Senior Product Manager
Job description
- Job grade: Grade 7
- Contract type: Permanent
- Business area: DfE - Digital and Infrastructure Group
- Type of role: Digital, Information Technology
- Working pattern: Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time
- Number of jobs available: 2
Location
About the job
Job summary
The Apprenticeship Service is an award-winning digital service that puts employers in control of apprenticeship training, funding and recruitment.
We connect thousands of employers, large and small, with apprentices and training providers so that the economy can thrive, and individuals and companies can upskill and fulfil their potential.
Apprenticeships are exciting options for both apprentices and employers – learning new skills, growing talent and making sure employers have access to the right skills to thrive.
We work in the Department for Education (DfE) to put employers and apprentices at the heart of apprenticeships – delivering a programme that is led by employer choice and demand, is higher quality and focused on occupational competence.
To do this we deliver innovative, user-focused services that operate at scale and enable employers, apprentices, training providers and end-point assessment organisations to work together to make apprenticeships great.
You can read more about our strategy on the DfE digital and technology blog, by visiting our LinkedIn page, or by following us on Twitter @DfE_DigitalTech .
Job description
The Apprenticeship Service is an award-winning digital service that puts employers in control of apprenticeship training, funding and recruitment.
We connect thousands of employers, large and small, with apprentices and training providers so that the economy can thrive, and individuals and companies can upskill and fulfil their potential.
As a Senior Product Manager in our service you will be involved in agile delivery of services that will introduce people to apprenticeships and the benefits they can bring to organisations and individuals.
You will own a product roadmap, make informed prioritisation decisions, champion user needs and effectively communicate the product vision in a fast-paced delivery environment.
You will contribute to the communication plan for your products and participate in communication channels as required.
The role includes:
- Ensuring that the product roadmap aligns to the programme vision and supports the achievement of outcomes and priorities.
- Defining the product strategy and understanding your role and that of your team to create success for the service.
- Articulating the business and user value of the product and services to your team and wider stakeholders.
- Making responsible product decisions, operating with other Product Managers and Service Designers through a community of practice structure and a single backlog, to ensure product features are aligned and meet the service objectives.
- Ensuring that you develop an appropriate minimum viable service for new functionality to deliver value for users and the DfE at the earliest possible stage.
- Working with portfolio and policy implementation colleagues to ensure products balance policy needs and user needs against approved business cases and our portfolio roadmap.
- Working closely with Business Analysts and User Researchers to prioritise user needs and policy requirements based on an understanding of diverse audience groups.
- Managing and influencing competing business priorities to achieve the best outcomes for users and the DfE and communicating clearly to stakeholders (including senior leaders) to set clear expectations.
- Creating effective, prioritised tasks to meet user needs and delivering your product vision in a cost-effective way.
- Managing this backlog of tasks and set appropriate sprint goals for your team and collaborate with them to help achieve these goals.
- Interpreting user research to make the correct product decisions, distinguishing user needs from user wants. Ensure that user needs are at the centre of your backlog and vision for delivery.
- Using data and analytics to measure the success of your product, including how it interacts with the wider service.
- Collaborating with Business Operations and Support teams to ensure that digital solutions are integrated into the business, can be easily supported and offer user insights for use across teams.
- Being a champion for agile and digital delivery and playing an active role in the Department’s product manager community.
As a senior product manager, you will:
- Understand the problem by working closely with stakeholders, users, technical, policy and operational experts to create and strengthen a product vision.
- Advocate for your product or service to senior stakeholders.
- Own a problem area and lead a multidisciplinary team to deliver solutions iteratively and improve it through multiple lifecycle phases.
- Develop an expert understanding of the users’ needs and champion these in the delivery of your product.
- Define, explain and iterate a product vision that is compelling to your users, team and stakeholders, regularly iterating in line with data and changing user needs, whilst maintaining alignment to standards.
- Develop and own the product roadmap for your products, making informed prioritisation decisions, championing user needs and effectively communicating the product vision in a complex policy and delivery environment.
