakeholders, including customers, business leaders, and development teams, to gather requirements, provide clarifications, and communicate the product vision.
• They prioritize features based on customer feedback, market research, and business priorities, ensuring that the development team works on the most valuable items first.

JOB DIMENSIONS

• The job holder's responsibilities encompass a diverse range of activities, including product development, defining product features or functions, analyzing the organization's culture and business, and mapping out the entire product lifecycle from idea inception to product launch
• The product scope extends from initiation to production including all associated and required change management and training and support.
• The job holder is responsible for ensuring sufficient financial support for the product and achieving the expected return on investment
• As a Product Manager, it is essential to assess not only the product's strategy but also the broader roadmap of the related digital transformation at organizational level. This involves analyzing organizational systems and processes to navigate complex constraints and achieve the desired objectives for product evolution.
• The job holder will be responsible for overseeing a portfolio of activities at scale within an agile framework of EGA.

MAJOR PROBLEMS TO BE SOLVED IN THE POSITION

• Wide scope and the technical complexities that ranges from design, development and delivery of future ready digital products & platforms that provide end to end visibility and control of the IT and business services
• Ensure that the product features are strategically aligned to drive the adoption of digital technologies and promote new ways of working.
• Serve as a role model for implementing the principles of scaling agile within the digital platforms, ensuring alignment with business use cases.

QUALIFICATIONS & SKILLS:

Minimum Qualifications:

• BS or MS in either Computer Science, Mathematics or Engineering or related discipline

Minimum Skills and Experience:

• A minimum of 15+ years of experience, with a preference for at least 3 years in the manufacturing industry. Additional experience in metal, mining, and energy sectors would be advantageous.
• Demonstrated track record of working with various products, specifically in the area of Operations ( reduction, carbon and port, maintenance, casthouse ATA and GAC), capital projects, and corporate areas ( marketing and sales, supply chain)
• Possess a formal project management qualification, such as PMP, PRINCE2, Agile Project Management, or an equivalent certification.
• Proven understanding of agile tools and frameworks, including Scrum and Kanban.
• Ability to plan ahead of different product teams by 2-3 steps and identify hidden risks at deeper levels within each team.
• Proficient in drawing storyboards, creating wireframes, grooming product backlogs, writing user stories, and developing acceptance criteria.
• Strong collaborator with cross-functional teams encompassing technology, business, and design. Experience in working with design teams to deliver optimal user experience (UX) and user interface (UI), as well as engaging and managing third-party vendors and consultants.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to influence senior business and IT executives in agile transformation and building a product and platform vision. Capable of switching between strategic discussions with senior business leaders and providing on-the-ground agile coaching to teams.
• Demonstrable experience in managing a diverse change portfolio with concurrent initiatives, showcasing adaptability, creativity, and efficient resource utilization.
• Solid experience in delivering all stages of the project and software development life cycle, particularly in managing complex business change projects, preferably within a digital transformation context. Extensive knowledge of technical engineering best practices, such as test-driven development and continuous integration.
• Familiarity with tools like Jira, Confluence, or other similar tools.

Agile Skills and Experience:

• Possesses a profound comprehension of agility, the ability to lead teams using agile methodologies, and an agile approach to working collaboratively with the team.
• Familiarity with diverse tools and techniques employed in agile methodologies.
• Extensive experience in backlog management, constructing release plans, monitoring team-level metrics, and effectively resolving obstacles (utilizing tools such as burndown charts, release burn-ups, etc.).
• Demonstrates excellent facilitation and engagement skills, along with a servant leadership mindset.
• Individual Skills:
• Demonstrates strong leadership capabilities by cultivating teamwork, fostering positive team dynamics, and guiding the team with a servant leadership mindset.
• Possesses excellent communication skills, capable of effectively summarizing complex technical information and tailoring the content to a wide range of audiences, including senior management.
• Exhibits strong problem-solving abilities and excels in managing and inspiring collaboration.
• Maintains a well-rounded skill set with a good balance of business and technical acumen.

Mindset/Behaviors:

• Highly proactive and self-motivated, possessing a mindset akin to that of a startup.
• Demonstrates a strong focus on customers and prioritizes user experience.
• Firmly believes in fostering a collaborative culture without hierarchies, emphasizing transparency, safety, and trust.
• Embraces stepping outside of the comfort zone to facilitate personal growth and learning, encouraging teams to do the same. Empowers others to embrace failure as a means of learning and development.
• Approaches the job with a contagious high-energy and passionate attitude, capable of influencing those around them.
• Capable of building trust and rapport, creating a comfortable and productive work environment.
• Embraces an experimental mindset to drive innovation, constantly challenging the status quo and seeking new solutions. Embraces change and enthusiastically explores unconventional ideas.