Product Owner

Organisational context

The Australian Financial Security Authority (AFSA) is responsible for managing the application of bankruptcy and personal property securities laws through the delivery of high-quality personal insolvency and trustee, regulation and enforcement, and personal property securities services.

The Regulatory Operations Group is responsible for operations in Regulatory Services and Education, Surveillance and Enforcement. This work operationalizes AFSA's strategy, delivering integrated end to end regulatory services that supports clients through AFSA systems and ensures compliance in line with

AFSA's approach to regulation to: People centric, Outcomes focused, Harms based, Intelligence led, and Strengths based.

Position Description

Product Owner

Regulatory Services is responsible for end-to-end service delivery across personal insolvency and personal property securities services. It works to streamline services through process innovation,

informed by the needs of our clients. The Personal Properties Securities (PPS) team oversees the operation of the Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR), ensuring it remains reliable and accessible for registering and searching security interests in personal property. The team regulates user behavior to ensure the system is being used effectively for its intended purpose and in compliance with the Personal Properties Securities Act (PPSA). We protect and preserve the integrity of the PPS system.

The PPSR is the single, Australian Government register where details of security interests in personal property can be registered and searched. It is a critical piece of financial infrastructure that supports secured lending throughout the Australian economy.

Purpose of the position

The Product Owner serves as the voice of the client, ensuring the PPSR Application team delivers value and that the backlog is aligned with AFSA's strategic objectives as well as client and stakeholders needs. They drive effective use of the PPSR through delivery of system enhancements while supporting vulnerable clients and preventing misuse. Reporting to the Assistant Director Product Management, the Product Owner is responsible for supporting the development of road map objectives for the PPSR Application, prioritising the PPSR product backlog and sprint planning, test and release management in an agile product development environment.

The position requires an ability to work well and help manage a small multidisciplinary team, establishing and maintaining relationships with key stakeholders across different business areas to drive successful, client-centric solutions and proactively deliver continuous improvement to the PPSR.

Accountabilities

• Works closely with the Product Manager, internal and external stakeholders to gather inputs for the product features in the Product Backlog.

• Responsible for creating and managing the Product Backlog, prioritising items within the Product Backlog to best achieve stakeholder and business requirements.

• Bring insights from user research and other relevant data and reporting into the prioritization and sprint planning process.

• Defines the Acceptance Criteria for each of the Product Backlog item. Ensure the Acceptance Criteria are met by executing Acceptance Testing.

• Works closely collaborating with the Development Team and Scrum Master in sprint planning as well as monitoring the sprint progress.

• Act as an escalation point for the development team for queries about product back log tasks during the sprint.

• Communicate to internal and external stakeholders on the progress of the sprint and new features developed and deployed.

• Identify and mitigate delivery, implementation risks as well as strategies to manage planned and unplanned system outages.

• Proactively update documentation when required for features and processes.

• Respond in a positive and flexible manner to change and uncertainty and encourage cooperation in coping with change.

All duties will be performed in accordance with:

• the APS Values, Code of Conduct and Employment Principles

• WHS obligations, taking responsibility for own health and safety and that of others

• AFSA's risk management framework and relevant legislation, including guiding others to identify and mitigate foreseeable risks.

Core skills and capabilities

Sustains a user-centered approach to design and deliver better services

• Gains an authentic understanding of a person's experience and needs through collaboration and curiosity.

• Uses and shares this understanding to inform collaborative service offering.

• Embraces ambiguity and is curious, works with users to identify a solution which provides value. Applies digital dexterity

• Demonstrates commitment to explore, learn and adopt new technologies and ways of working, to achieve better business outcomes.

• Displays a growth mindset. Working with ambiguity.

• Demonstrates proactivity, emotional intelligence and self-direction in the face of uncertainty, change or new situations.

• Chooses a course of action or decision without having the total picture. Uses information to make evidence-based decisions.

• Researches, identifies and integrates relevant evidence towards finding solutions to the problem.

• Provides unbiased, comprehensive and accurate advice to others.

• Uses past experience and organisational/environmental awareness to analyse what information is important and how it should be used in the decision-making process. Operates efficiently to achieve business outcomes

• Takes a flexible approach to planning in order to meet changing circumstances and considers the impact on others.

• Manages human and financial resources, planning and risk management activities with integrity.

• Uses resources in a way that minimises wastage and optimises outcomes.

• Considers the broader, long term implications of actions including the impact on governance, finance and technology as well as social and environmental considerations.

Qualifications, accreditations and experience

The following will be highly regarded:

• Experience and/or qualifications related to technology, enterprise application development and Agile (Scaled Agile Framework, Product Owner certification such as PPSO or CSPO.

• Understanding of personal property securities concepts, or ability to quickly acquire DTA principles.

Budget managed:

N/A

Delegations exercised:

• AFSA delegations

• Public Service Act 1999

• Public Governance Performance and Accountability