63 Product Research jobs in South Africa

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Who we Are

At Capitec Life, we're more than just an insurer. We believe that insurance is about people and helping South Africa to grow. That's why we aim to uplift society by providing accessible, simple and trustworthy insurance solutions that promote financial inclusion and contribute to South Africa's growth. Our approach is rooted in understanding individual needs and delivering solutions that make a meaningful difference.

Why Choose Us

At Capitec, we offer our best by being a CEO in every situation – we always put the Client first, act with Energy and take Ownership. And to support people in being their best, our Employee Value Proposition offers every member of our team value by encouraging their involvement in our organisation, creating cohesive teams, and providing growth opportunities as well as employee benefits and savings. We make it a priority to ensure that each Capitec person feels known, valued, focused, and has the opportunity to grow.

Main Purpose

• To inform and drive the Product Development strategy for the Capitec Insurance Division and provide business improvement insights and suggestions in line with the strategy.
• To lead the design, development and maintenance of profitable life insurance products that deliver the intended client value proposition, in line with the Capitec Insurance growth strategy.
• To differentiate the Capitec life product offering through disruptive product innovation (including pricing and client experience initiatives).

Your key responsibilities include:

• Strategy development and implementation
• Product development and management
• Product roadmap planning and delivery
• Client insights
• People Management
• Stakeholder Management

Strategy Development and implementation

• Build and manage relationships with members of the Capitec Life Exco and contribute towards the formulation and execution of the Capitec Insurance business strategy and deliverables by providing subject matter inputs.
• Develop and oversee the execution of the Insurance Product Development strategy and business plans.
• Assume accountability for budget approvals and cost / expense management relating to product development and enhancement.
• Identify and introduce commercial partnerships. Assume responsibility for driving and managing end-to-end commercial agreements (terms and conditions, service level agreements, delivery, etc.).
• Actively participate in the formulation, implementation and maintenance of initiatives that drive profitable growth and increased sales productivity.
• Play a business enablement role, by providing business-focused solutions to challenges relating to life products and pricing.
• Pro-actively help identify opportunities from big data to address the client needs in a targeted manner, enabling a data-driven business.
• Establish a research driven environment, and ensure the adoption of best practice across the product design life cycle.

Product Roadmap Planning and Delivery

• Develop and maintain the product roadmap, ensuring alignment across operations, finance, risk and actuarial.
• Ensure alignment of IT deliverables against the product roadmap and plan timelines for delivery.
• Manage Business Owners and collaborate with IT functions on the systems implementation of all life product elements and processes. Ensure test results are aligned with product specifications.
• Deploy life product updates and enhancements based on feedback from all stakeholders, ongoing assessment of the effectiveness of product delivery and the performance of the product as measured by agreed KPIs.
• Provide specialist input to operational and administrative functions, procurement functions, and sales and marketing functions.
• Monitor product performance against business case expectations and identify product and marketing enhancements based on this.

Client Insights

• Build a Client Insights framework within which Insurance clients are analysed consistently with the 5-star approach adopted across Capitec.
• Utilise the insights to inform marketing strategies and pricing decisions.
• Inform affordability metrics to be designed to support the sales process and address over-commitment by clients at sales stage.
• Support refinement of propensity modelling that feeds into propensity to buy, propensity to lapse, etc in order to plan pro-active communication initiatives in all these areas.
• Establish a culture of testing, learning and improving by implementing A/B testing and monitoring results against control groups.
• Drive projects to increase client loyalty using Live Better and develop cross Capitec strategies to enhance the value of Life products within the Capitec Group.

People mangaement

• Manage an effective people structure which can deliver the department plans, goals and targets.
• Plan and budget the department resources (people, technology, systems, tools etc.) to optimise support for the business plan and specific business needs/focus areas. Responsible for the recruitment of direct reports and oversee and approve recruitment of indirect reports.
• Monitor and evaluate the team through personal development plans, performance management and KPAs and KPIs.
• Identify improvement opportunities, ensure succession planning and drive performance from the team.
• Propose a plan and budget for any external / co-sourced teams, according to the business plan.
• Support the organisation's transformation objectives by planning and seeking transformation opportunities.

Product development and mangement

• Guide market research, internal research and competitor analyses that deliver the intended client value proposition to support the design, development and maintenance of profitable life insurance products.
• Lead and oversee the development and maintenance of detailed product specifications.
• Drive the conceptualisation, design, development and maintenance of profitable insurance products including detailed specifications of products based on market and internal research and competitor analysis that deliver the intended client value proposition.
• Develop and agree life product rules/features in conjunction with the Head of Actuarial Function to ensure optimized capital allocation.
• Develop and draft policy clauses and policy wording in conjunction with Legal, taking IFRS17 impacts into account.
• Responsible for driving market feasibility studies, technical marketing, incorporation of behavioural economics, maintaining the distribution strategy and owning the complaints process.

