SKA-Low Product Manager

At the SKAO we are coordinating a global effort to deliver one of the largest science facilities on the planet. The SKAO telescopes will be next-generation instruments that will help to answer key questions in astrophysics, drive technological innovation and support human capital development. 

More than a dozen partner countries and over a thousand scientists and engineers around the world are already on board, making the SKA project an international collaboration like no other, and one of the most ambitious science and engineering endeavours of the 21st century.

Headquartered in the UK, with telescope sites in Australia and South Africa, the SKAO will be one observatory operating two telescopes, an endeavour spanning three continents. Multinational by design, in early 2021 the SKAO became an intergovernmental organisation, one of only a select handful of science infrastructures to do so worldwide.

Construction activities for the SKAO's telescopes in Australia and South Africa started in 2021, along with a ramping up of SKAO staff in both countries. It is expected that the transition from the Construction Phase to the Operations Phase will happen around 2028.

SKAO Operations in South Africa will be conducted in partnership with the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO). SKAO Operations in Australia will be conducted in partnership with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). The Observatory will also partner closely with a global network of SKA Regional Centres through which astronomers will access science data products and a suite of tools and resources to further analyse the SKA telescopes' data.

For more information on the SKA project visit https://www.skao.int/

The SKA Observatory offers a competitive salary and a generous pension and benefits package. As an employee of an intergovernmental organisation, an appointee who is not a national of the country in which the role is based may be subject to personal Privileges and Immunities.

This is a fantastic opportunity to help shape the product direction and delivery outcomes for the SKA-Low telescope. The role would suit an experienced Product Manager or someone with deep experience in radio telescope software who is interested in moving into Product Management. You will work across stakeholders, engineering teams, and programme leadership to frame problems, set priorities, define success measures, and communicate progress, ensuring delivery remains evidence-based and aligned with major construction, integration, commissioning, and operational milestones.

Job Location Perth, Australia

SKAO is delivering one of the world’s most advanced scientific instruments: a complex, globally distributed observatory built through tightly coordinated engineering, integration, commissioning and operational readiness activities. Delivery is milestone- and verification-led, with progress governed through formal requirements, system integration gates, commissioning evidence and readiness for real telescope operations.

Within this context, Product Management helps ensure that delivery remains focused on the outcomes that matter most for the telescope and its users. The role is not simply about managing a backlog; it is about connecting user needs, scientific and operational value, engineering delivery, and programme commitments.

You will help to:

• frame problems around the people who will use, operate and support the telescope, the behaviour changes needed, and the value we expect to create;

• translate outcomes into sequenced, testable increments that fit programme milestones, integration constraints and delivery realities;

• define “done” through measurable success criteria and evidence, aligned with verification, commissioning and operational needs;

• support clear prioritisation and trade-off decisions across a broad stakeholder landscape, protecting telescope outcomes while recognising programme constraints.

You will provide day-to-day product leadership across the SKA-Low telescope, working closely with distributed teams of engineers, architects, operations, commissioning and science staff, as well as project and programme leadership and other members of the Product Management team.

This is a fixed-term appointment to the end of June 2029 and will be based in Perth, Australia.

SKAO is committed to providing an inclusive and flexible working environment, meeting the requests of our Colleagues whilst also fulfilling the needs and objectives of the Observatory.

This role requires the post holder to work across different time zones and, in line with SKAO policy, flexible working hours will be supported in agreement with the line manager.

Key Responsibilities, Accountabilities and Duties

You will provide product leadership for the SKA-Low telescope construction programme. Your role is to help define the right goals, turn them into clear priorities, and ensure teams build the right things, in the right order, with evidence that the work supports integration, commissioning and operations.

You will:

• Define and own product goals for the SKA-Low Telescope, aligned with the telescope strategy, delivery milestones, and operational needs, and translate them into a clear roadmap.

• Understand needs and frame priorities, working with users, operators, engineers, architects, commissioning teams and science staff to turn complex problems into clear, actionable work.

• Own and prioritise the high-level backlog within agreed scope, balancing value, risk, technical constraints, dependencies and programme commitments.

• Steer delivery using evidence, defining what “done” means, setting success and acceptance criteria, and using evidence from testing, integration and user feedback to adjust scope or priorities.

• Communicate and align across teams, maintaining a clear link between goals, roadmap items, backlog work, and verification evidence, while making trade-offs, risks, and decisions clear to stakeholders and programme leadership.

Formal approval and acceptance of major project milestones will remain with the relevant SKAO bodies. Your accountability is to ensure that goals are clear, priorities are understood, decisions are evidence-based, acceptance criteria are defined, and the right evidence is available.

Success in the role will mean clearer goals, stable priorities, less delivery churn and stronger evidence for decisions. Most importantly, it will mean SKA-Low will become measurably more reliable, scalable and operable, with delivery increments that support integration, commissioning and operational readiness.

Mandatory Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Demonstrable experience in Product Management, or an equivalent product-oriented leadership role. This could include engineering, technical, project, programme or delivery leadership where you have helped teams decide what should be built, in what order, for whom, and why.

• Experience leading complex software delivery across multiple teams, with strong problem framing, prioritisation, stakeholder alignment and evidence-based decision-making.

• Experience delivering software for complex, integrated or high-reliability systems, such as scientific instruments, mission-critical infrastructure, industrial platforms or engineering systems.

• Strong ability to understand user and operational needs, frame clear problems, define success criteria and turn complex goals into actionable delivery priorities.

• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to explain complex topics clearly, lead trade-off discussions and influence decisions across technical, operational and leadership groups.

We welcome candidates who may not have held a formal Product Manager title, but who can show strong product judgement: understanding user needs, framing the right problems, shaping priorities, making trade-offs, and helping teams build the right thing at the right time.

Desirable Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Experience in radio astronomy, telescope systems, scientific facilities or similarly complex research infrastructure.

• Experience helping engineering-led organisations adopt stronger product practices, such as clearer goals, outcome-focused planning, evidence-based prioritisation and more transparent trade-offs.

• Experience working in a programme- or milestone-led environment, where delivery is shaped by systems engineering, architecture, integration, verification and operational constraints.

• Experience working with globally distributed teams across time zones, cultures and organisational boundaries.

• Willingness and ability to travel nationally and internationally on occasion, typically around four times per year, as required.

Equality Diversity and Inclusion Statement

SKA Observatory recognises that our diversity is a strength. We aim to create a welcoming and inclusive environment where everyone feels they belong, and diverse perspectives and ideas thrive. As such, Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion are at the core of SKA Observatory’s agenda.

Our aim is to recruit and retain the most talented individuals, regardless of gender, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, marital status, religion, nationality or background.

Women have traditionally been under-represented in the fields of science and engineering; SKA Observatory welcomes and encourages female applicants. 

Where applicants with a disability need facilities or adjustments to enable them to participate in the recruitment process, these will be provided.

SKA Observatory welcome all candidates, especially those from member countries.

The “How to Apply” information contained within the SKA Observatory recruitment portal provides more detail regarding our application and selection approach.

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