About Kinetic

At Kinetic, we’re redefining operational excellence in higher education, conferencing, and events. As the leading provider of software solutions for student accommodation, event management, catering, and residential services, we help institutions streamline operations, elevate customer experiences, and unlock their full potential.

With over 25 years of experience and trusted by more than 350 institutions worldwide, our software empowers universities and venues to run smarter, faster, and more collaboratively. From bustling campuses to dynamic corporate environments, our technology adapts to the rhythm of each organisation — helping them thrive in a fast-changing world.

But we’re more than just software. We’re a team of passionate problem-solvers, innovators, and collaborators who care deeply about our customers and each other. Our culture is built on empowerment, community, and continuous growth. We believe in giving people the tools, support, and freedom to do their best work — and have fun while doing it.

Joining Kinetic means being part of a purpose-driven business where your ideas matter, your development is supported, and your impact is real. If you’re ready to help shape the future of operational technology in education and events, we’d love to meet you.

The Role

As a Product Owner at Kinetic, you will be the voice of the customer, ensuring our software solutions meet user needs and deliver real value. Working closely with customers, stakeholders, and development teams, you will gather feedback, refine requirements, and prioritise enhancements to ensure continuous product improvement. You will bridge the gap between business needs and technical execution, playing a key role in delivering high-quality solutions that enhance customer experience and drive adoption.

This interim role specifically focuses on supporting our current UK-based Product Manager and Product Owner by creating user stories, acceptance criteria and prototypes, in collaboration with our US university clients. To ensure that KxWelcome delivers real measurable value to our clients and becomes the best possible fit for the US higher education market. We actively encourage the use of AI within the Product team and experience of enhancing your daily workflow with AI is desirable. The position is offered on an initial 3‑month contract, with the potential to extend up to 6 months based on project needs and performance.

This role will be based out of the Milton Keynes office in the UK and the ideal candidate will be in a position to commute into the office at least one day per week.

What You'll Be Doing

• Act as the primary liaison between customers and internal teams, gathering feedback to refine and prioritise product features and outcomes

• Collaborate with our current Product Owner to own and manage the product backlog, ensuring clear prioritisation of tasks based on customer impact and business value

• Work closely with cross-functional teams, including Engineering, UX/UI, Customer Success and Project to ensure seamless execution of product enhancements

• Conduct customer interviews, usability testing, and data analysis to gather insights and drive informed decision-making

• Define clear and actionable user stories, acceptance criteria, and requirements for development teams

• Support go-to-market activities by working with marketing and sales teams to communicate product updates and improvements

• Ensure timely delivery of product iterations by collaborating with development teams in an Agile environment

• Monitor product performance post-launch, gathering insights to drive continuous improvements and enhance user satisfaction

• Advocate for customers, ensuring their needs and feedback are central to all product decisions

• Create customer facing product prototypes to validate assumptions and reduce time to value for our customers

What You'll Need

• Customer Engagement & Feedback Management: Proven ability to conduct customer interviews, run focus groups, and collect user feedback to refine product features and improve customer experience

• Agile Product Ownership: Experience managing product backlogs, writing detailed user stories, and defining acceptance criteria to support development teams

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Strong ability to work with Engineering, UX/UI, and Customer Success teams to translate business needs into technical requirements and ensure smooth product delivery

• Data-Driven Decision Making: Skilled in using analytics, A/B testing, and user research to make informed product decisions and track performance improvements

• Product Delivery & Execution: Experience leading sprint planning, backlog grooming, and coordinating releases in an Agile environment to ensure timely and high-quality delivery

• Documentation & Communication: Ability to create clear product documentation, user guides, and release notes to support internal teams and customers

• AI First Mentality: A willingness to embrace AI in your daily product workflow and use tools such as Figma Make to construct workable prototypes.

• US Higher Education Experience: Understanding of US university systems and higher education technology requirements (highly preferred)

Why This Role Matters

You'll play a crucial role in Kinetic's North American expansion, directly shaping how KxWelcome serves US universities while working with our collaborative UK-based product team committed to delivering exceptional customer experiences.

Department

Products

Locations

Milton Keynes

Remote status

Hybrid

Employment type

Contract