- Set measurable and valuable goals for the products and report against these to demonstrate progress against stated benefits, ensuring the product continues to iterate and develop post ‘go live’ to remain responsive to user needs.
- Ensure your product meets the Digital Service Standard.
- Lead the team’s participation in wider governance (e.g. spend controls, service assessment, programme boards).
- Play an active role in the growing DfE product manager community as well as the cross-government product manager community.
- Create a diverse, inclusive, supportive culture that stimulates innovation and enables high-performing teams to build and sustain high-quality products.
Person specification
Essential Criteria:
- Setting product direction and goals, owning the product vision and roadmap, gaining buy-in from the team and stakeholders through effective communication.
- Successfully developing and releasing digital products with proficiency in agile product management techniques, such as: roadmaps; prioritisation; creation of user stories; MVP definition; using user research, data, analytics and insight to inform decisions; planning at different horizons.
- Working with a variety of disciplines involved in digital delivery, including engineering, content design, service design, performance analysis and user research, developed through working in multidisciplinary teams.
- Successfully handling a range of stakeholder relationships to successfully deliver products that meet user needs and deliver business outcomes.
- Successfully engaging with users to improve their products, commissioning research and turning qualitative and quantitative insight into product improvements.
- Representing all users in product decision making, reconciling strong differing opinions using evidence or user insight.
- Evaluating return on investment/value for money on different approaches.
- Setting, monitoring and reporting measurable performance objectives, using data and analytics to spot problems with, and evaluate success of, new features or any experiments.
Desirable Criteria:
- Knowledge of working to defined industry standards, such as the UK Government Service Standard, and associated assurance processes.
Desirable criteria will only be assessed in the event of a tie break situation to make an informed decision.
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- Applying User Centred Insights (practitioner)
- Applying User Centred Insights (practitioner)
- Product Management (expert)
- Stakeholder Relationship Management (practitioner)
- Creating Value for Money (practitioner)
Benefits
Applicants currently holding a permanent post in the Civil Service should note that, if successful, their salary on appointment would be determined by the Department’s transfer / promotion policies.
As a member of the DfE, you will be entitled to join the highly competitive Civil Service Pension Scheme, which many experts agree is one of the most generous in the UK.
You will have 25 days leave, increasing by 1 day every year to a maximum of 30 days after five years’ service. In addition, all staff receive the King’s Birthday privilege holiday and 8 days’ bank and public holidays.
We offer flexible working arrangements, such as job sharing, term-time working, flexi-time and compressed hours.
Most DfE employees will be working a hybrid pattern, spending at least 60% of their time in an office or work setting. Changes to these working arrangements are available in exceptional circumstances but must be agreed with the line manager and in line with the requirements of the role.
Travel to your primary office location will not be paid for by DfE, but costs for travel to an office which is not your main location will be covered.
As an organisation, which exists to support education and lifelong learning, we offer our staff excellent professional development opportunities.
Things you need to know
Artificial intelligence
Selection process details
Stage 1 - Application
To apply for this role, you will be required to provide a CV and Statement of Suitability.
- Your CV should include details of your employment history, and the skills and experience gained in those roles.
- Your Statement of Suitability (max 1250 words) should demonstrate how your experience meets the essential criteria listed above.
Stage 2 – Sift
We will use your CV and statement to assess your suitability for the role against the essential criteria listed in the person specification section above.
To confirm, the maximum word count for the statement of suitability is 1250. Please adhere to this limit as anything over 1250 words will not be taken into account.
In the event of a large number of applications, we will sift on statement of suitability only.
More guidance on personal statements can be found here – completing your application.
Stage 3 – Interview
At interview you will be asked questions around the technical skills listed in the advert.
Click on the link for more information about Product Management skills in Government Digital & Data
For more information on the selection process, including guidance on how to write a personal statement, answer interview questions, and the STAR approach click here: Top tips for acing the application.
