Product Owner / Business Analyst

Product Owner / Business Analyst - Utilities | Inside IR35
Duration: 6 months
Location: Leeds / Hybrid

Overview:

This is a hybrid Product Owner / BA role, with a strong focus on business analysis, stakeholder management and technical delivery. You will act as the key link between the business and an external development partner, owning and prioritising the product backlog and ensuring business and regulatory requirements are translated into clear, deliverable outcomes.

You will be the key decision-maker for the supplier-led delivery, supporting the solution through sprint reviews, testing and go-live acceptance.

The role requires someone who can operate confidently across business, compliance, operational and technical teams, with extensive experience communicating with, influencing and managing stakeholders at Director and C-suite level.

Responsibilities
- Own and prioritise the product backlog to deliver a compliant and enhanced business system in line with regulatory requirements and defined timelines.
- Act as the key link between business stakeholders and the external development team.
- Act as the key decision-maker for supplier-led delivery, ensuring priorities and requirements are clearly understood.
- Translate business and regulatory requirements into user stories, use cases and acceptance criteria.
- Interpret solution designs and ensure solutions meet the required business outcomes.
- Work closely with the external development partner throughout delivery.
- Support and provide sign-off for sprint reviews, testing and go-live acceptance.
- Make prioritisation decisions and manage trade-offs within fixed timelines and budgets.
- Manage relationships across business, compliance, operations and technical teams.
- Communicate effectively with and influence Director and C-suite stakeholders.
- Manage challenging stakeholders, conflicting priorities and expectations throughout delivery.
- Support Agile ceremonies and ensure delivery remains aligned to agreed priorities.

Skills & Experience
- Proven experience as a Product Owner, Business Analyst or Product Owner / BA hybrid.
- Strong experience running and prioritising an Agile / Scrum backlog.
- Experience working with an external development or delivery partner, ideally in a supplier-led environment.
- Strong Business Analysis skills, including requirements gathering and documentation.
- Excellent experience with user stories, use cases and acceptance criteria.
- Ability to translate complex business and regulatory requirements into clear technical requirements.
- Ability to interpret solution designs and work effectively with technical teams.
- Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with extensive experience engaging, influencing and managing Director and C-suite stakeholders.
- Confident managing challenging senior stakeholders and resolving competing priorities.
- Strong commercial and delivery judgement, with the ability to make prioritisation trade-offs within fixed timelines and budgets.
- Strong Agile delivery experience.

Desirable
- Previous experience within the utilities sector or similar.
- Experience delivering regulatory or compliance-related change.
- Experience within a large, complex enterprise environment.
- Relevant Agile, Product Owner or Business Analysis qualifications.