Stakeholder Management

• Identify stakeholders and develop engagement tactics in line with their criticality to the department.
• Develop and maintain effective professional relationships with entities which will enable and enhance the achievement of the Department's business plans; e.g. industry leaders, regulatory bodies, legal entities etc.
• Undertake relationship building to build trust and ensure stakeholders understand the function, the department, operating model and methods as well as their role and required contribution.
• Responsible for the ongoing clear and concise verbal and written communication across all levels of the organisation.
• Build, strengthen and leverage internal networks with senior stakeholders to optimise co-operation, in order to drive service excellence and manage risk.
• Network internally and externally to ensure a relevant and comprehensive network which will enable and enhance the development of new initiatives and projects.
• Engage on industry forums where relevant (for example, the Market Conduct Forum).

The ideal candiate will:

• Qualified actuary with at least 10 years' industry experience covering various lines of business and in various roles in life insurance.
• Experience of life insurance product design, segmentation, marketing and client experience.
• Experience collaborating with key resources and stakeholders, influencing decisions and managing work to achieve strategic goals required.
• Proven experience in analysing and manipulating data to identify trends and/or opportunities.
• Experience in managing reinsurer relationships and the different reinsurance structures.
• Experience of leading, guiding and managing a team.
• Qualifications (Minimum): Honours Degree.

Knowledge Requriements

• Extensive knowledge of the life insurance industry and competitor landscape.
• Detailed knowledge and experience of current insurance legislative framework and prudential requirement.
• Understanding of channel VNB (value of new business) and other profitability results and levers.
• Understanding of the impacts of IFRS17 on product development and contract boundaries.
• Generation and utilisation of data insights to inform product design.
• Product life cycle management.
• Business case conceptualisation, principles and compilation.
• Agile project management methodology.

Conditions of Employment

• Clear criminal and credit record.

Full-time role based at UCOOK head office (The Palms Center, Woodstock) and warehouse (Paarden Eiland), Cape Town

Reports to NPD Manager

ABOUT US

Silvertree Brands builds disruptive purpose-driven consumer and digital brands. Our power brands include UCOOK, Faithful to Nature, PetHeaven and SKOON. We focus on building amazing customer experiences that are "Good for you, good for the planet." We trust our employees with full accountability and autonomy from day one. This unique entrepreneurial and performance-driven culture enables us to achieve executional excellence.

At UCOOK we create 32 new recipes for our customers to choose from each week, and we deliver fresh, locally-sourced and ethical pre-portioned ingredients to their door. Additionally we deliver frozen meals, desserts, wine, weekend meal kits and occasions boxes.

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Product Developer collaboratively works with both Meal Kit & NPD teams at UCOOK. The candidate holds the responsibility of ensuring each KPI detailed below is managed and met on a weekly basis. The candidate is required to work cross-functionally with Procurement (both Meal Kit & Demand Planners), Operations, Marketing, BI and Tech teams.

Roles & Responsibilities and KPIs within this position, including but not limited to:

• Craft Frozen Range project management and development

• Develop and test innovative recipes aligned with product and business objectives.

• Conduct detailed recipe costing to ensure target margins are met.
• Draft, implement, and validate production processes through trials and optimizations.
• Perform quality control (QC) testing to ensure product consistency and compliance with standards.
• Prepare, maintain, and implement specification documents and process documentation.
• Provide support in supplier management, including assessment, communication, and compliance tracking.

2. In House production Food safety development

• Lead and support HACCP studies across various product ranges and projects.
• Implement food safety procedures in the In-house production kitchen

3. Meal kit component development

• Develop, test and cost component ingredients for meal kits, that fit meal kit category specs
• Draft, implement, and validate production processes through trials and optimizations.
• Prepare, maintain, and implement specification documents and process documentation.

4. Market Range project management

• Sourcing, costing, and supplier negotiation with regards to new interesting products that aligns with the market objectives
• Present samples to tasting panel and consolidate feedback
• Ensure that products are safe, from a reputable supplier and have been through a risk assessment
• Work with internal stakeholders to ensure that the product is ready for launch - Operations, Procurement, Finance, Marketing, Tech & BI
• Deciding on de-listing and changing the range to ensure a balanced range while optimizing sales and revenue, and manage wastage.
• Technical approval of new products from food safety & labeling legislation perspective.

