POSITION: Senior Product Manager - Finance Chapter

POSTING END DATE: 05/01/2025

LOCATION: Gaydon, Warwickshire (UK) / Hybrid

SALARY: Competitive

At JLR, we're on a continual journey to reimagine the future of modern luxury, and we want you to be part of it. Through our exquisite and timeless house of brands – Range Rover, Defender, Discovery and Jaguar – we're defining a new approach to sustainability and providing exceptional experiences. As a leader here, you have the opportunity to influence the way we think, providing your unique insight and vision for a better future. It's time to become a proud creator.
 

WHAT TO EXPECT

JLR has an exciting opportunity for a Senior Product Manager to join our IDT (Information & Digital Technology) Corporate Excellence (CE) Team. Reporting directly to the CE IDT Director and working closely with our Finance Chapter teams. Under our Reimagine strategy and in line with our Creators Code you will be expected to:

• Build and own a robust integrated business plan for Finance Chapter, bringing transparency, clear direction and focusing on delivering short, medium and long-term goals through developing, agreeing and executing against a rolling 3-year strategy through:
  • Maximising value generation by continuously bringing innovation, prioritising our deliverables, measuring benefits and focusing on JLR strategic goals and objectives
  • Responsible for the delivery of IT business strategy services for the Finance Chapter
  • Assisting Finance Chapter in defining and formulating their IT strategy through the review of business objectives and value proposition
  • Advising senior management on future business direction including alignment of IDT with business/corporate priorities, strategies, and operating models and work to stabilise JLR's digital landscape
  • Recommending long-term improvements and changes to IT systems to support future business direction and growth.
  • Find and execute on opportunities to reduce IDT spend across the CE estate in order to reduce TCO in JLR
• As a Senior Manager you will manage a department that includes teams led by Product Managers. A key objective will be to create an environment within CE IDT where our team feel valued, motivated and we can attract and retain skilled people in order to show excellence in everything we do.
• Contributing proactively as part of the CE IDT Leadership team.
• Problems faced are often complex and require extensive investigation, analysis and ownership.
• Requires ability to influence others to accept practices and approaches, and ability to communicate and influence executive leadership.
   

THE ROLE

Key Responsibilities

• Accountable for the IDT product management and delivery/operations of JLR's digital platforms, which enables the Finance Chapter
• Accountable for the definition of IDT product backlog for the platforms in scope and immediate solution adjacencies. Prioritisation of technical development across CE IDT
• Accountable for building and leading an IDT product management team, championing best practice in ways of working and developing others
• Leading a team of direct reports to deliver the team’s goals. You will be championing their development and supporting them to grow as individuals and a team. Success in this role hinges on the success of how you lead, develop and coach your people
• Leading delivery, working with stakeholders within the Finance Chapter, Corporate Excellence, JLR IDT, and wider JLR to ensure successful delivery (time, cost, quality). This should be in-line with (or expanding upon) JLR IDT best practice and architectural principles
• Leading OKR’s, KPIs and success metrics at the Finance Chapter and CE IDT level, reflecting these as a measure of success for your team
• Monitoring the success of in-flight propositions through the appropriate application and reporting of KPIs and metrics, in support of the Finance Chapter Digital strategy
• Leading the identification and management of the resources necessary for all stages (planning, estimation, execution) of individual systems development work to ensure technical, financial and quality targets are met. Identifying opportunities for improvements to technology lifecycle ownership through such models as DevOps
• Directly partnering with Finance Chapter leadership and Senior Management to define IDT product roadmaps, business plans and roll out strategies. You'll be a partner to your business colleagues through both effective delivery of outcomes and advisory
• Engaging senior stakeholders across JLR and the wider TATA Ecosystem
• Owning the relationship with key vendors and partners within your chapter - partnering across the breadth of software lifecycle management
• Developing delivery and operating best practice within your team and with teams around you. Filtering best practice up to the chapter level, enabling continuous improvement.
• Leading the implementation of high standards for your team and those around you, ensuring high quality deliverables and outcomes every time. Filtering best practice up to the chapter level, enabling continuous improvement
• Defining and adopting a digital solution strategy across both IDT and Finance Chapter. Leading and aligning domain-level discussions as to solution strategy
• Monitoring industry and solution trends to identify opportunities for incremental improvements and transformation with regard to enabling technology and offerings
• Providing oversight and guidance on technical solution development, working alongside business, architecture and delivery functions
• Provide on-going risk management of relevant product(s) including information security, business continuity, data privacy and plan for longer-term emergent risks
• Manage the transition and embedding of digital solutions into Business as Usual (BAU)
• Continuously seek to optimise user experience, maximising adoption, proactively managing incidents and actively seeking user and stakeholder feedback

