Product Management Senior Specialist

Product Management Senior Specialist

Location: IB (International Baccalaureate) Global Centre, The Hague - The Netherlands (required)
Salary range 57.729 EUR - 79.377 EUR annually 
Job Type: Full-Time, Permanent position

No relocation package and/or sponsorship work permit offered

About the IB

If you're looking to work for a global organisation with a meaningful mission, and with colleagues all over the world, then the International Baccalaureate (IB) may have the ideal opportunity for you The International Baccalaureate provides world-class educational services to over 5,500 schools across 159 countries. A career at IB is not just a job; it’s an opportunity to work with an innovative world leader in education services and contribute to our 50-year mission of creating a better and more peaceful world. Apply now to join our global organisation where we empower our employees to thrive and make a difference.

About the job

The IB is transforming how it does technology delivery through the implementation of a new operating model: the Technology Playbook.

The Product Management department is accountable for the outcome of the IB’s portfolio of customer-facing technologies throughout their lifecycle. This involves balancing business requirements, customer feedback, technology needs and market trends in service of IB’s strategic objectives. This team centralizes a capability that has developed differently within each Offices in the IBO, and standardizes and codifies their responsibilities within the development and operations of customer-facing technologies.

The core collective responsibilities of the Product Management department are:

Define the portfolio design, direction, roadmap and prioritize features for all digital products, and maximize overall value and RoI of the full product portfolio Translate business teams into product requirements / features, and communicate clearly with business teams to ensure expectations and product understanding are aligned Lead and collaborate with IT Team and UX Design to drive technology implementation, and ensure business case and customer satisfaction goals are met within agreed time frames Drive customer-centric practices including the capture of early and frequent customer feedback, customer-usage data, and prioritizing the end-to-end customer journey as a primary design consideration for our digital products Continuously track and analyze trends in the education technology sector, competitor activities, and customer needs to make informed decisions that optimize the relevance and competitiveness of the IB’s digital products.

Role and responsibilities 

The following responsibilities relate to all employees in Product Management in relation to their Product Responsibilities:

PRODUCT STRATEGY:

Market analysis: Continuously track and analyze trends in the education technology sector, competitor activities, and customer needs to make informed decisions that optimize the relevance and competitiveness of the product. Product strategy: Develop the product strategy in alignment with the IB’s goals and objectives, clearly identifying how the product contributes to the IB’s KPIs and what success will look like Communication: Communicate the product strategy (and roadmap) to stakeholders in a manner that adjusts to the perspective and level of digital knowledge / understanding of the stakeholder.

PRODUCT ROADMAPPING:

Feature definition: Create and maintain a product roadmap that outlines feature releases and milestones, and which prioritize features and initiatives based on customer value, business objectives, and technical feasibility. Collaboration: Collaborate with Business Owners and other cross-functional to gather input and feedback for roadmap planning. Adaptation: Continuously refine and adjust the roadmap in response to changes in product performance, changing user needs, changing market conditions and stakeholder feedback.

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT AND OPERATION:

User stories: Translate product features into user stories, specifications, and acceptance criteria. Team leadership. Work closely with engineering, design, and other teams to ensure alignment and collaboration, and facilitate Agile ceremonies such as sprint planning, daily standups, and sprint reviews. Customer focus: Drive customer-centric practices including the capture of early and frequent customer feedback, customer-usage data, and prioritizing the end-to-end customer journey as a primary design consideration for our digital products Delivery management: Monitor progress and address issues or risks that may impact feature delivery, and make trade-off decisions to balance scope, schedule, and resources throughout the development process. Product performance: Monitor and manage the performance / outcomes of the product, anticipate and lead the response to any performance issues or bugs that may occur

OTHER

Culture: Pro-actively contribute to a Departmental culture that is collaborative, respectful, courageous, open, committed and which values continuous improvement Digital champion. Through your every interaction, help build and elevate digital culture and capabilities within the department and wider IB Team building: Actively participate in, departmental meetings, workshops, and forums to foster cross-functional collaboration and knowledge sharing. Sector contributions: Participate in professional events / conferences / seminars to share learnings about, and build a community / network around, the IB’s Products Overall departmental strategy: Input into strategic direction of department Process improvements: Input into, and drive implementation of, process improvement opportunities for the Product Management department

About you

EXPERIENCE

Product Management: Seasoned product management experience, preferably in educational technologies or mission-based organizations. Cross-functional Collaboration: Experience collaborating with diverse teams, including software developers, instructional designers, educators, and administrators.

KNOWLEDGE

Education Industry: Understanding of the K-12 education sector globally and the role and market for curriculum’s like the IB Edtech Landscape: Knowledge of trends, technologies, and emerging innovations in educational technology. Customer focus: Drive customer-centric practices including the capture of early and frequent customer feedback, customer-usage data, and prioritizing the end-to-end customer journey as a primary design consideration for our digital products Delivery management: Monitor progress and address issues or risks that may impact feature delivery, and make trade-off decisions to balance scope, schedule, and resources throughout the development process. Product performance: Monitor and manage the performance / outcomes of the product, anticipate and lead the response to any performance issues or bugs that may occur

OTHER

Culture: Pro-actively contribute to a Departmental culture that is collaborative, respectful, courageous, open, committed and which values continuous improvement Digital champion. Through your every interaction, help build and elevate digital culture and capabilities within the department and wider IB Team building: Actively participate in, departmental meetings, workshops, and forums to foster cross-functional collaboration and knowledge sharing. Sector contributions: Participate in professional events / conferences / seminars to share learnings about, and build a community / network around, the IB’s Products Overall departmental strategy: Input into strategic direction of department Process improvements: Input into, and drive implementation of, process improvement opportunities for the Product Management department

TECHNICAL

Software Development: Basic understanding of software development processes, methodologies, and technologies. Data Analysis: Ability to analyze data to derive insights into user behavior, product performance, and market trends. User Experience (UX) Design: Familiarity with UX design principles and methodologies to create intuitive and engaging educational products. Agile Methodologies: Proficiency in Agile project management practices, with focus on Scrum to facilitate product development cycles.

SOFT SKILLS

Communication: Strong verbal and written communication skills to effectively convey ideas, influence, and collaborate with cross-functional teams, and engage with stakeholders. Empathy: Ability to understand the needs and perspectives of internal stakeholders and external users Courage: Confident in making difficult decisions, advocating for the Product, addressing conflicts constructively, inspiring confidence and motivating the team to take risks, innovate, and continuously improve. Problem-Solving: Aptitude for identifying challenges, structuring complexity, generating creative solutions, and making informed decisions to overcome obstacles. Leadership: Experience as a servant leader, able to build trust, credibility and relationships across all levels and functions and effectively manage conflict, demonstrating the sensitivities required to balance and resolve the tensions in working with a wide range of contacts, and to negotiate sustainable and effective outcomes Passion: Passionate about using technology and digital platforms/tools to improve ways of working on daily basis

Applications will be accepted until 27 October 2024.  

We are committed to building a working environment that values respect, diversity, and compassion. The International Baccalaureate is proud to be an equal opportunities employer and we welcome applications from all suitably qualified applicants. 

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