5. Occasions, bundles and Weekend boxes project management

Execution and project management of Occasions boxes / weekend boxes / bundles, to ensure growth of sales/revenue:

• Lead concept and recipe development aligned with clearly defined objectives.
• Develop and manage timelines to ensure on-time delivery of each product launch.
• Conduct recipe costing and commercial feasibility studies, preparing and presenting proposals for management approval.
• Coordinate recipe testing and oversee recipe copywriting in collaboration with the Food Team.
• Organize and manage product photoshoots, ensuring accurate representation and alignment with the product's purpose and objectives.
• Collaborate with internal stakeholders—including Operations, Procurement, Marketing, Tech, and BI—to ensure all aspects of the product are prepared for a successful launch.
• Partner with Operations, Procurement, Customer Service, and Logistics teams to confirm order lists are accurate and that products are produced, packed, and delivered as intended, delivering an exceptional customer experience.

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:

• Tertiary qualification in Food Science/ Food Technology/ Consumer Science
• 3+ years experience in product development
• 3+ years experience in food manufacturing environment
• Experience with food safety systems and processes

Functional skills:

• Line management - leadership abilities
• Passion for food and a high level of understanding food and flavours
• Strong Excel and Powerpoint skills
• Time management - deadline driven
• Strong oral and written communication
• Attention to detail
• Proficient in cross-functional team work
• Able to delegate
• Self-motivated
• Professional Culinary qualification (advantageous)

Soft skills:

• Collaborative team player with a can-do attitude and critical thinking approach to problem solving
• Creative and innovative
• Builds strong personal and professional relationships
• Ability to motivate self and others
• Shows initiative and drive
• Finger on the pulse of current trends within the Food Industry
• Accountability
• Proactive and enthusiastic
• Optimistic solution finder

BENEFITS

• Discounts across the Silvertree portfolio group : 20% - 50% discount on UCOOK, 25% - 35% from FtN, and discounts on PetHeaven, and SKOON.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS:

• Own transportation

Job Overview

Business Segment: Corporate & Investment Banking

Location: ZA, GP, Johannesburg, 30 Baker Street

Job Type: Full-time

Job Ref ID: A-0001

Date Posted: 10/3/2025

Job Description

To lead and manage the end-to-end product development process, by defining the customer discovery and design thinking strategies, so as to oversee project execution and launch new digital products. To collaborate with cross-functional teams, conduct market research, and leverage their expertise to ensure the timely delivery of innovative products that meet customer needs and align with business objectives.

Develop and define the Customer Discovery and Design Thinking Strategy in line with the Innovation-as-a-Service and the Group Innovation strategies, setting the research, discovery and design standards and methodologies to be utilised within the area of expertise.

Identify and track new digital solution design trends, emerging digital product discoveries and business opportunities, so that they may be applied during the customer discovery and design thinking phase of the digital value stream, to ensure continuous competitiveness with the latest market development and to meet the requirements of all key stakeholders.

Understand and co-create innovative Ecosystems and Platforms, in collaboration with the Product Owners, Platform Owners and Product Managers, by supporting team members to drive the targeted execution of solutions in order to ensure that all the Digital Product Solutions are well established and managed with regards to key stakeholder requirements.

Develop customer discovery and design thinking standards in consultation with the organisation and solution owners to ensure consistency and compatibility in approaches to solution definitions and developments.

Facilitate target-state client journey mapping, by understanding the motivational drivers of clients, customers and/or solution users, and the moments that matter to derive possible solution features as required to be part of a target state; while being cognisant of individual client journeys and customer experience touchpoints, to develop a Digital Product Solution experience that will enhance customer satisfaction

Qualifications

Degree: Business Commerce (Min)

Post Graduate Qualification: Business Commerce (Pref)

Additional Information

Experience Required: Digital & eCommerce

5-7 Years: Experience throughout the entire value stream of design thinking and the requirements in each. Proven experience in problem definition and solution development across a wide array of projects; Proven experience in leading specialised research and data and analytics teams. Proven experience scoping and driving design sprints, prototyping and testing solutions.

5-7 Years: Consume and comprehend general IT / technology applications and aspects, such as architecture diagrams, API and SRE, utilising data, analytics, research and development to oversee and drive system and software enhancements, stand their ground with technology and system experts, in order to ensure and drive IT lifecycle management related to process engineering product offerings across the African continent and the Group.

5-7 Years: Drive a multifunctional team and provide advise and insight pertaining to Digital enhancements, developments and industry research, to enable strategic business decisions. Engage and collaborate with other enabling/supporting functions across the Standard Bank Group (e.g., Compliance, Legal, IT, and Research & Operations) to obtain support/ information to manage the end-to-end product value stream. Engage with Finance to analyse product/project financial performance, planning and budgeting.

Behavioural Competencies:

Adopting Practical Approaches

Challenging Ideas

Convincing People

Exploring Possibilities

Generating Ideas

Technical Competencies:

Banking Process & Procedures

Coaching and Mentoring

Financial Acumen

IT Programme Management

Performance Management

Please note: All our recruitment processes comply with the applicable local laws and regulations. We will never ask for money or any from of payment as part of our recruitment process. If you experience this, please contact our Fraud line on or