Key Interactions

• Director, CE IDT
• Finance Chapter, Executive & Leadership Team
• CE IDT Leadership Team
• JLR IDT Team, including DAIO, Architecture, PMO, Cyber Security etc
• Third Party Service Providers and Product Partners
• Product vendor relationship managers in Procurement
• External industry leaders and analysts

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

Essential Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Demonstrable proven digital product leadership experience, having successfully delivered and managed a breadth of large platform products / a suite of digital platform products, delivering measurable outcomes to end customers.
• Proven ability to build and lead a team of high performing individuals, in a high-pressure and complex delivery landscape. Often working with multiple dependencies and conflicting interests.
• Demonstrable industry knowledge of and experience in delivering digital change within large enterprises in an agile manner.
• Extensive experience with digital / IT solutions.
• Able to assess technical excellence in the context of business value and understand when trade-offs should occur.
• The ability to combine a short-term, pragmatic focus with longer term planning.
• Knowledge of business models, operating models, financial models, cost-benefit analysis, budgeting and risk management.
• Proven experience of comparable, high exposure roles that require senior stakeholder management, including executive directors and board members.
• Budget management with experience in being accountable for funds in excess of £5m per financial year.
• Good technical understanding and mindset, to understand, explain and influence non-technical stakeholders, how key technical decisions will impact the capability, delivery, performance and longevity of your product set, and be able to make the right call.
• A good level of understanding on business strategy and the ability to shape technical solutions to deliver on it.
• Experience of waterfall and Agile ways of working, enabling the right balance of agility and predictability for your product and stakeholders.
• Exceptional communication skills, bridging the gap between technical and business teams across all career levels.

Desirable Knowledge, Skills and Experience
 

• Previous experience working in a leading business or digital consultancy.
• Previous experience working in a product-led organisation at any size.
• International experience in working for luxury consumer brands.
• International experience ideally working for Blue-chip organisations.
• Previous experience in automotive, energy, oil and gas or related industry.
• SAFe, SCRUM and otherwise agile qualified.

Personal Profile

• Demonstrates our Creators' Code behaviours of Customer Love, Unity, Integrity, Growth and Impact.
• Experience of being able to prioritise and consistently deliver in a demanding environment. 
• Prioritises resources effectively, providing clarity and urgency to complex issues, establishing cross-functional alignment and collaboration to support tough decision making.
• A pragmatic problem solver, who puts both the internal customer and external JLR clients' needs at the heart of every product decision.
• A resilient individual who has strong influencing and engagement skills, is comfortable challenging all stakeholders and can build credibility and trust through experience and personal style.
• Consistent in results delivery, demonstrates tenacity, drive and perseverance, with the ability to deliver in a complex, highly demanding environment.
• Enables speed in decision making through establishing alignment, clarity, stakeholder engagement.
• Ability to communicate effectively utilising all relevant mediums, ensuring messages are conveyed clearly and consistently across all levels at JLR.   
• Demonstrates exceptional capability in leadership and management skills, who can motivate, develop and lead cross-functional and functional teams.
• Comfortable in challenging existing thinking in a positive way whilst building credibility and trust through experience and personal style.
• Consistently demonstrates high levels of emotional intelligence and integrity, building confidence and trust through experience and personal style.
• A proven people developer, who has both the experience of and desire to develop those around them.
• Data-driven and able to make substantiated, evidence-based decisions that are defensible and in the best interests of JLR, its customers and internal teams.
• Authentic, hands on and practical, while able to delegate effectively. Leads by example.

Creating Modern Luxury requires a modern approach to work. At JLR, hybrid working is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement providing employees flexibility around how, when and where they work. Some roles require more on-site work, but details of this can be discussed with the hiring manager during the interview stage.

We work hard to nurture a culture that is inclusive and welcoming to all. We understand candidates may require reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process. Please discuss these with your recruiter so we can accommodate your needs.

JLR is committed to equal opportunity for all.

Please be aware that we may close this vacancy for applications before the stated deadline if we receive a high volume of interest. We strongly advise you to submit your application as early as possible.