Lead Product Owner (m/f/n)

For one of the EU institutions we are looking for a Lead Product Owner.

Position Overview:

We are seeking an experienced Lead Product Owner to support the delivery and evolution of digital services for a major European Institution under a Managed Services framework. The successful candidate will act as the primary liaison between business stakeholders, service delivery teams, and technical experts, ensuring that products and services deliver maximum value while aligning with contractual obligations and organizational objectives.

This position offers full remote work within the European Union, with occasional travel to client premises for key meetings, workshops, and governance activities.

Main Responsibilities:

Product Ownership & Strategy

• Define and maintain the product vision, roadmap, and priorities.

• Ensure alignment between business objectives and service delivery.

• Gather, analyze, and translate business requirements into actionable product backlog items.

• Prioritize features, enhancements, and defect resolutions based on business value.

Stakeholder Management

• Serve as the primary point of contact for institutional stakeholders.

• Facilitate workshops, steering committees, and product review meetings.

• Communicate progress, risks, and dependencies to senior management.

• Manage stakeholder expectations and ensure high levels of customer satisfaction.

Framework Contract Management

• Contribute to the governance and operational management of the framework contract.

• Ensure service delivery complies with contractual commitments, SLAs, KPIs, and quality standards.

• Coordinate activities across multiple teams and suppliers where required.

• Support reporting, audits, and performance reviews.

Agile Delivery Leadership

• Lead Agile product management activities across one or more Scrum teams.

• Own and maintain the product backlog.

• Define user stories and acceptance criteria.

• Participate in sprint planning, reviews, and retrospectives.

• Drive continuous improvement initiatives.

Service Excellence

• Monitor service performance and product adoption.

• Identify opportunities for innovation and optimization.

• Ensure risks, issues, and dependencies are proactively managed.

• Promote best practices in Agile, product management, and service delivery.

Required Qualifications:

Mandatory

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business Administration, or a related discipline.

• 5 to 10 years of professional experience in Product Ownership, Business Analysis, Project Management, or Digital Product Delivery.

• Proven experience working within Agile environments.

• Experience managing products and services under Managed Services or Framework Contracts.

• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.

• Fluent English (written and spoken).

• Citizenship of an EU Member State.

Preferred

• Experience working with European Institutions, EU Agencies, or international public organizations.

• Knowledge of public-sector procurement and contract management.

• Experience with large-scale digital transformation initiatives.

• Familiarity with ITIL principles and service management practices.

Desired Certifications

One or more of the following certifications would be considered an asset:

• Professional Scrum Product Owner (PSPO)

• Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO)

• PMI-ACP

• SAFe Product Owner/Product Manager

• PRINCE2 Practitioner

• ITIL Foundation

Key Competencies:

• Product Leadership

• Agile Product Management

• Strategic Thinking

• Stakeholder Engagement

• Contract Governance

• Service Delivery Management

• Business Analysis

• Risk Management

• Communication and Presentation Skills

• Team Collaboration

What We Offer

• Work Location: Remote within the EU with occasional travel to European Institution premises (Luxembourg)

• Rate: 450 EUR/MD

• Contract type: B2B signed with client

• Start Date: ASAP

• Long-term assignment with a leading European Institution.

• Flexible remote working model.

• International and multicultural environment.

• Opportunity to contribute to strategic digital initiatives impacting European citizens and public services.

• Participation in high-visibility projects within a structured Managed Services framework.