Product Owner (12-Month Contract)
Product/Project management
Cape Town – Western Cape
ENVIRONMENT:
JOIN a cutting-edge 12-month project as a Product Owner sought by a reputable Asset Management Group to join its team to deliver solutions that drive competitive advantage in the financial markets. You will be responsible for managing the product backlog, defining product vision, and ensuring the development of high-impact quantitative models and tools. This role bridges the gap between stakeholders and the Quants team, ensuring that the developed models meet both business and technical requirements. You will need to possess a Master’s/Bachelor’s Degree in a quantitative field such as Mathematics/Stats/Financial Engineering or similar discipline with 7+ Years of experience in Product Management, with a focus on financial markets, trading, quantitative research projects and/or web-based tools.
DUTIES:
Product Strategy & Roadmap –
- Define and maintain the product vision for the Quants team, aligning it with business goals.
- Develop and prioritize the product roadmap in collaboration with business stakeholders and the Quants team.
- Ensure that the team is working on the highest-priority tasks to meet business objectives.
Stakeholder Management –
- Serve as the primary point of contact between the business and the Quants team.
- Gather and translate business requirements into detailed technical requirements for the team.
- Communicate progress, deliverables, and changes effectively with stakeholders and senior management.
Backlog Management –
- Own and manage the product backlog, ensuring that it is well-defined, up to date, and prioritized based on business value and risk.
- Continuously refine the backlog in collaboration with the Quants team to adapt to new data, discoveries, or business needs.
Sprint Planning & Execution –
- Plan and participate in sprint planning, daily standups, sprint reviews, and retrospectives.
- Ensure the Quants team delivers high-quality models, tools, and analytics on timeously and efficiently.
- Manage the scope of work and make adjustments as needed based on feedback or changing requirements.
Data & Analytics Collaboration –
- Work closely with Data Scientists, Analysts, and Engineers to ensure the quantitative models are built on robust and relevant data.
- Ensure alignment between the business needs and the quantitative models being developed.
Risk Management –
- Collaborate with Risk teams to ensure that models meet regulatory and compliance requirements.
- Ensure that potential risks associated with model assumptions, data quality, or methodologies are identified and mitigated.
Performance Monitoring & Feedback –
- Define metrics to assess the performance of models and strategies delivered by the Quants team.
- Gather feedback from users (Traders, Portfolio Managers, etc.) and use it to refine product development.
REQUIREMENTS:
Qualifications –
- Master’s or Bachelor’s Degree in a quantitative field such as Mathematics, Statistics, Financial Engineering, Economics, Computer Science, or similar.
Experience/Skills –
- 7+ Years of experience in Product Management, with a focus on financial markets, trading, quantitative research projects and/or web-based tools.
- Experience working with Quantitative Research teams, Data Scientists, or Algorithmic Trading teams.
- Strong understanding of financial markets, quantitative models, and data analytics.
- Proficiency in Data Analysis, Web Development, and Quantitative research tools.
- Familiarity with Quantitative Modeling techniques, Statistical Analysis, and Risk Modeling.
Advantageous –
- Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) or similar Agile Certification.
- Experience in Product Management in a financial or technology firm.
- Strong understanding of Agile methodologies and experience working in Agile teams, and experience with Jira.
ATTRIBUTES:
- Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to balance business needs and technical challenges.
- Excellent communication skills to articulate complex ideas clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
- Leadership abilities to motivate and guide a cross-functional team.