Product Manager OEM's & Integrations

Materials Analysis is an Oxford Instruments Business Unit that manages our Electron Microscopy and Mechanical Microscopy products, Atomic Force Microscopes, Raman Microscopes and Benchtop NMR Products. We are part of the wider Oxford Instruments Group that also includes Andor Technology, NanoScience, Plasma Technology and X-Ray Technology. With a sixty-year history, and fourteen Queen’s Awards for Enterprise, our world-class products and technologies are helping our customers to address the greatest challenges of the 21st century.

We are seeking a Product Manager – OEM’s and Integration to join our product management team in High Wycombe. In this role, you will be the focal point for Integrated and OEM products managing them across the entire lifecycle, from product concept, through development, to withdrawal and be recognised by colleagues for your expertise.  The management of these products will be done in close collaboration with the wider Product Management team. 

With support from your line manager, you will be responsible for maximising the performance of your products, driving strategy, road mapping, product development, product positioning, and marketing/sales practices to achieve this.  You will identify and manage opportunities and risks to your products and align actions with business strategy. 

You will maintain a very high level of knowledge of the industry landscape around your products, be recognised within this community, and use your knowledge to understand and communicate customer value within the business. 

Location:

We are based in High Wycombe (Cressex) and have hybrid working, which is 3 days in the office, with 2 days at home. Our working week is 37 hours, with flexible working hours and 12:30 Friday finishes.

Working at Oxford Instruments Materials Analysis - What’s in it for you?

Wellbeing –

• Annual leave: 25 days plus bank holidays and the option to purchase up to 12 weeks more

• Employee Assistance Programme; including 24/7 telephone support, access to counselling, financial and debt management and access to trained legal advisors
• Private health insurance, dental insurance and life assurance

Money & lifestyle –

• MyDiscounts; save money with a number of leading retailers

• Car salary exchange scheme: sacrifice part of your salary in exchange for a fully serviced, comprehensive insured electric or hybrid vehicle
• TechScheme and CycleScheme: Purchase a bike and/or Tech or home goods from Currys/IKEA and spread the cost over 12 months.
• Pension; all employees are eligible to join the Group Pension Plan administered by AVIVA.
• Share incentive plan: Invest in your future and share in the success of the company by joining the share incentive plan.

Development –

• Encouragement and support to achieve professional and or academic qualifications to support your development and growth
• Defined career paths and regular reviews

This role would be ideal for you if…

• You have a strong technical/scientific background including a degree in Material Science, Physics, Chemistry or a related subject. 

• Experience in Product Management, preferably working B2B on highly integrated or OEM solutions. 

• Experience with or understanding of materials analysis techniques such as Electron Microscopy, Raman Microscopy or Nuclear Magnetic Resonance would be an advantage. 

Responsibilities:

Business Success 

You will understand and contribute to business success by: 

• Developing, owning and executing product/segment strategies and roadmaps (with minimal guidance). 

• Using market intimacy and technical expertise to inform and challenge own product/segment strategies and align with the business strategy. 

• Be able to communicate the interdependence between strategy, objectives, KPIs and roadmaps. 

• Setting objectives and KPIs to reflect product strategy. 

• Recognising the importance of IP to the product/segment and actively pursuing high value opportunities. 

• Understanding business constraints and legal considerations for areas of responsibility. 

Lifecycle Management 

You will demonstrate ownership of product/segment lifecycle by: 

• Actively managing all stages of the lifecycle from new product conception or new market entry through to end-of-life (with minimal guidance). 

• Using data and market intimacy to anticipate short term risks to the business and actively drive an appropriate response. 

• Assessing market opportunities for assigned product/segments including commercial viability (with minimal guidance). 

• Developing product/segment roadmaps for your area of responsibility, involving key stakeholders (with guidance). 

• Fulfilling the role of Product Owner within our NPD processes (with minimal guidance). 

• Contributing to NPD stage gate presentations and business cases. 

• Developing go-to-market plans for new products that meet the needs of all stakeholders (with guidance). 

• Understanding and addressing challenges in other functions (e.g. Operations, Service) impacting your product/segment. 

• Ensuring transparent and justifiable prioritisation within your area of responsibility, aligned with NA business strategy. 

Market Intimacy 

You will demonstrate, develop and improve your customer and market intimacy by: 

• Having a deep understanding of customers in your area of primary focus. 

• Translating customer Jobs-to-be-Done and market requirements into pains/gains and product Value Propositions. 

• Challenging the data we collect and driving improvements to the processes we run within the Marketing function to improve our market intimacy. 

• Leveraging a range of external sources to gain insight into Political, Economic, Social and Technological trends and recognising how these may impact our market. 

• Actively using product-persona fit to drive decision making in your area of focus. 

• Planning and running targeted Voice-of-Customer programmes and market/competitor research to build market intimacy. 

• Determining and establishing optimal product positioning within the market for current and planned products in your area of focus (with guidance). 

Technical Expertise 

You will provide the business with expertise in our products, product management and marketing skills, demonstrating this by: 

• Being recognised within the OI as an expert in products & applications of primary focus. 

• Supporting the development of others to improve their expertise in your area of primary focus. 

• Having a basic technical knowledge of products across OI Materials Analysis. 

• Showing a deep understanding of the modern Product Management mindset. 

• Actively using Product Management frameworks and tools to document and disseminate information. 

• Understanding the purpose of different forms of marketing material and determining which will help to deliver strategy. 

• Actively monitoring campaign performance including return on marketing spend and using this to optimise production, content and delivery of future campaigns. 

• Proactively managing the contents of the SharePoint site, website and other pieces of customer facing marketing material. 

• Identifying and securing high value external collaborators who provide unique opportunities. 

Stakeholder Management 

You will demonstrate strong skills at managing stakeholders including Customers, OEMs and Colleagues by: 

• Being recognised and engaged with by colleagues in all business functions as a trusted expert in product and applications. 

• Understanding the needs and interests of  OEMs and anticipating the impact on them of changes we make. 

• Leveraging OEM relationships to improve the success of products & applications. 

• Understanding the needs and interests of all business functions within OI and anticipating the impact on them of changes we make. 

• Developing strong relationships with teams across each business function, engaging with them at the appropriate time and understanding how to adapt communication style to suit them. 

• Creating buy-in for strategy and objectives relevant to area of primary focus across all business functions. 

• Aligning groups of stakeholders around objectively good business outcomes that utilise the collective intelligence of the group. 

Next steps:

If you’d like to learn more before applying, or have any questions please contact abby.gelder@oxinst.com. Applicants will be reviewed as quickly as possible, with successful applicants being invited to a Teams call to learn more about the role. 

Equal opportunities and reasonable adjustments:

Oxford Instruments is an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, colour, religion, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, or genetic information. Oxford Instruments is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment. Please get in touch if you require any reasonable adjustments within the interview process.