Product Owner – South Africa

Open Cities Lab is growing! And we need help expanding our community and product team.

Product owner job description

Are you passionate about being part of a dynamic team curating and implementing digital and data interventions in urban environments? Do you thrive in a collaborative environment where innovation and excellence are paramount? If so, this could be the opportunity you’ve been waiting for!

As a Product Owner at OCL, you are the de facto expert on one or more products in our product menu. This may mean managing the release of a specific product and/ or facilitating the implementation of your designated products in use-case environments. To accomplish this, you’ll work closely with the Chief Product and Operations Officers, the Technical Team and Partners. You’ll be responsible for coordinating all the activities required to bring a new product to market and for ensuring that use-case product implementations meet contractual requirements and achieve maximum impact. You’ll oversee negotiations, timelines and budgets to optimise cost-effective delivery and implementation of solutions and also provide support to Partnership Leads and the Advocacy Team who promote your designated products and secure use-case opportunities. You will contribute to building the aspirational OCL culture and will continually develop your own professional competence. We reserve the right to redeploy the successful applicant into any other product owner role, as required. 

Responsibilities:

• Guide and contribute to the clarification of product scopes and specifications.
• Establish ways of working for all stakeholders involved in product release or implementation. 
• Ensure that all communications and planning platforms are continually updated. 
• Flag and mitigate risks related to product releases or implementations. 
• Manage product release and implementation timelines and hold all stakeholders accountable for their roles and contributions. 
• Obtain and respond to partner and user feedback. Conduct quality assurance.
• Get final sign-off on product implementations and facilitate hand-over processes. 
• Define the product backlog, roadmap, budget, scope, specifications and intended impact, to be able to provide accurate information and advice. 
• Conduct negotiations as required to manage release and implementation processes. 

Qualifications and Skills:

• Tertiary certification in business, IT, political science or a related field.
• Product design and/ or project management certifications are a plus. 
• Good understanding of national, local and political environments in which OCL operates, especially but not limited to local government institutions.
• Familiarity with civic engagement and digital governance concepts, urban development and urban data environments.
• Ability to grasp, discuss and explain technical concepts. 
• Solid data proficiency and understanding of data principles. 
• Data analysis and visualisation skills would be an advantage
• Excellent organising, prioritising and executing skills 
• The ability to develop or follow and guide delivery processes.
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills. 
• A strong sense of accountability to partners and to the organisation. 
• Excellent reporting skills and the ability to communicate clearly, succinctly and timeously.
• Ability to implement a budget. 
• Strong relationship-building and facilitation skills. 
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience (or willingness to) be a  part of a remote/hybrid working team
• Commitment to ongoing improvement. 
• Strong ability to navigate and resolve conflicting demands, perspectives and needs. 
• The ability to listen well, learn quickly and navigate uncertainty. 
• Excellent ability to hold others accountable. 
• The ability to learn quickly and work with a high degree of autonomy
• A positive “can-do” attitude that can see way through challenges
• Using research and data to inform product management processes
• Fluent in English with other South African languages desirable

Join us at Open Cities Lab and be part of a dynamic team dedicated to shaping the future of urban living through technology and design. Apply now to contribute your expertise and creativity to our impactful projects. All applicants who are drawn to serve the mission of Open Cities Lab will enjoy Equality of Opportunity and fair treatment without regard to:

• Race

• Colour

• Religion

• Pregnancy

• Sex

• Sexual orientation

• Disability

• Gender identity

• Gender expression

• National origin

• Genetic information

• Marital status

• Prior protected activity

Women, Nonbinary, BIPOC, People with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply.

Company Description

We are a non-profit organisation that creates tools and interventions that strengthen capacity within government, empowers citizens and improves trust and accountability in the civic space.

We have been operating since 2015, and have international reach through our projects in African cities and urban spaces, and a global presence in knowledge creation.

We believe that through empowering citizens, building trust and accountability in civic space, and building capacity with government, we will enable participation in decision-making, evidence-based urban intervention, and inclusive co-design that will improve the lives of residents in urban spaces.

Our organisation is made up of Researchers, Software Developers, Economists, Data Scientists, Designers and Product Owners who get to constantly expand their knowledge and learn peripheral skills as part of the job. We are all driven by a common purpose as a non-partisan community founded on the belief of equality and inclusion through openness across all aspects of society.

Posted on 09 May 16:38, Closing date 15 Jun