Product owner

Smiths Detection
Every minute of every day, Smiths Detection’s threat detection and security screening technology helps to protect people and infrastructure, making the world a safer place. 

Smiths Detection, part of Smiths Group is a global leader in the development, manufacture and management of security and detection solutions designed to make the world a safer place. Our technology provides threat detection and screening solutions for customers in our key markets: aviation, ports and borders, defence, and urban security.

Our expertise spans 21 global offices, seven manufacturing sites and five R&D centres, with a global network of 3,000 dedicated colleagues contributing towards over 40 years at the frontline of advances in safety and security.  

This results in careers built on variety and the opportunity to work on a range of state-of-the-art solutions, where you can develop your knowledge and experience every day.

The Product Owner Role is a pivotal position in the business and the respective Industry verticals. The role is found in all 4 verticals: Aviation, Ports & Borders, Urban Security & Defence. The role reports into the Portfolio Director Circular Economy and Industrial Innovation and is responsible for one or more of the company's product offerings, starting with the company’s Battery Sorting product. The Product Owner will serve as the primary liaison between business stakeholders and the technology team, ensuring that requirements are clearly defined, prioritized, and translated into actionable deliverables, (from MRD to SRD). The role ensures that each product evolves in alignment with business objectives continuously ensuring the development team keeps building the right things in the right way.

Duties, Activities & Responsibilities

• Own and manage the product backlog, ensuring clarity, prioritization, and alignment with business goals.
• Define and refine user stories and acceptance criteria to guide the development team.
• Validate deliverables against acceptance criteria and ensure they meet quality standards.
• Provide expert support in tender and proposal responses by articulating product capabilities and technical specifications.
• Continuously monitor progress, resolve blockers, and adjust priorities to maximize value delivery.

• Ensure product initiatives are prioritized based on business value, feasibility, and strategic impact.

• Act as a liaison between Technology, Sales, Programs, Marketing and Service to assist in the creation of product technical specifications. Provide input from all departments to the R&D design team/s, coordinate design review meetings such that New Product Introductions (NPI) meet sales and business objectives.
• Through periodic review maintain relevant technical content of sales support and sales/distributor training materials.

Backlog Management

• Own and manage the product backlog, ensuring clarity, prioritization, and alignment with business goals.
• Write and refine user stories, acceptance criteria, and epics to guide the development team.
• Continuously groom the backlog to reflect evolving priorities and stakeholder feedback.

Stakeholder Engagement

• Act as the primary liaison between business stakeholders, customers, and the development team.
• Facilitate communication to ensure expectations are managed and outcomes are aligned.
• Present product updates, progress, and outcomes to leadership and stakeholders.

Development Collaboration

• Partner closely with the development team to ensure smooth planning and execution.
• Provide timely clarification and decision-making support during development cycles.
• Validate deliverables against acceptance criteria and ensure they meet quality standards.

Value Delivery & Continuous Improvement

• Measure and track product performance against defined KPIs and success metrics.
• Gather and analyse feedback from users and stakeholders to inform future iterations.
• Champion a culture of continuous improvement, innovation, and customer-centricity.

Tender Response Support

• Provide expert input into tender and proposal processes, ensuring that product capabilities, technical specifications, and value propositions are articulated with clarity and precision.
• Collaborate with business development, sales, and technical teams to craft compelling responses that align with client requirements and organizational strategy.
• Translate complex technical concepts into business‑focused language that highlights competitive advantage and differentiators.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of tender response frameworks, ensuring consistency, accuracy, and impact across submissions.

Technical Knowledge and Skills:

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in a related field.
• Proven experience (3+ years) as a Product Owner, Business Analyst, or in a similar role.
• Strong understanding of product lifecycle management.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to balance strategic thinking with tactical execution.
• Technical literacy sufficient to engage effectively with engineers.

• Knowledge of the Microsoft Office software suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Project, Visio).
• Knowledge in the use of SAP & JIRA

Competencies and Abilities:

• Excellent communication skills particularly in English (fluently spoken and written) in addition to any local language spoken at the place of work.
• The ability and motivation to persistently pursue and achieve / drive effective results which drive the business forward.
• Collaboration and Influencing with a Global mindset, cultural awareness.
• Proven matrix and stakeholder management skills/experience working virtually in diverse teams.
• Overall, exceptional programme, project and time management skills – highly organised and detailed orientated
• The ability to make effective, timely decisions in a complex, global market by sourcing and analysing critical information. 
• The understanding and recognition of the organisation’s commercial environment and positioning themselves, their role and their actions in order to support the organisation’s commercial success.
• The ability to engage, challenge and work effectively with others.
• The ability to build an effective network of relationships both internally and externally, understanding their customers’ needs.
• Willing and able to identify and support change and continuous improvement in own and wider business environment.
• Ability to work in an international and multi-cultural environment

Professional competencies

• Ability to bring operational rigour to deliver Product roadmap delivering results
• Ability to be resourceful as well as strong at probing and translating information into insight
• Experience of collaborating in a cross functional and cross-cultural organisation, with the ability to act as the bridge between the markets (sales) teams and the portfolio teams.

Diversité et Inclusion

Nous croyons que la diversité des modes de pensée et des parcours de nos employés contribue au succès de l’entreprise. Toutes les candidatures correspondant au profil seront examinées de façon équitable, indépendamment de la couleur, la religion, le sexe, l’orientation et l’identité sexuelle, le pays d’origine, la situation économique, le handicap, l’âge ou toute autre caractéristique du candidat protégée par la loi. Nous sommes fiers d’être une entreprise ouverte à tous, avec des valeurs basées sur l’égalité et l’éthique, où la diversité est encouragée, appréciée, et valorisée.

We believe that different perspectives and backgrounds are what make a company flourish. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment regardless of color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, economic status, disability, age, or any other legally protected characteristics. We are proud to be an inclusive company with values grounded in equality and ethics, where we celebrate, support, and embrace diversity.

At no time during the hiring process will Smiths Group, nor any of our recruitment partners ever request payment to enable participation – including, but not limited to, interviews or testing. Avoid fraudulent requests by applying jobs directly through our career’s website (Careers - Smiths Group plc)