Product Owner Lead

Who we are

By joining our project, you will be working on an initiative of the European Commission focused on creating a more efficient, modern and secure customs environment within the European Union. Being part of this initiative set on a 5 years’ timeline, you will have the opportunity to work on topics such as digitalization of customs processes, streamlining customs procedures to facilitate trade and reduce costs, harmonization of customs rules across all EU member states and combating fraud.

This purposeful project will not only give you the opportunity to have an impact on one of the key topics within the European Union, it will also offer you various professional opportunities, let you experience a collaborative environment, using cutting-edge technologies and experiencing diversity in your everyday professional life.

What you'll be doing

• Lead and coordinate a team of Product Owners, ensuring strong alignment, effective collaboration, and consistent product delivery practices across the team.
• Lead the product vision, strategy, and roadmap for infrastructure and managed services, translating business and customer needs into clear priorities and actionable requirements.
• Drive alignment across business, technical, and service delivery teams, ensuring that solutions are technically sound, operationally scalable, and supported by effective service management processes.
• Act as the driving force for Agile ways of working, establishing and reinforcing Agile principles, frameworks, processes, and product management best practices.
• Drive process improvements and organizational change within the Product Owner team, proactively addressing resistance to change and ensuring adoption of agreed practices and standards.
• Provide clear direction and leadership to Product Owners, confidently challenging established ways of working and holding the team accountable for commitments, processes, and outcomes.
• Define, communicate, and continuously refine the product vision, priorities, and roadmap in alignment with business strategy and organizational objectives.
• Oversee product backlog management and prioritization, ensuring transparency, consistency, and a strong focus on business value.
• Establish common standards, governance, and ways of working across Product Owners to improve predictability, efficiency, and quality of delivery.
• Facilitate Agile ceremonies and support Product Owners in applying Agile practices effectively throughout the product lifecycle.
• Collaborate closely with business stakeholders, development teams, leadership, and other key functions to align priorities, manage dependencies, and maximize product value.
• Identify delivery and process challenges, facilitate decisions, remove organizational obstacles, and escalate issues when necessary.
• Coach and mentor Product Owners, strengthening their product management capabilities, ownership, and accountability.
• Promote a culture of continuous improvement, transparency, collaboration, and data-driven decision-making.

What you'll bring along

• Master’s or Bachelor’s degree in Information Security, Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, Business Management or a related field.
• Minimum 3-5 years of experience in a similar role.
• Strong knowledge of Agile principles, frameworks, and methodologies, combined with a solid understanding of product management best practices.
• Strong knowledge of IT infrastructure and managed services, combining hands-on technical understanding with a solid grasp of operational processes, service management, and delivery models.
• Proven experience leading, coordinating, or managing a team of Product Owners or similar product-focused roles.
• Demonstrated ability to drive Agile transformation and process improvement in environments where established ways of working and resistance to change may present significant challenges.
• Strong leadership presence and the confidence to set direction, challenge colleagues constructively, make difficult decisions, and ensure agreed processes and standards are followed.
• Excellent change management and influencing skills, with the ability to build commitment while remaining persistent and decisive when change is required.
• Hands-on experience with product vision, roadmap development, backlog management, prioritization, and value-driven product delivery.
• Strong understanding of Agile delivery processes, including planning, refinement, reviews, retrospectives, and cross-team coordination.
• Ability to balance strategic product leadership with operational execution and process governance.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills, with the ability to work effectively with business stakeholders, technical teams, Product Owners, and senior leadership.
• Strong facilitation, negotiation, and conflict-resolution skills, particularly in complex environments with competing priorities.
• A structured, proactive, and results-oriented mindset, with a strong sense of ownership and accountability.
• Ability to create momentum, bring teams through change, and establish sustainable ways of working in a complex organizational environment.
• Excellent command of spoken and written English; German or another European language is an advantage.