Sift and interview dates to be confirmed.
Other Information
Interviews may be via Microsoft teams or face to face; the vacancy manager will confirm prior to the Interview.
In your application, please don’t include personal information that identifies you.
This means we can recruit based on your knowledge and skills, and not background, gender or ethnicity - it's called name blind recruitment (opens in a new window).
Please ensure that you remove from your application, all references to your:
- name/title
- educational institutions
- age
- gender
- email address
- postal address
- phone number
- nationality/immigration status
We reserve the right to raise the minimum pass mark in the event of a high volume or strong field of candidates.
Please be aware that this role can only be worked in the UK from the location options provided and not from overseas.
The government is committed to supporting apprenticeships, enabling people to learn and progress in a role whilst earning. We want to monitor the number of people who have completed apprenticeships who are now applying to progress further in their career and are asking this question to all candidates, on all vacancies. You will be asked a question as part of the application process about any previous apprenticeships you have completed. Your response to this question will not affect your application and it is not a requirement of the role to have completed a previous apprenticeship.
If successful and transferring from another Government Department a criminal record check maybe carried out.
In order to process applications without delay, we will be sending a Criminal Record Check to Disclosure and Barring Service on your behalf. However, we recognise in exceptional circumstance some candidates will want to send their completed forms direct. If you will be doing this, please advise Department of Education of your intention by emailing Pre-Employment.Checks.DFE@education.gov.uk stating the job reference number in the subject heading.
Department for Education do not cover the cost of travel to your interview/assessment unless otherwise stated.
A reserve list may be held for a period of 12 months from which further appointments can be made.
Candidates will be posted in merit order based upon location preference. Where more than one location is advertised you will be asked to state your preferred location.
New entrants are expected to join on the minimum of the pay band.
Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.
Terms and conditions of candidates transferring from ALBs and NDPBs
Bodies that are not accredited by the Civil Service Commission and are not able to advertise at Across Government on Civil Service jobs will be treated as external new starters and will come into DfE on modernised terms and conditions with a salary at the band minimum.
Bodies that are accredited by the Civil Service Commission but do not have civil service status will be offered modernised terms and will not have continuous service recognised for leave or sickness benefits. Salaries should be offered at band minimum, but there is some flexibility where this would cause a detriment to the individual.
Bodies that are accredited by the Civil Service Commission and do have Civil Service status will be treated as OGD transfers. Staff appointed on lateral transfer will move on to pre-modernised DfE terms (unless they were on modernised terms in their previous organisation). Staff appointed on promotion will move on to modernised DfE terms. Staff will transfer over on their existing salary (on lateral transfer) and any pay above the DfE pay band maximum will be paid as a mark time allowance. Staff moving on promotion will have their salaries calculated using the principles set out in the attached OGD transfer supplementary information.
Reasonable adjustment
If a person with disabilities is put at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes. If you need a change to be made so that you can make your application, you should:
Contact Department of Education via centralrecruitment.operations@education.gov.uk soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.
Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need further on in the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.
Please refer to the attached ‘Reasonable Adjustments Guide 05_2025 – accessible version’ at the bottom of the advert, for further information.
Childcare Vouchers
Any move to Department for Education (DfE) will mean you will no longer be able to carry on claiming childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Nationality requirements
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
- UK nationals
- nationals of the Republic of Ireland
- nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
- nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
- individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
- Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Working for the Civil Service
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
Diversity and Inclusion
Apply and further information
Contact point for applicants
Job contact :
- Name : Mary Evans
- Email : Mary.Evans@education.gov.uk
Recruitment team
- Email : Centralrecruitment.operations@education.gov.uk
Further information
Attachments
| DFE Terms & Conditions - accessible version Opens in new window (pdf, 215kB) |
| Reasonable Adjustments guide 05_2025 - accessible version (1) Opens in new window (pdf, 723kB) |
| OGD Transfer Supplementary information - accessible version Opens in new window (pdf, 327kB) |
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