Technical Product Owner

At AQA, we’re committed to advancing education and we’re committed to our people. As the largest provider of academic qualifications in the UK, we mark over 10 million exam papers each year and it’s our people who make this happen.

Technical Product Owner

Manchester: £58,000 - £64,000 / Guildford: £60,000 - £67,000

Permanent

Hybrid – 2 x days per week in the office

Imagine helping to drive the future of educational technology. Think about using your technical expertise to drive innovation, balance complex needs, and shape the software that powers the core of AQA’s assessment systems. Are you ready to maximise the value delivered by development teams and define the technical roadmap for mission-critical assessment products?

In this pivotal role, you'll leverage your deep technical and DevOps knowledge to align customer and stakeholder needs with the architecture and operational requirements of cutting-edge products. You'll be at the forefront, optimizing work processes, prioritizing product backlogs, and ensuring that every release meets the highest standards of quality and performance. Reporting to the Software Delivery Manager and working closely with a diverse team of business analysts, developers, and testers, you'll embody a culture of trust, innovation, and continuous improvement, driving agile practices and technical excellence across the board.

As the Technical Product Owner, you'll define and deliver technical and DevOps solutions that not only meet but exceed expectations, all while navigating the complexities of high-stakes and regulated environments. Your ability to lead, innovate, and inspire will be crucial as you manage risks, communicate effectively with stakeholders, and continuously evolve your skills to meet future challenges.

Need to Know

• Excellent experience of technical product ownership in a variety of agile / lean and scaled agile delivery structures, with an outcome-focussed approach.
• Demonstrable technical and DevOps knowledge to be able to create, drive, innovate and assess technical solutions across a wide range of software technologies, processes and platforms and deployment environments.
• Ability to work closely with development and operations teams to enhance deployment processes, reduce time to market, and ensure high availability and scalability
• Structured thinking approach, able to lead groups of people to break down and resolve complex and ambiguous problems in time-pressured environments, recognising and balancing technical against operational and commercial factors.
• Significant experience delivering in high-stakes and regulated environments.
• High level of curiosity, with a genuine passion for finding and implementing innovative solutions for business problems through technology.
• Passion for continuous improvement in practice, to increase product quality, reliability, and dependability.
• Adept at conflict navigation and resolving interpersonal conflicts.
• Skilled in facilitation to plan, sync, review and inspect team members work, holding retrospective reviews to encourage continuous improvement.

What’s in it for you?: 

• Generous Annual Leave: 25 days of annual leave, increasing to 30 days with service, plus all Bank Holidays and additional Christmas office closure. 

• Flexible Working: A 35-hour week with the empowerment to deliver requirements of your role when it suits everyone.

• Develop yourself at work: Receive sponsorship for apprenticeships and other qualifications.

• Competitive Pension Scheme: Excellent contributory pension plan (6% - 11.5% based on your contribution). 

• Your health and wellbeing: BUPA private medical insurance, gym membership/ access and free access the Headspace app. 

• Other benefits: Life assurance, electric car salary sacrifice and an enhanced maternity/paternity scheme. 

Ready to apply? 

If the role looks of interest and you would like to apply, please do so via our portal. Every application will be provided with a written response! 

We are reviewing applications as they come through and reserve the right to close this role early. 

Recruitment Agencies

We have a preferred supplier list (PSL) in place.

Unsolicited CVs will be treated as a gift. We will not be subject to or liable under your terms and conditions for agency fees.

Full Job Description

Summary

Purpose The Technical Product Owner is responsible for maximizing the value delivered by development teams through using their technical background to balance the needs of customers and stakeholders for functional change, with the technical and architecture needs of the product.
They will define the technical roadmap for products within the AQA Assessment Technology portfolio, ensuring features are specified and prioritised correctly in product backlogs. This role will also lead the development teams to plan and prioritise user stories and defects into product increments, sprints and releases.
Embodying a culture of trust, learning, innovation and continuous improvement, this role will champion collective ownership and technical excellence.
This role reports to the Software Delivery Manager (SDM).Landscape
The Assessment Technology group reports directly into the Chief Executive Officer. The group operates in close partnership with the Enterprise Technology and Central Hubs departments.
The Assessment Technology group is responsible for the operational systems that deliver over 3 million GCSE and A-level results annually. It includes the technology for assessment design and production, and the full lifecycle of exams series delivery from entry to post-results services.
Given the seasonal nature and criticality of the Summer exams series, the role may also be required to provide hands-on leadership through critical issues during the Summer series on occasions.
Team
Whilst this role may not provide direct line management, the Technical Product Owner will work closely with business analysts, developers, test analysts, and other roles, both internally and from suppliers, who are responsible for the delivery of planned change and software support for the strategic and mission-critical systems that underpin AQA’s core assessment proposition. This role will have matrix management responsibility for individuals working within the team.
Key relationships
Regular stakeholder engagement across all levels and all locations is required, with national and international travel where necessary.
Activities
Software Delivery
Responsible for defining the technical roadmap for products ensuring features are specified and prioritised correctly in product backlogs.
Responsible for optimising the flow of work (utilising Iteration Planning), to maximise and deliver value to the organisation that meets the Definition of Done.
Accountable for agreeing scope and frequency of releases for changes.
Working with delivery teams to develop and support software products, reducing time to market, and increasing quality through continuous improvement of:processes, driving agile / lean good practice,
people, through modelling leadership behaviours, coaching, and
technology, ensuring systems reflect good practice
Responsible for the provision of progress and performance reporting against agreed targets to the SDM and other relevant stakeholders.
Accountable for the delivery of software in accordance with relevant standards such as ISO9001 / ISO27001, regulatory requirements and AQA policies.
Ensure expectations of the business and its customers are understood and met.
Leading the team to retrospectively review and improve the process by instilling the concept of continuous improvement.
Stakeholders
Work closely with Product Managers, Product Owners and delivery teams.
Provide confidence to customers and stakeholders through; consistent, timely, excellent communication, and wider services.
Other Responsibilities
Financial management – working with the SDM and other stakeholders to prepare business cases for ongoing product resourcing and change activities.
Risk management – participating in the identification, assessment, planning and management of threats and opportunities.
Information security – taking an active part in the preservation of security, confidentiality, availability and integrity of information assets.
Continuous professional development – responsible for ensuring own ongoing professional development to meet existing and future organisational needs.
Act as an escalation point for issues, including any major incidents.
Need to Know
Excellent experience of technical product ownership in a variety of agile / lean and scaled agile delivery structures, with an outcome-focussed approach.
Demonstrable technical knowledge to be able to create, drive, innovate and assess technical solutions across a wide range of software technologies, processes and platforms.
Structured thinking approach, able to lead groups of people to break down and resolve complex and ambiguous problems in time-pressured environments, recognising and balancing technical against operational and commercial factors.
Significant experience delivering in high-stakes and regulated environments.
High level of curiosity, with a genuine passion for finding and implementing innovative solutions for business problems through technology.
Passion for continuous improvement in practice, to increase product quality, reliability, and dependability.
Adept at conflict navigation and resolving interpersonal conflicts.
Skilled in facilitation to plan, sync, review and inspect team members work, holding retrospective reviews to encourage continuous improvement.