Job summary
We're looking for a Lead Product Owner to work directly with our product teams as they design and deliver digital services that support preventative, community, and primary care across Wales, with a particular focus on digital services such as dental and optometry.
This is a hands-on product leadership role. You won't be leading from a distance. You'll be embedded with designers, developers, engineers, data specialists, and senior stakeholders. Your role is to set a clear product vision, shape strategy, understand user needs, and work closely with multidisciplinary teams to make sure we're building the right things and delivering real value.
Main duties of the job
What you'll be doing
- lead product vision and direction: shaping strategy, defining roadmaps, and ensuring every product decision aligns to user needs and organisational priorities.
- work in the open with multidisciplinary teams: collaborating closely with delivery managers, user-centred design professionals, and engineering teams to turn insight into working services.
- champion user centred design: bringing evidence, research, and data into decision-making to make sure our products meet real user needs across Wales.
- coach and grow capability: mentoring other Product Owners and contributing to a strong product culture across the organisation.
About us
Digital Health and Care Wales (DHCW) is an expert national body and part of NHS Wales. We work in partnership with NHS Wales colleagues and other key stakeholders to provide national digital and data services which support the delivery of health and social care in Wales. Modern health and care services depend on good digital tools, data and information. DHCW runs or works with more than 100 services and delivers major national digital transformation programmes to support this. In addition, DHCW provides expert advice in relation to cyber security and information governance. We give frontline staff the digital tools which help them provide safer and more efficient care. We are also giving patients and the public digital tools to better manage their own health and wellbeing, empowering people to live healthier lives. We put people at the heart of what we do, working to the highest standards to deliver quality and make digital a force for good in health and care.
Working for DHCW offers lots of employee benefits, including flexible working, a competitive salary, 28 days of annual leave plus Bank Holidays and opportunities for career development. We are committed to recognising and celebrating our staff as the most valuable part of our organisation.
Job description
Job responsibilities
What were looking for
- proven experience leading complex digital products, ideally across the full product lifecycle and in fastpaced, crossteam environments.
- strong product management expertise with the ability to translate user needs, technical considerations, and strategic goals into clear, prioritised roadmaps.
- confidence engaging senior stakeholders while staying close to teams and delivery, ensuring clarity and alignment at every level.
- a collaborative, user-focused mindset: someone motivated by helping teams build meaningful, high-quality public services that make a difference.quality public services that make a difference.
The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this post; English and/or Welsh speakers are equally welcome to apply.
Job description
Job responsibilities
What were looking for
- proven experience leading complex digital products, ideally across the full product lifecycle and in fastpaced, crossteam environments.
- strong product management expertise with the ability to translate user needs, technical considerations, and strategic goals into clear, prioritised roadmaps.
- confidence engaging senior stakeholders while staying close to teams and delivery, ensuring clarity and alignment at every level.
- a collaborative, user-focused mindset: someone motivated by helping teams build meaningful, high-quality public services that make a difference.quality public services that make a difference.
The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this post; English and/or Welsh speakers are equally welcome to apply.
Person Specification
Qualifications and Knowledge
Essential
- Practitioner of Agile working with multi-disciplinary teams.
- Expert at managing multiple products that can be especially complex, high risk or sensitive.
- Evidence of continuous professional development
- Educated to Master's level or equivalent qualification / experience
Desirable
- Working knowledge of the NHS or the Health sector.
- Understanding and knowledge of health service terminology and information requirements
Experience
Essential
- Significant experience of working in a digital development role.
- Experience applying highly developed specialised knowledge, supported by pertinent theoretical knowledge and applicable practical experience, across a range of work methods and practices.
- Proven experience in the analysis, design development and product management of digital systems.
- Proven record in the delivery and support of major digital products and services.
- Proven product management ability.
Desirable
- Experience in coaching and mentoring staff; specifically agile and multi-disciplinary teams.
- Excellent understanding of translating business/functional requirements into specialist technical specifications and complex operational digital products and services.
Skills and Attributes
Essential
- Proven experience of working in product and service development.
- High quality written and verbal communication skills with excellent presentation skills.
Desirable
- Welsh Language Skills are desirable level 1 or above in understanding, speaking, reading, and writing in Welsh
- In depth understanding of the information and service delivery needs of NHS Wales
Person Specification
Qualifications and Knowledge
Essential
- Practitioner of Agile working with multi-disciplinary teams.
- Expert at managing multiple products that can be especially complex, high risk or sensitive.
- Evidence of continuous professional development
- Educated to Master's level or equivalent qualification / experience
Desirable
- Working knowledge of the NHS or the Health sector.
- Understanding and knowledge of health service terminology and information requirements
Experience
Essential
- Significant experience of working in a digital development role.
- Experience applying highly developed specialised knowledge, supported by pertinent theoretical knowledge and applicable practical experience, across a range of work methods and practices.
- Proven experience in the analysis, design development and product management of digital systems.
- Proven record in the delivery and support of major digital products and services.
- Proven product management ability.
Desirable
- Experience in coaching and mentoring staff; specifically agile and multi-disciplinary teams.
- Excellent understanding of translating business/functional requirements into specialist technical specifications and complex operational digital products and services.
Skills and Attributes
Essential
- Proven experience of working in product and service development.
- High quality written and verbal communication skills with excellent presentation skills.
Desirable
- Welsh Language Skills are desirable level 1 or above in understanding, speaking, reading, and writing in Welsh
- In depth understanding of the information and service delivery needs of NHS Wales
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Additional information
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
