Lead Product Manager can often be thought of as a ‘head’ of product for an area of the business

Use and implementation of product leadership roles like Lead Product Manager can vary a lot, as we’ve previously noted. We’re going to take a look at what Lead Product Manager might look like in an enterprise with mutliple business areas.

Lead Product Managers can be thought of as ‘heads of product’ for an area of the business. These areas are often the clients we work for, so we might be leading all of the in-house software development for a single programme, department, or delivery agency: we’re responsible for the overall value of our work for that client, building an overall value proposition that helps us to priortise opportunities. We’re also responsible for leading the product management community in our area of the business. We probably spend less and less time working directly in delivery teams, and more and more time working with management teams and with functions from the broader operational teams. Lead Product Managers will report in to the overall Head of Product.

The GOV.UK role description for Lead Product Managers is great, clearly setting out expected skills, and the level of expertise required in each of these skills.