Head of Product Management Excellence

Smiths Group; London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading security solutions firm in London seeks a Head of Product Management Excellence to enhance product management practices and drive strategic product improvements. The ideal candidate will possess significant product management experience and commercial insight, with the ability to influence teams globally. This role includes collaboration across various departments to improve customer satisfaction and product performance.

Benefits

Comprehensive training

Career opportunities

Flexible benefits

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in a senior product management role, preferably with FTSE100.
• Strong understanding of ROI, gross margin, and pricing strategy.
• Ability to influence global teams without direct authority.

Responsibilities

• Define and own the global product management vision across portfolios.
• Lead product management controls balancing rigour and agility.
• Drive customer satisfaction improvements through collaboration.

Skills

Product Management expertise

Commercial acumen

Cross-functional collaboration

Stakeholder engagement

Education

Professional qualification in Product Management

Degree in Business, Engineering, or related field

Job description

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Company Description

Every minute of every day, Smiths Detection's threat detection and security screening technology helps to protect people and infrastructure, making the world a safer place.

Smiths Detection, part of Smiths Group is a global leader in the development, manufacture and management of security and detection solutions designed to make the world a safer place. Our technology provides threat detection and screening solutions for customers in our key markets: aviation, ports and borders, defence, and urban security.

Our expertise spans 21 global offices, seven manufacturing sites and five R&D centres, with a global network of 3,000 dedicated colleagues contributing towards over 40 years at the frontline of advances in safety and security.

This results in careers built on variety and the opportunity to work on a range of state-of-the-art solutions, where you can develop your knowledge and experience every day.

Job Description

The role of Head of Product Management Excellence serves to define, set and implement industry standard product management excellence principles and practices, aligned to the existing Smiths Detection, Product Lifecycle and Commercial Lifecycle process frameworks (PLP and CLP).

The role will support the Smiths Detection strategy while instilling best practice within each portfolio. While Product Managers are accountable to increase the income, market share, profits, and customer satisfaction of their product portfolio, this role optimizes the product manager's performance by driving the adoption and sustainment of both industry best practice and the Product Lifecycle and Commercial Lifecycle aligned to the business, this role is as diverse as it is essential.

It requires the adoption of a hands-on approach and at the same time, provides the framework that can assist with better strategic decisions while coordinating wide-ranging process improvement projects.

The role must work proactively with the Programme Excellence Centre (PEC) to maintain a programme of continuous improvement across the Product Lifecycle Process (PLP) framework and the interrelated Commercial Lifecycle Process (CLP) framework. The role holder is expected to champion Customer driven quality and exemplary resolution in everything we do.

Strategic Product Leadership

• Define and own the global product management vision and strategy across all portfolios.
• Translate the strategy into actionable roadmaps, deliverables, and KPIs.
• Clearly communicate product direction, status, and performance to stakeholders and customers.

Planning and Decision Making (Key Focus)

• Lead the global planning, organisation, and implementation of product management controls that balance rigour with agility.
• Standardise product management practices across portfolios, embedding structure into how we manage the full product lifecycle.
• Develop and monitor key performance indicators that enable effective, evidence-based product decisions - from concept through to retirement.
• Ensure our product strategies support commercial opportunities and align with future technology roadmaps.

Customer-Centric Improvements

• Actively contribute to improving customer satisfaction through close collaboration with Marketing and Sales.
• Use tools like Net Promoter Score (NPS), Customer Effort Score (CES), and customer feedback to evaluate and improve product performance and experience.
• Help translate customer insights into meaningful product enhancements and service offerings.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with Engineering, Sales, Service, Marketing, and Commercial teams to drive integrated product planning.
• Support lifecycle decisions with data, from new product introduction through to end-of-life planning.
• Promote alignment between product strategy and business objectives through governance, process improvements, and robust communication.

Process Ownership and Continuous Improvement

• Drive global consistency in product management tools, documentation, and engagement approaches.
• Support ISO audits and internal quality initiatives with clear, structured input.
• Capture lessons learned from post-launch performance and customer feedback to strengthen future product decisions.

Qualifications

What You Will Bring

• An internationally recognised professional qualification in Product Management (essential).
• A degree or equivalent in Business, Engineering, Technology, or a related field (desirable).
• Extensive experience in a senior product management role, preferably across multiple complex product portfolios for a FTSE100 company.
• Strong commercial understanding: ROI, cost of goods, gross margin, pricing strategy, and product-market fit.
• Expertise in new product development, market research, and lifecycle management.
• Ability to influence across global teams without direct line management.
• Exceptional communication, facilitation, and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Willingness to travel occasionally across Europe and internationally.

Additional Information

We offer...

Join us and we'll help build your career, with excellent training and opportunities for career growth across the business, both locally and globally. You'll experience an inclusive environment, with strong leadership and a focus on safety and wellbeing. You'll also have the flexibility to choose from a wide range of benefits to suit your lifestyle, offering you and your family support from a health and wellbeing, financial and lifestyle perspective.

Join us and work for a world-leader, with the benefits and training to reward your dedication and skills. Be part of a team where we are making the world a safer place.

We believe that different perspectives and backgrounds are what make a company flourish. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment regardless of color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, economic status, disability, age, or any other legally protected characteristics. We are proud to be an inclusive company with values grounded in equality and ethics, where we celebrate, support, and embrace diversity.

At no time during the hiring process will Smiths Group, nor any of our recruitment partners ever request payment to enable participation - including, but not limited to, interviews or testing. Avoid fraudulent requests by applying jobs directly through our career's website (Careers - Smiths Group plc)