Product Manager - Back Office

Arriva is a leading European passenger transport partner, operating in 11 countries across the UK and Europe.  The company employs around 35,000 people, delivering more than 1.5 billion passenger journeys connecting people and communities safely, reliably and sustainably.

We have strong roots dating back to 1938, an ambitious growth and sustainability agenda, and a continuously developing relationship with I Squared Capital – a global infrastructure investment fund manager - who acquired Arriva in 2024.

The Back Office Product Manager is responsible for defining and delivering products that enhance internal processes and operational efficiency. This role sets a clear direction for product development, ensuring solutions align with business goals and the needs of internal stakeholders, while maintaining technical integrity. The Product Manager collaborates closely with business units, support functions, IT partners, and platform teams to ensure smooth integration and scalability of back-office solutions. Serving as the bridge between business priorities and delivery teams, this position requires strong leadership, sound decision-making, and the ability to manage competing demands in a fast-paced environment.

Direct responsibilities:

Product Vision & Roadmap

• Develop and maintain a clear product vision and roadmap for back office domains, ensuring alignment with overall business objectives.
• Ensure product development is in sync with organisational goals and IT strategy.
• Regularly assess industry trends, internal feedback, and process insights to identify opportunities for operational improvement and innovation.
• Translate business priorities into actionable product plans with measurable deliverables.

Team Management

• Lead and manage a team of three Product Owners, providing coaching, guidance, and performance feedback.
• Ensure clear role responsibilities, prioritisation, and alignment across the product portfolio.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement within the team.

Delivery Oversight

• Lead the end-to-end product lifecycle from concept through delivery and optimisation.
• Ensure delivery teams have clarity on priorities, scope, and expected outcomes.
• Manage dependencies across multiple teams and coordinate with the Platforms team to ensure technical feasibility and scalability.
• Monitor progress against timelines and budgets, proactively addressing risks and issues.

Collaboration with Key Teams

• Work closely with business units, support teams, IT business partners, and Platforms team to align on requirements, integration points, and performance standards.
• Ensure platform capabilities are leveraged effectively to support product objectives.
• Participate in technical reviews and provide input on design decisions impacting product delivery.

Stakeholder Engagement

• Build and maintain strong working relationships with key stakeholders across operations, finance, HR, and technology.
• Organise and facilitate workshops, as well as provide regular updates, to ensure alignment on priorities and progress.
• Serve as the main point of contact for senior leadership regarding product performance and updates to the product roadmap.

Governance & Compliance

• Ensure all products comply with regulatory, security, and brand standards.
• Maintain accurate documentation and reporting for governance purposes.
• Track benefits realisation and ensure delivery aligns with agreed business cases.

The role will manage a diverse portfolio of products across key domains:

• HR & Payroll
• Finance
• Compliance & Risk
• Training & Development

Knowledge, skills & experience:

• Experience in product management within back office or operational environments.
• Demonstrated ability to lead and manage teams effectively, including oversight of multiple Product Owners.
• Strong knowledge of product lifecycle management and Agile delivery practices.
• Solid understanding of internal process optimisation and enterprise systems.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement and communication skills.
• Familiarity with emerging technologies and product management tools relevant to back office functions.

Key success criteria for this role are:

• A clearly defined product roadmap for back-office solutions aligned with business objectives.
• Roadmap communicated and understood by all stakeholders.
• Features and enhancements prioritised based on measurable business value.
• Demonstrable improvements in process effectiveness, compliance, and operational performance metrics.
• Dependencies managed effectively across products and platforms.
• Effective leadership and development of Product Owners, ensuring delivery excellence.
• Decisions supported by analytics.
• KPIs tracked and reported consistently.
• Successful delivery of new capabilities that enhance efficiency and scalability.
• End-to-end delivery of product from concept stage to supporting products and continuous improvements.

This job description sets out the main duties and responsibilities of the job-holder. It does not constitute an exhaustive or comprehensive description of duties and the job holder will be required to carry out any additional tasks as and when requested to do so by their manager. Responsibilities and duties may also change in light of future business needs and personal development.

The closing date for applications is Friday 13th February 2026. Arriva Group reserves the right to close this vacancy early.