British Council
Product Owner
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Product Owner (Digital Systems – English & Exams)
Location: UK or Poland (residents only – relocation and sponsorship not provided)
About the Role
The Product Owner will manage global English-based systems and capabilities across the full lifecycle, ensuring continuous improvement and customer-centric development. This role will involve:
- Steering digital asset evolution while aligning with business objectives
- Driving adoption through stakeholder engagement and feedback incorporation
- Upholding customer-first decision-making throughout delivery
Role Context
The British Council’s E&E division generates £700m+ annually, with revenue streams including:
- English teaching, offering £200m/year through 80 global centres (teaching 400,000 students annually) and online products engaging 120m+ learners and teachers
- Eng Kurtams (Exams & Qualifications), delivering £500m+ annually through flagship systems like IELTS (taken by 3m candidates/year) and the British Council’s Aptis test
Success in this role enables end-to-end delivery of high-impact digital products supporting both teams.
Main Accountabilities
Product/Service Development & Delivery
- Procure, develop, configure, quality-assure, maintain, and support new/legacy platforms, eliminating capability duplication
- Own and prioritise the Product Backlog in alignment with business goals, ensuring transparency for all stakeholders
- Oversee global rollouts of new products, resolving regional/country-specific technical or functional adjustments
- Ensure technical governance, collaborating with content, tech, marketing, and business teams to maintain high standards
- Uphold brand compliance, user experience, and efficiency for all platforms and content delivered under SLAs
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Consultancy, Analysis & Problem-Solving
- Apply technical expertise to diagnose and resolve complex platform challenges, contributing to design decisions
- Provide specialist guidance to both internal teams and external partners (e.g., consultants, suppliers)
Relationship & Stakeholder Management
- Build and manage cross-functional relationships (e.g., Prop upstream, marketing, customer managers) to streamline delivery
- Partner with vendors, tech innovators, and providers to procure solutions and map long-term digital roadmaps
- Advance internal/external peer networks to stay ahead of industry best practice
- Advise commercial teams on technical feasibility, costs, and business-fit of solutions
Financial Management
- Monitor platform budgets using corporate systems, assessingMonthly/yearly financial risks and performance for online learning solutions
Leadership & Management
- Prioritise workload to meet quarterly/annual objectives, leading teams
- Foster discipline-wide and platform-specific strategic thinking as an experienced professional
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Requirements
Language
- Fluent written and spoken English
Certification & Professional Qualifications
- Preferred: Agile project management certification
- Desirable: ITIL certification
Education
- First-degree equivalent qualification or extensive experience
Technical & Industry Experience
Minimum/Essential
- Demonstrated success in:
- Creating, scaling, and launching digital products for B2C or B2B markets
- Managing Agile processes with user stories
- Full-time residency in the UK or Poland with legal right to work
Desirable
- Experience managing globally distributed teams in complex matrix environments
British Council Values & Behaviours
All roles are judged on adherence to our core values:
- Open and Committed – leading by transparency and accountability
- Expert and Inclusive – integrating diverse perspectives for richer outcomes
- Optimistic and Bold – driving innovation with growth mindset
Unit & Working Style
Unit: English & Exams / Role: Product / Delivery and Governance Work Style: Hybrid
Pay & Benefits
- Pay Band: 8
- Annual Salary Range:
- PLN 192,000 – 252,000 (Poland)
- £38,000 – £46,000 (UK)
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