Product Owner

MPJ Recruitment Ltd; Manchester; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

MPJ Recruitment Ltd in Manchester is seeking an experienced Product Owner to lead the development and continual improvement of technology products, translating business objectives into product roadmaps and measurable value.

You will partner with senior stakeholders and a small internal software team to prioritise backlogs, write clear user stories and acceptance criteria, and drive delivery using Agile principles.

Qualifications

• Three years minimum experience in Product Owner or similar role.
• Proven experience delivering business-critical applications.
• Strong knowledge of Agile and SDLC.
• Experience gathering requirements and prioritising work.
• Excellent stakeholder communication with senior leaders.
• Ability to translate complex requirements into actionable user stories.
• Practical understanding of AI-assisted development and productivity tools.
• Strong commercial awareness of technology's impact on operations.
• Analytical, organisational and problem-solving skills.

Responsibilities

• Own and maintain product backlogs, priorities and roadmaps.
• Stakeholder management with senior leadership and operations teams.
• Gather and refine business requirements, produce user stories and specs.
• Coordinate delivery with internal development team in Agile setup.
• Champion AI-assisted tools to accelerate discovery and delivery.
• Contribute to product strategy and roadmaps.
• Represent end-user needs for intuitive, efficient products.
• Coordinate UAT and validate functionality against requirements.
• Monitor performance and identify opportunities for improvement.

Skills

Product ownership

Agile methodologies

Stakeholder management

Requirements gathering

User stories

Backlog management

Communication

AI tools

Commercial awareness

Tools

Claude

Job description

Product Owner

Salary: £50,000-£55,000 DOE

Monday-Friday 9am-5pm

Manchester

We are looking for an experienced Product Owner to take ownership of the development and continuous improvement of technology products, ensuring they deliver meaningful business value and support the organisation's long-term strategic ambitions.

This is an exciting opportunity to join an ambitious, growing organisation with significant plans to expand and enhance its technology product portfolio. Working closely with senior stakeholders and a small internal software development team, you will play a pivotal role in translating business objectives into product roadmaps, prioritised backlogs and effective software delivery.

The successful candidate will combine strong commercial awareness and stakeholder management skills with a practical, hands-on approach to product ownership. You will be comfortable challenging requirements, identifying opportunities for innovation and ensuring development activity delivers tangible improvements for the business and its users.

A particular focus of the role will be embracing AI-assisted tools, including Claude and similar technologies, to improve product discovery, requirements definition, prototyping and delivery.

Key Responsibilities

• Product Ownership: Own and maintain product backlogs, priorities and roadmaps, ensuring development activity aligns with business objectives and delivers measurable value.

• Stakeholder Management: Work closely with senior leadership and operational teams to understand business needs, challenge existing processes and translate strategic objectives into clear product direction.

• Requirements Gathering: Gather, define and refine business requirements, producing clear user stories, acceptance criteria and specifications for the development team.

• Software Delivery: Collaborate with the internal development team to plan, prioritise and coordinate delivery, removing ambiguity and supporting effective Agile working practices.

• AI and Innovation: Champion the use of AI-assisted tools, including Claude and similar technologies, to accelerate product discovery, prototyping and delivery while maintaining appropriate quality and governance.

• Product Strategy: Contribute to product strategy and roadmap development, identifying opportunities to enhance existing products and introduce new capabilities.

• User Experience: Represent the needs of end users, ensuring products are intuitive, efficient and aligned with real-world operational requirements.

• Testing and Releases: Coordinate user acceptance testing (UAT), validate functionality against requirements and support successful product releases.

• Continuous Improvement: Monitor product performance, gather user feedback and identify opportunities to improve functionality, adoption and overall business value.

Skills and Experience Required

• A minimum of three years' experience as a Product Owner or in a similar software delivery or product management role.

• Proven experience working with software development teams to deliver business-critical applications.

• Strong understanding of product ownership, Agile methodologies and the software development lifecycle.

• Experience managing product backlogs, gathering requirements and prioritising development activity.

• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills, with the confidence to engage with and challenge senior business leaders.

• Ability to translate complex business requirements into clear, actionable user stories and development tasks.

• Practical understanding of AI-assisted development and productivity tools, with a genuine enthusiasm for using emerging technologies to improve product delivery.

• Strong commercial awareness and an understanding of how technology can improve operational efficiency and business performance.

• Excellent analytical, organisational and problem-solving skills.

• A proactive, pragmatic and collaborative approach, with a focus on delivering meaningful outcomes.

Desirable Experience

• Relevant Product Owner or Agile certification.

• Experience developing products within professional services or other operationally complex environments.

• Familiarity with motor claims technology.

Interested in knowing more?