Job Purpose
The product team are accountable for the ongoing business as usual management of our Data and Finance technology systems, including contract management, business engagement, review with problem management to identify issues in live and reviewing compliance requirements.
Senior product managers lead product teams, business engagement and portfolio management, aligning the technology roadmaps within their teams to business plans and strategies as well as global technology standards. The senior product managers also lead the ongoing development of operating models, process maturity and people within the team.
The role also involves strategic planning in collaboration with Heads of Department and peers cross functionally in different departments.
Key deliverables for the role holder will include a portfolio view of change, team capacity, BAU product status and risk, priority and budget.
A high volume of work within the technology function is outsourced and no development is managed in house so the senior product manager will work closely with key strategic partners to build collaborative relationships while ensuring delivery against plan. Negotiating and collaboration skillsets will be regularly utilised.
The role operates as a subject matter expert and also provides line management to product managers while also offering insight and current market views / innovation to inform discussions, plans and options across the portfolio.
The role collaborates with the Strategic Change Manager and operates in one main portfolio but outside of this as needs and priorities determine.
Principle Responsibilities
IT Product Strategy
- Develop and maintain business-aligned strategic IT product roadmaps
- Proactively and regularly seek out and keep up-to-date with corporate IT strategy, policy and direction from the global IT team to` ensure strategy alignment.
- Maintain regularly liaison with key markets. Review, share and leverage best practices across markets wherever appropriate
- Develop business cases and IT product cost models
- Manage a portfolio of IT products to achieve value
- Serving as an IT subject matter expert, advise the business on latest technology and how the business can benefit from it
- Optimise existing investment in technology and products, retire or replace ineffective solutions
- Keep up to date with latest HR technology trends, business models and innovations
- Leads the development and maturing of product management within the team
Operational Effectiveness and Control
- Conduct regular portfolio reviews with the business to provide cross functional engagement, service monitoring, business benefits (for users, customers, franchisees or company as applicable) and issue management
- Define and agree product success criteria aligned with business objectives and key performance indicators (KPI)
- Actively manage product “end of life” and all contractual agreement with 3rd parties
- Risk and Compliance
- Ensure compliance to McDonald’s global and local IT technical standards, policy and procedure (e.g. security policy, change control, release control, etc.)
- Ensure that product risks are identified, assessed, mitigated and monitored
- Financial Management
- Accountable for financial budget and forecast, on-going financial monitoring and review and accuracy of recharges
- Leadership and Teamwork
- Lead and develop the IT Product Team
- Act as a role model. Provide guidance to team members.
- Identify and nurture talent, set performance goals, manage employee’s performance, appraisal and development
- Be open, candid and transparent. Actively share knowledge and experience
- Customer and Stakeholder
- Agree and deliver portfolio objectives to the business
- Leads portfolio management and collaborative creation of strategic roadmap and prioritised backlog on products.
- Build a network of relationships within and outside the immediate IT department, for examples,
- People, Legal, Finance, Operations, Franchising other functions as appropriate
- Suppliers and partners
- Global and UK IT functions such as governance, architecture, service operation, project delivery
- IT functions of other key markets
Relationships
What team will I be part of?
The team consists of the following functions:
- Project Management
- Product Management
- Test (QA)
The role will report to the Strategic Change Manager
Who will my customers be?
The team provide services to:
- A main business area (Technology operates a main portfolio for each senior product manager role) specific to each product owner.
- The wider technology department functions – Project Management, Service Delivery and Global Technology functions.
Customers also include PMO for reporting and Vendor Management on Contract management.
Knowledge and Experience
- 3+ years of product management experience
- Excellent line management skills
- Excellent stakeholder management skills
- Experience with Oracle finance systems
- Experience with large scale data platforms, implementation and operation.
- Demonstrable delivery of benefit from the implementation of data strategies
- Computer Literate- Proficient with Microsoft Word, Excel
- Understands roles and responsibilities throughout the product development life cycle
- Ideally, experienced in both waterfall and agile environment
- Understands the role of data and security within products
- Understands the importance of effective UX and CX design
- Ideally, experienced in managing third-party suppliers, including offshore
- Ability to collaborate and negotiate with diverse groups, i.e. executives, directors, managers and IT teams
- Ability to adapt communication style and content to the stakeholder
- Excellent written and verbal communication combined with effective presentation skills
- Adept at acquiring subject matter expertise in assigned products (e.g. product usage, market configurations, technology eco-system)
- Self-directed and independentAble to work well in a fast paced, changing environment
What are McDonald’s Cultural Pillars?
Customer Obsessed: Proud to exceed the customer’s expectations at every visit through great food and great hospitality:
- Every visit, every day, our customers always come first
- By delivering an outstanding, welcoming hospitality experience, we create delicious
- feel-good moments for customers
- We listen, we respond, we care
Better Together: Proud of the way we work together to make a difference to our business, our people, our communities and the planet:
- Our employees are valued and empowered
- We leverage the power of the system – licensees, suppliers and employees
- We unleash the power of our diversity
- We win together
Committed To Lead: Proud to be a leading, world-class organisation
- We never settle – we’re never done
- We prioritise our commitments to focus on growth
- We commit to being the best and to making a positive difference by using our scale for good