Lead product manager

Band 8b · Product manager · 594 job evaluation points

UK GDaD PCF level: Lead product manager

Most often performed at Civil Service grade G7 or G6.

A lead product manager is responsible for a product portfolio or end-to-end service, and the delivery of product quality and value. They work with teams to identify, implement and improve strategies and tactics for their products. They are a member of the management team for their product area and provide product leadership and direction across multiple teams.
At this role level, you will:
manage people and manage products
maintain the high level roadmap
be involved in a range of programme management activities relevant to the product portfolio
be involved in recruiting product managers at all levels and contractors
provide leadership in your programmes and across the local community, working closely with the head of product, where they exist

Contains public sector information from the UK Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework (https://understand-digital-data-roles-skills.service.gov.uk/), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.

Responsibilities

Lead a product portfolio or end-to-end service, such as all products that support one care pathway.
Set product direction across several teams and make sure products work together for patients and staff.
Work with clinical leads and the clinical safety officer to manage clinical risk across the portfolio.
Hold the portfolio budget and report benefits to senior governance boards.
Lead and develop product managers in the product area.

Skills

Skill	Expected level	What this level means
Agile and Lean practicesUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: coach and lead teams in Agile and Lean good practices create and tailor the right approach for a team, challenging, evaluating and iterating the approach through the life cycle experiment with new and innovative ways of working to improve delivery across the organisation act as a recognised expert and advocate for Agile and Lean approaches
Applying user-centred insightsUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: advocate for a range of effective research approaches across the organisation coach others in making decisions that meet user needs across a range of channels advocate for continuous use of user insights in teams use user insights to make strategic decisions to provide the best user experience
Creating value for moneyUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: advocate for user needs, ensuring user value is balanced against cost and value for the organisation determine the benefit of a product and persuade others it's the right product to use write or contribute to business cases communicate business-value propositions help others make value-based decisions, influencing the direction of development
Life cycle managementUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: lead and coach teams through different phases of the life cycle ensure effective support for the product or service and its users predict, prevent, mitigate and manage potential risks at different phases of the life cycle contribute to the assessment of other teams, providing guidance and support
Managing product outcomesUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: lead product teams to create effective methods for measuring product outcomes advocate for data-driven decision making help others prioritise to make better choices use data to drive continuous improvement, increasing quality and user experience identify opportunities to share and connect product data
Product leadershipUK GDaD PCF	Practitioner (3)	You can: seek opportunities for reuse and learning across your organisation represent product management in your area in conversations with senior stakeholders protect teams, for example, from unnecessary distractions and requests to change direction coach and manage others in product management lead some product management community activities and participate in cross-government communities
Product managementUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: set the strategy and vision for your products, collaborating with others create a prioritised roadmap for your products and use it to discuss product strategy at all levels plan prioritised work across multiple teams, minimising dependencies and risks support multiple teams in delivering quality outcomes in the right way coach and mentor others in product management
Stakeholder relationship managementUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: direct the stakeholder relationship strategy for your teams ensure stakeholder's objectives are set and support teams to meet them influence and negotiate with senior stakeholders to resolve issues and enable progress
Strategic ownershipUK GDaD PCF	Expert (4)	You can: support and coach others in creating and implementing a successful long-term strategy and tactical approach that others agree with influence and persuade stakeholders to support delivery of the strategy support with strategic decision making ensure strategic alignment across the organisation
Understanding health and care servicesThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: analyse how a service fits into care pathways across organisations work with clinicians, care staff, and patients to shape digital services explain the effect of digital decisions on care, safety, and staff workload
Clinical risk managementThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: lead hazard identification and risk assessment for a product or change write and maintain hazard logs and clinical safety case reports agree risk controls with product teams and check that they work advise teams on applying clinical risk management standards
Information governance and data protectionThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: lead data protection impact assessments and information sharing agreements advise teams on lawful basis, consent, confidentiality, and retention investigate incidents and recommend improvements
Medical device software regulationThis reference	Working (2)	You can: follow a software life cycle process that meets medical device standards produce the records that such a process requires
Equality, diversity, and inclusionThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: carry out equality impact assessments build inclusive teams and practices
People managementThis reference	Practitioner (3)	You can: line manage a team, setting objectives and running appraisals support wellbeing and manage attendance, performance, and conduct plan the team's development and succession
Budget managementThis reference	Working (2)	You can: track spending against a small budget and raise variances authorise spending within your limit

Typical qualifications and experience

Extensive experience of leading products across multiple teams.

Band 8b outline

Knowledge: Expert knowledge across several disciplines or a large service.
Autonomy: Shapes policy and strategy for a large area.
Scope: Several services or teams, or a principal-level discipline.
Leadership: Manages managers, or is the principal authority in a discipline.
Accountability: Several services, their staff, and their budgets.

Job evaluation (illustrative)

Factor	Level	Level summary	Points
Communication and relationship skills	5	Gives highly complex or contentious information needing developed persuasion and negotiation, presents to large groups, or communicates where there are significant barriers to acceptance.	45
Knowledge, training, and experience	7	Highly developed specialist knowledge across the range of the specialism (master's level or equivalent).	196
Analytical and judgemental skills	5	Judgements on highly complex facts or situations needing analysis, interpretation, and comparison of options.	60
Planning and organisational skills	5	Forms long-term strategic plans, with uncertainty and effects across the organisation.	60
Physical skills	2	Skills gained through practice, such as standard keyboard use or driving.	15
Responsibility for patient and client care	1	Helps patients, clients, or relatives during incidental contact.	4
Responsibility for policy and service development	4	Implements policy and develops policy or services for a service or several areas.	32
Responsibility for financial and physical resources	4	Holds or sets the budget for a department or service, or buys or maintains its assets.	32
Responsibility for people	4	Line manages a function or department, designs training programmes as a main duty, or delivers a full range of HR services.	32
Responsibility for information resources	5	Designs and develops major information systems, or runs information systems for several services as the main duty.	34
Responsibility for research and development	2	Regularly does research, development, trials, or equipment and system testing as part of the job.	12
Freedom to act	5	Works within general policies, and in most cases decides how to interpret them.	45
Physical effort	1	Sitting, standing, and walking, with little physical effort.	3
Mental effort	3	Frequent concentration on unpredictable work, or occasional prolonged concentration.	12
Emotional effort	1	Rare exposure, or occasional indirect exposure, to distressing circumstances.	5
Working conditions	2	Occasional unpleasant conditions, frequent travel or outdoor work, or near-continuous screen use on most days.	7
Total (Band 8b: 585 to 629)			594