Catherine Almack

"'My Skills My Life' results came out as a 'Campaigner' (passionate, creative), 'Influencer' (good with words, enjoys leading a team) and 'Innovator' (confident, strong willed). This fits well with being a Product Owner and sums me up well! As a Product Owner you need to be able to confidently lead a team, work well with stakeholders and explain your ideas. Passion, enthusiasm and creativity are important when designing new products or customer experiences. You will always encounter challenges, so it is important to be positive and work to solve problems. "

"I am a Product Owner at Lloyds Banking Group, the largest Retail Bank in the UK. We own brands such as Lloyds Bank, Halifax, Bank of Scotland, MBNA, Scottish Widows... amongst many more! I work in a part of the bank called 'Transformation', meaning we mostly focus on investing in technology to improve digital banking and the customer experience. Think your mobile banking app or when you log into Internet Banking on your computer. As a Product Owner I lead a team of Business Analysts, Designers & Engineers to build new features or customer journeys for the app or desktop banking. Sometimes the role can be quite technical, but I love getting stuck into the detail. The best thing about being a PO is watching something you built go live in the app or on desktop, and seeing real customers use it. Being a Product Owner means you work with lots of different stakeholders e.g. Product, Risk, Legal, Customer Satisfaction, Complaints, Data and Analytics to name a few! This means you get a broad knowledge of everything going on. No two days are the same and you always learn something. "

"I grew up in Lincolnshire (in the countryside!) and went to a girls' school. I went to Leeds University to study Politics because I enjoyed the subject, but didn't know what I wanted to do. In my second year of University I decided I wanted to take a year out to get work experience. I applied for a few companies including Lloyds Banking Group, and amazingly got offered a year long placement. I spent a year working in the Digital Mortgage Fraud team which was a great experience. I learnt a lot about FinTech and Digital Banking, and knew I was interested in pursuing a career there. I went back to university to finish my degree, then applied for a place on the Digital Graduate Scheme and got the job! During my time at Lloyds Banking Group I have worked across lots of Digital teams including Design, Fraud and Authentication, Retail Payments, Business Banking Payments and moist recently in International Payments and Travel. Within my first week I knew I wanted to be a Product Owner. I felt it was the perfect mix of leading a team, working across design and engineering and helping customers. "

"I love exercising and make sure I do something every day before work - whether running, the gym or swimming. I live in London and love exploring new places in the UK with my partner or socialising with friends. I enjoy reading and always have a book on the go! "

"The great thing about being a Product Owner is that no two days are the same, and your day will vary depending on what stage your are at on a project. We work using Agile practices, so i spend a lot of time in ceremonies with the development team. I work closely with our designer, making sure the feature or journey works for our customers. Sometimes I have meetings with stakeholders if I need their help making a decision, or if I need to find out something. Occasionally we have live issues or problems we need to investigate and solve as a team. I do get a lot of emails so have to stay on top of those, but I definitely prefer working face to face with the team rather than over an email! "

"I have worked at Lloyds Banking Group since finishing University. I successfully secured a place on the Digital Graduate Scheme which lasted 2 years, before securing a permanent role as a Product Owner (which i have done ever since). Before that I went to the University of Leeds to study Politics, and got a First. I completed my A-Levels at Boston Girls Grammar School, studying Sociology (A*), Politics (A), History (B)."