Senior Product Owner

Worker Type:

Here at BNZ, it's about more than just banking. We work together in an agile, energising environment to create innovative solutions though our promise "If you can imagine a better future, let's find a way."

We support wellbeing, flexible working and have a generous leave offering. No two days are the same.

Ko mātou tēnei | This is Us

We have an exciting opportunity for a Senior Product Owner to provide enduring product leadership across business and technology within our Customer, Products and Services business unit. You’ll own one integrated product roadmap that turns strategic outcomes into an executable sequence of work, and lead Product Owners to drive delivery roadmaps, with clear priorities and decision ownership.

Mō te Tūranga | About the Role

We sat down with the Head of Customer Delivery (who you’ll report to), and they shared the following about the tūranga (role):

This Fixed Term 12 month opportunity, is a hybrid position with three days in the office and two days where you can work flexibly.

What are 5 day to day tasks the person in this role will complete?

• Own one integrated product roadmap that turns strategic outcomes into an executable sequence of work

• Prioritise work within domain capacity, balancing customer value, technology constraints and platform health

• Maintain coherent backlogs across teams, making priorities and trade-offs clear so teams know what matters next and why

• Drive quarterly planning with Product Owners and Engineering Leads, aligning commitments with capacity and feasibility

• Manage product dependencies, resolve sequencing conflicts, and review delivery evidence to adjust the roadmap

What is your management style?

I lead by setting clear priorities and making decisions visible, so teams know what matters next and why. I’m empowering and collaborative: I trust my people to make decisions safely within their remit, and I expect ownership and follow-through. I value open, honest conversations. I welcome challenge and encourage the team to speak up with respect and curiosity. You’ll have a small team of 2-5 direct reports and the support you need to lead through influence across business and technology.

What is the most exciting thing about this opportunity?

You’ll lead product delivery, connecting strategic intent with technology constraints and team delivery. You’ll own one coherent, prioritised and executable roadmap, and have the opportunity to establish enduring product ownership across business and technology, giving teams clear priorities, owned dependencies and visible decisions.

What is the most challenging thing about this opportunity?

Leading through influence across business and technology while respecting distinct accountabilities, and establishing enduring product ownership alongside existing programme governance. You’ll balance customer value, technology constraints and platform health within domain capacity, resolve dependency and sequencing conflicts, and escalate unresolved contention, funding and enterprise sequencing decisions with clear options.

What attributes will this person display to be successful in this role?

• Experience owning product roadmaps and aligning backlogs across multiple delivery teams

• Sound judgement in prioritising customer and business value within capacity and technology constraints

• Clear communication of priorities, trade-offs and decisions to senior stakeholders and delivery teams

• The ability to lead through influence across business and technology

• Experience preparing quarterly plans and aligning feasible commitments with available capacity

• Strong dependency management skills, including resolving conflicts and escalating decisions with clear options

• Experience working with Product Owners and Engineering Leads in an agile delivery environment, and engaging architecture, security, data and risk specialists early

• Desirable: experience in banking or another regulated environment, and helping teams transition from project structures to ongoing product ownership

Nau Mai ki te Pēke o Aotearoa / Come to the Bank of New Zealand

This is an exciting opportunity to join us! We're bold thinkers who are taking brave steps to create a company that people want to work for, and customers want to bank with. If you're ready to join a fun organisation where we are proud of our culture and how we are helping New Zealander's to 'Find their way', then show your interest by submitting your application - we can't wait to read it.

Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini" - Success is not the work of an individual, but the work of many.”

Applications will be reviewed regularly across the advertising period, but we do reserve the right to close applications early.