Director of Product Lab

Job description

We’re building the next generation of Schibsted’s media products Schibsted’s product ambition is to reinvent our media destinations for the AI era to make our journalism a relevant daily habit for more people. Most of that work happens in our existing product organisation, where we continuously improve and reinvent products used by millions of people every day. But some opportunities require something different: more freedom from today’s products and business models, longer horizons, greater uncertainty and permission to challenge the core. That is why we are establishing Schibsted Product Lab . Product Lab is a small, autonomous product environment that builds, launches and tests the next generation of Schibsted’s media products with real users. We start small, increase investment as evidence grows, stop ideas that do not prove themselves, and help successful products become part of, or reshape, Schibsted’s core. We are now looking for the person to lead it. The role and mission As Director of Product Lab, you will build and lead Schibsted’s capability for turning uncertain next-generation opportunities into products that can matter at scale. You will own the Lab’s portfolio: identifying and shaping opportunities, deciding what deserves exploration, helping small seeds become substantial bets when the evidence supports them, and stopping work when it does not. This is not a research lab and it is not an innovation function producing concepts for others to implement. Our products are built to reach real users. Successful bets need a credible route to scale; unsuccessful ones need to generate learning and free up people and capital for the next opportunity. You will report to Schibsted News Media’s Chief Product Officer (CPO) and be a member of the Product Leadership Team. You will: Build and continuously shape a strong pipeline of next-generation product opportunities across Schibsted. Lead a portfolio of seeds and bets from early hypotheses through user validation, launch, investment decisions and, when successful, transition into the core. Create a high bar for evidence and product quality, ensuring we solve meaningful user problems rather than pursue technology for its own sake. Build commercial thinking into opportunities from the beginning, including business model, growth and distribution hypotheses. Build and lead a small multidisciplinary core team across product, technology, design and editorial development, and assemble additional teams as opportunities earn investment. Work closely with Schibsted's media brands, product leadership team, editorial leaders and wider product and technology organisations while protecting the autonomy required to challenge existing products, formats and business models. Make disciplined portfolio choices: invest more where evidence grows, change direction when necessary, and stop initiatives that do not demonstrate sufficient potential. Build credible pathways for successful bets to scale inside Schibsted and ensure learnings, technology and capabilities from the Lab strengthen the wider organisation. Who we are looking for You are an accomplished product leader who thrives when the path forward is not yet clear. You have substantial experience creating new consumer products - not only optimising established ones - and are comfortable taking ideas from early uncertainty to real users and meaningful impact. You move naturally between understanding users, shaping product direction, evaluating technology and thinking commercially. You have passion for journalism, know how to make choices about where to focus, including where scarce talent and capital can create the greatest value. Just as importantly, you know when the evidence calls for a change of direction - or for stopping an initiative altogether. We believe you need to bring: A strong track record of building new products. You have taken products from early exploration to launch and adoption, ideally from zero to meaningful scale. Strong portfolio, commercial and investment judgment. You can choose between competing opportunities, stage investment as evidence develops, and connect product choices to growth, distribution and sustainable value. Strong product, technology and AI judgment. You understand emerging technology and AI well enough to identify genuinely valuable new product opportunities, their limitations, and their potential to reshape user experiences and business models. Experience building and leading excellent multidisciplinary teams. You create clarity without unnecessary hierarchy, lead senior specialists effectively and stay close enough to the work to exercise strong product judgment yourself. Ambition grounded in evidence. You think boldly and long term, while adapting quickly when users, data or technology point in a different direction. Proven ability to lead through influence in complex organisations. You can challenge established thinking, navigate competing interests and build commitment across organisational boundaries without relying on formal authority. You bring significant experience from digital consumer products, media and/or publishing, giving you a strong understanding of how people discover, consume and engage with content and products. You understand how habits are formed and how consumer expectations are changing. Experience with high-frequency products and services competing for users’ daily attention is particularly valuable. As this role requires close collaboration with our Nordic brands and their content, fluency in Norwegian or Swedish is required. Why this role The way people discover and engage with journalism is changing rapidly. AI is creating new product behaviours, while younger audiences are building habits beyond traditional news destinations. Schibsted is well positioned to shape what comes next, combining trusted Nordic brands, unique journalism, millions of users and strong product and technology capabilities. Product Lab exists to turn these strengths into the next generation of products. For the right person, this is an opportunity not simply to manage an existing product organisation, but to help determine what some of Schibsted’s future products become.