VP, Product Operations

About IRIS

IRIS Software Group is a leading global provider of mission critical software and services, and one of the UK’s largest privately held software companies. IRIS provides software solutions and services for finance, HR and payroll teams, educational organisations, and accountancy firms that improves efficiency and productivity, taking the pain out of processes and letting professionals focus on the work they love.

Our operational software is the invisible, but essential, beating heart of our customers’ businesses, supporting them in a range of objectives, from maintaining legislative compliance, to boosting engagement with stakeholders, to enhancing productivity. It’s vital these mission critical functions work first time, every time.

The Role & Purpose

We are seeking an exceptional VP, Product Operations to serve as the operational excellence leader for product managers across IRIS's strategic product portfolio. This role focuses on optimising how product teams execute strategy through scalable frameworks, processes, and AI-enhanced operational solutions. You will build and lead a high-performing enablement organization that maximizes the effectiveness of product teams in delivering on strategic objectives set by product leadership.

The Role in Detail :

Operational Excellence Leadership

• Optimise product management execution by implementing industry best practices, operational frameworks, and team effectiveness solutions
• Drive operational efficiency through AI-enhanced workflows for market research, feedback analysis, performance measurement, and decision support
• Establish operational standards and methodologies that enable consistent product management excellence across regions and teams
• Build measurement systems to track and improve product team productivity, velocity, and operational effectiveness
• Lead tool evaluation and implementation focused on enabling faster, more informed product decision-making

Team Development & Enablement

• Build and lead the product operations organisation including training programs, coaching frameworks, and continuous development initiatives
• Design and deliver onboarding programs for new product managers and cross-functional team members
• Create skill development pathways and competency frameworks tailored to IRIS's operational requirements
• Implement performance measurement systems that provide actionable insights for product team improvement
• Facilitate knowledge sharing and best practice dissemination across product teams

Partnership with Engineering Operations

• Partner with Engineering Operations leadership to create seamless product development execution through shared operational accountability
• Collaborate on tooling and infrastructure that impacts product team productivity and cross-functional workflow efficiency
• Co-execute quarterly planning processes ensuring operational readiness and cross-functional coordination
• Drive joint operational problem-solving on process inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and execution challenges
• Present integrated operational metrics on product-engineering team effectiveness and productivity improvements

Process & System Optimisation

• Design and maintain product management processes including planning, prioritization, discovery, and delivery workflows
• Implement governance frameworks that ensure compliance, quality, and operational consistency
• Optimise cross-functional collaboration through improved handoffs, communication protocols, and shared tooling
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives based on team feedback, performance data, and operational metrics
• Manage vendor relationships for product management tools, platforms, and operational systems

Performance & Analytics

• Develop operational dashboards providing visibility into product team health, productivity, and delivery metrics
• Conduct regular operational reviews with product teams to identify improvement opportunities
• Track and report on operational KPIs including cycle times, process efficiency, and team satisfaction metrics
• Lead post-mortem and retrospective processes to capture learnings and drive operational improvements
• Provide data-driven recommendations for operational optimization and resource allocation

Requirements

Operational Leadership Experience

• 10+ years of product management or operations experience with at least 5 years leading operational excellence initiatives across product organizations
• Proven track record in process optimisation and operational transformation within B2B SaaS environments
• Deep expertise in product management frameworks including agile methodologies, discovery processes, and delivery optimization
• Experience managing operational initiatives affecting 50+ people across multiple teams and geographic regions
• Organisational design experience including team structure optimisation, role definition, and capability assessment across scaling product organizations

Technical & Analytical Skills

• Strong technical acumen for evaluating and implementing product management tools, platforms, and AI-enabled solutions
• Data-driven approach with experience building operational metrics, dashboards, and performance measurement systems
• Process design expertise with ability to translate operational challenges into scalable, repeatable solutions
• Experience with cross-functional operations particularly product-engineering collaboration and workflow optimization

Leadership & Partnership Skills

• Demonstrated success in collaborative partnerships with Engineering and cross-functional leadership teams
• Proven ability to influence without authority across Product Management, Engineering, and cross-functional teams
• Strong change management capabilities with experience leading operational transformation initiatives
• Excellent communication skills for training, coaching, and presenting operational insights to senior stakeholders