Product Manager UpEnergy

About the role:
UpEnergy is seeking a Product Manager for its ICS and water projects with experience in managing and optimising across the product life cycle. The candidate should have an entrepreneurial approach and be dedicated to making a tangible impact in communities accross Africa.

The product manager’s objective within the improved charcoal stove (ICS) is to maintain, lead, and execute initiatives that optimise the product’s performance end-to-end. The role requires an end-user-centric focus, thinking both strategically and execution-driven. For water projects (institutional and household) the role will be instrumental in developing commercial strategies and plans around current learnings and involve different stakeholders in the organisation to scale up the vertical.

The individual will be instrumental in leading the product’s end-to-end life cycles, including, but not exhaustively, cost optimisation activities, supply chain management, and the effective rollout of initiatives accross countries.

Product strategy and RoadMap
• Work with the Head of Product to develop the ICS and water product strategy, identifying initiatives, activities, and critical projects and documenting them in the product RoadMap.
• Identify country-based needs and adequately include them in the strategy and execution plan.

Lead and develop an internal culture of constant innovation, speed and collaboration within the department and overall organisation.
• Collaborate with stakeholders across the organisation, including executives, marketing, distribution, carbon, origination, and operations teams, to ensure alignment on product goals and effectively communicate product updates and milestones.

Manage relationships and logistics related to third-party suppliers to unlock better prices and technologies for a more significant end-user impact. And where applicable, manage the relationship with local manufacturers.

Product development, optimization and performance
• Develop market research to inform the execution plan and strategically prioritise initiatives to product, process or platforms.
• Collaborate with engineering and development teams to prioritise and plan product enhancements for optimisation.

Analyse feedback from customers, sales teams, and support teams to identify areas where the product can be improved or optimized.
• Managing Updates and Releases: Plan and oversee updates on features, improvements, and releases to ensure the product remains competitive, meets evolving market needs, and is efficient in its carbon production (i.e longer life, fuel efficiency, materials, etc)
• Address local market needs regarding behaviour change, affordability, and cultural considerations.
• Collaborate with Up Energy’s country operation team to gather constant market feedback, which will create a feedback loop in the design process.
• Coordinate documentation and presentation of experimentation learnings (water)
• Coordinate the feedback loop process from the ground to the product team to facilitate the iteration process. (water)

Collaborate closely with UpEnergy’s carbon team to optimise the experimentation design for usage and carbon credit generation, ensuring alignment with sustainability objectives.

Commercial development
• Manage the product’s budget and resources effectively, ensuring investments align with strategic goals and expected returns through unit economics optimization.
• Explore opportunities for revenue growth through pricing strategies, new distribution methods and new market penetration.
• Support all product lifecycle stages, including research, market analysis, competitive evaluation, planning, positioning, roadmap development, requirements definition, and product launch.
• Support efforts to optimise product’s COGs and ER profiles, working closely with operational excellence to achieve cost reduction objectives.
• Work in tandem with the distribution team to optimise distribution strategies.

Requirements
• Bachelor’s degree or higher in a relevant field such as Engineering, Product Management, Business Administration, or a related discipline.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in product management or a related electric product industry role.
• Specialised Experience in Electric Products or Retail: Demonstrated expertise in the electric products industry or retail industry, with a proven track record of successful product management and rollout.
• Product Lifecycle Management: Proficiency in overseeing the entire lifecycle of electrical products, from conception to market rollout, including technology sourcing, prototyping, pilot design, and commercial strategy development.
• Strategic Thinking: Strong strategic thinking skills, with the ability to align product initiatives with organisational objectives.
• Collaborative Approach: Proven ability to collaborate effectively with internal and external stakeholders, including manufacturing teams, distribution partners, and cross-functional departments.
• Analytical Skills: Excellent analytical skills, with the ability to leverage data-driven insights to inform decision-making and drive continuous improvement in product design, pilot execution, and commercial strategy development.
• Understanding of Electric Cooking: In-depth knowledge of electric cooking technologies and usage patterns, with the ability to translate this understanding into actionable strategies and interventions.
• Adaptability and Quick Learning: Adeptness at quickly grasping organizational requirements and adapting to evolving market dynamics, technology trends, and consumer behaviors.
• Communication Skills: Strong communication skills, both verbal and written, with the ability to articulate complex ideas and concepts to diverse audiences, including executives, team members, and external partners.