Head of Product, Core Journeys

About Safeguard Global: We enable global expansion without the risk.

Safeguard Global has been at the forefront of global workforce enablement since we pioneered centralised global payments in 2008 and launched the employer of record (EOR) category globally in 2010. And we haven't stopped there.

Today, with our 500+ in-country HR experts, cutting-edge technology, and comprehensive solutions, we've helped over 2,000 organisations hire, recruit, pay, and manage employees in 170+ countries.

Because we created this category, we've learned that successful global expansion isn't driven by technology alone. It requires deep global expertise. We call this the marriage of expert and technology, human when it matters.

This means we have the people and the technology to ensure 100% compliance with local, regional, national, and international laws. Together, this ethos and our solutions portfolio allow businesses to scale up or down wherever, however, and whenever they want to expand, without the risk.

Overview of the role

We're looking for a Head of Product, Core Journeys to lead the platform experience across our core client journey, from hiring a worker through to invoicing for them.

The role is accountable for the platform experience, delivery, and outcome achievement across the core transactional workflows. You'll translate that target experience, combined with the product strategies set by the Directors of Product into a prioritised order of work; leading the product managers who deliver it and ensuring we deliver on business and customer experience objectives.

What you will be responsible for

Platform experience

• Own the end-to-end platform experience across the core client journey, including the transitions between one part of the platform and the next

• Identify where the experience is failing clients and set the plan to correct it

• Own regulatory and compliance obligations as product requirements within your area, working with legal, tax, and the in-country teams so that they are designed in rather than retrofitted

Prioritisation and roadmap

• Translate the platform strategy and commercial priorities into a prioritised order of work for your area

• Feed that prioritisation into the single prioritised roadmap owned by the SVP, Product

• Recommend what is built, what is deferred, and what is retired within your area, and secure agreement with the SVP, Product and the Directors of Product

• Build the case for significant investment, including the value expected, the payback, and the trade-off against the alternatives

• Work with the Directors of Product to sequence commercial priorities in a way the platform can deliver

Delivery

• Hold accountability for delivery against commitment, on time and to the quality bar set in the definition of done

• Work hand in hand with engineering and design leadership, from the earliest shaping of an idea through to release, so that trade-offs between client need, technical feasibility, and cost are made together

• Work with sales, marketing, customer success, finance, and legal so that what we build is understood, sellable, supportable, and compliant on the day it launches

• Identify and resolve delivery risk early, including teams that are blocked, unclear, or behind

• Manage dependencies within your area and into the connected experience areas

Customer insight and product performance

• Build the relationships, with clients and with internal teams, that sustain a continuous understanding of customer and internal pain points, and of the opportunities they point to

• Ground product decisions in client insight, usage data, and market evidence

• Raise the standard of discovery and validation across your teams

• Define the expected outcome for each investment and own the value delivered against it

• Own platform NPS and adoption for the core journey, and act on the results

• Act as the product expert in senior client and prospect conversations, and represent the platform externally where it helps us win and keep clients

Team leadership

• Line manage the product managers within your area

• Set clear expectations, give direct feedback, and address performance issues early

• Work with each product manager to understand their individual development needs, and take a coaching approach to growing their capability

• Drive AI adoption where it creates the best outcome, recognising that it serves some tasks well and others poorly, and help the product team keep pace with how the role of product is rapidly changing

What will give you an advantage

• Eight or more years in product, including at least five leading people

• Proven experience leading product managers in a B2B SaaS or platform business, ideally where several teams contribute to a single client experience

• Experience owning a multi-team product area end to end, with accountability for both delivery and the value delivered

• A record of defining the expected value of an investment up front and evidencing what was realised

• Knowledge of the HR industry is preferred but not critical

• Experience of building products in a regulated environment, where compliance shapes what can be built

• Enough technical depth to hold a credible conversation with engineering leadership on architecture, platform scalability, and data

• A demonstrable record of developing product managers

• Experience leading globally distributed teams across multiple countries and time zones

Primary performance metrics

• Delivery: commitments delivered on time and to quality

• Business impact: value delivered against the outcomes committed at the point of investment

• Experience: platform NPS

• Adoption: adoption of the core journey, from hiring to invoicing

Baselines and annual targets are set with the SVP, Product at the start of each financial year.

Competencies

• Product judgement: makes clear recommendations on scope, sequencing, and trade-offs that hold up over time

• Strategic thinking: sets a direction for the platform that connects client need, market direction, and commercial goals

• Systems thinking: designs the journey around what matters most to the customer, and focuses only on the work that delivers value

• Delivery leadership: maintains a predictability and quality bar across multiple teams without becoming a bottleneck

• Communication: strong written and verbal communicator at all levels of the organisation, from SLT to team

• People development: understands what each individual needs and coaches them to grow

• Influencing: aligns commercial, engineering, and design leadership around a single sequence of work without direct authority

• Commercial judgement: determines what is worth building next, and evidences the case

Key personal attributes

• Grit and determination: moves work forward despite obstacles, and does not give up easily

• Curiosity: actively seeks out different points of view, customer needs, and the problems worth solving

• A leader and a doer: operates strategically while staying close to the detail

• Warm, open, honest, and fun to work with

We are hiring this position across multiple countries; compensation varies by hiring location. For target markets located within the European Union (EU), base salaries start from (Gross):

Spain: €100,000.00

Portugal: €95,000.00

Who we are and what we do:

Safeguard Global is…Global! We help 1500+ companies hire, manage, and pay employees in 170+ countries. Join us to meet diverse talent, explore new cultures, and connect with amazing folks from around the globe. ✈️

Our Global Benefits

• 👨‍💻 Autonomy & Flexibility (Work in Any Way): Remote first, with the flexibility to include school runs and gym breaks in your schedule all while maintaining a high standard of work.

• 👨‍👩‍👧 Bonding Leave: Enjoy paid leave to bond with your new family member.

• 🌍 2 Charitable Days: Contribute to causes you believe in.

• ⭐ Reward & Recognition Program: Be rewarded for your success and championing our values.

• 💰 Corporate bonus/SIP: All Guardians are eligible for our annual bonus scheme or sales incentive plan.

• 🏠 Coworking Space: Need to meet with a client, utilize admin services or just get out of the house? We’ve got you covered with flexible workspace options based on location.

Why become a Guardian:

• ✈️ International Environment: Grow your network internationally and collaborate across the world. Interact, discover cultures, and tap into local expertise.

• ⭐ Our Culture: We emphasize the people factor in everything we do. Our nurturing culture ensures your ideas reach our leaders and your contributions get the recognition they deserve.

• 💡 Learning: We support your continuous growth by providing access to 2 learning platforms, where you can learn at your own pace.

Next Steps:

To express your interest, please click on the following link. We wish you the best with your application. Our Guardian promise to you is to keep in touch to arrange the next stage should your application meet the position's requirements, and or a gentle update if you have been unsuccessful at this time.

Welcome to the Future of Work!

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At Safeguard Global, we are committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants and Guardians.