Register Your Interest - Product Integration Placement

Register Your Interest - Product Integration Placement

Primary Purpose of the Job

As a Product Integration Undergraduate, you will play a pivotal role in supporting Channel Managers, Product Owners and Product Integration Managers to facilitate the successful launch and ongoing support of our products.

This position offers a unique chance to gain hands-on experience across various work streams, making it an ideal opportunity for a university student looking to complement their academic studies with real-world practical skills and capabilities.

Whether you're pursuing a degree in business, technology, or a related field, this role provides a valuable platform to apply your classroom knowledge to real-world projects and enhance your career prospects.

Main Responsibilities

• Engage and Collaborate: Work closely with internal and external stakeholders to identify integration impacts, dependencies, and efficiencies associated with the introduction of new products across various business areas. This role provides a unique opportunity to network and develop collaborative skills that are valuable both academically and professionally.
• Communication and Training Support: Assist the Product Integration Manager in devising communication and training strategies, as well as operational and technical support models for new product launches. Gain valuable experience in crafting effective communication plans, a skill that complements your university coursework.
• Operational and Technical Support: Support the Product Integration Manager in creating and implementing operational and technical support models, as well as communication plans for new products. This experience will broaden your skill set and demonstrate your ability to apply theoretical concepts to real-world scenarios.
• Data Analysis: Utilise reporting suites to extract valuable insights, enabling Channel Manager to make informed strategic decisions and bolster business cases for future products. This aspect of the role offers a practical application of data analysis skills, which are highly sought after in today's job market.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Ensure that new products undergo evaluation and approval by various stakeholders, such as Risk, Governance, Legal, and Compliance, to ensure compliant product delivery.
• Incident Triage: Play a crucial role in incident management by triaging live product incidents. Provide essential information to the development team to aid in problem resolution, further enhancing your problem-solving skills.

Principal Contacts / Working Relationships

• Channel Managers and Product Owners are pivotal figures in the product management hierarchy. They define the overall strategy of our products and serve as your guiding mentors.
• Product Integration Manager Community: As an undergraduate, you will have access to the Product Integration Manager (PIM) Community, serving as your mentors and guides throughout your tenure at VWFS. Each PIM operates within a different workstream, offering a diverse range of learning experiences that you can apply in your day-to-day tasks. These PIMs will play a pivotal role in your professional development.
• Product Development Team: You will closely collaborate with the entire product development team(s), gaining a comprehensive understanding of the workstream and each stage of the development cycle. This engagement will enable you to support product implementation by providing essential technical and operational insights. Expect to spend the majority of your time working alongside developers, scrum masters, testers, marketing executives and managers, and business analysts.
• Operations Management: Our end users and supporting teams are critical stakeholders for the success of our products. You will engage regularly with the operations management to develop a profound understanding of the workstream's strategy and upcoming products. This interaction will ensure that your work aligns seamlessly with the needs of our stakeholders and contributes to the effective delivery of our products.

Decision Making Scope

We would expect that the UG would have autonomy to lead conversations which have been specified by their line manager. This may increase in scope as they develop but will need to gauge once in role.

Key Challenges

The Product Integration Undergraduate role is inherently versatile, encompassing a wide array of tasks and responsibilities. The level of guidance provided is intentionally limited, and self-initiative is a cornerstone of success in this role. We encourage you to take ownership of your tasks, proactively seek solutions, and embrace the opportunity to drive your projects independently.

The specific tasks you'll undertake will vary based on the workstream to which you are assigned. For instance, if you are assigned to a live product, your role may involve managing incidents in collaboration with the development team. Conversely, if you are working on a product in the development phase, your focus will centre on support models and communication strategies.

Certain workstreams may demand a higher level of technical expertise and logical thinking. While your line manager will be available to provide support and guidance, possessing a technical and logical mind set is particularly desirable in these cases. Your ability to navigate and contribute effectively to such workstreams will be an asset in this role.

This role is designed to challenge and strengthen your skills, offering a dynamic and ever-evolving environment where adaptability, self-motivation, and problem-solving abilities are key to your success. It's an excellent opportunity to develop a well-rounded skill set and gain hands-on experience in a fast-paced, multifaceted work environment.

Education, Training and Experience

• Proficient in the use of Microsoft Office tools
• Working towards a degree in either Business Management, Marketing or similar
• A technical mindset is desirable, however not required

Skills and Personal Characteristics Required

• Adaptability: The ability to adapt to changing project requirements, technologies, and priorities is crucial in a dynamic work environment like product integration. Being flexible and open to learning new tools and processes can significantly enhance your performance.
• Critical Thinking: Developing strong critical thinking skills will enable you to evaluate situations, assess potential risks, and make informed decisions. This skill is particularly valuable when dealing with complex integration challenges.
• Time Management: Efficiently managing your time and prioritizing tasks is essential to meet deadlines and contribute effectively to multiple workstreams. Demonstrating strong time management skills will help you excel in this role.
• Attention to Detail: Paying close attention to detail ensures accuracy in your work, from analysing data to implementing communication strategies. This skill is vital for maintaining quality and reliability in product integration efforts.
• Strong Interpersonal Skills: You should possess excellent interpersonal skills, enabling you to effectively communicate with stakeholders at various levels within the organization. Building strong working relationships and fostering effective collaboration are essential aspects of this role.
• Proven Problem-Solving Skills: A demonstrated ability to solve complex problems with a focused and logical approach is highly valuable. You should be adept at analysing challenges, identifying root causes, and formulating effective solutions.
• Independent and Proactive: The role requires the ability to work independently while also contributing to broader team efforts. You should be proactive in identifying and resolving issues, even in situations where direct instructions may be limited.
• Project Management Experience: Previous experience in managing projects involving multiple stakeholders and collaboration with diverse teams is a significant asset. This experience will enable you to thrive in this multifaceted role.
• Data Analysis: Proficiency in handling and analysing large datasets to identify trends and glean actionable insights is essential. Your ability to make data-driven decisions will contribute to the success of our projects.

Career Path

Equivalent jobs which could constitute lateral moves:

• Business Analyst – M&I – Band 7
• Commercial Development Manager – M&I – Band 7

On leaving this job, a job that would be considered a promotion is:

• Channel Manager – M&I / IT – Band 9
• Scrum Master – M&I / IT – Band 8

How to register

To get updates about this role and be the first to hear when applications open, please register your interest.