What it’s really like working as a Graduate Product Manager at Capital One

What I do day to day

I’ve been working as a Graduate Product Manager at Capital One since graduating from university in 2023. The role of Product Manager combines a blend of strategy, technology and innovation, and enables me to interact with a variety of stakeholders from all over the business: we come together and work as a team.

My job entails recognising what a customer needs and the business objectives that a product or feature will fulfil. I help define the criteria for success and work closely with various stakeholders such as design, tech, business analysts, legal and many others within the business, to turn a vision into a reality. My current rotation is in the acquisition space, which involves optimising web journeys to help maximise our customer conversion rates.

Why I applied here

I applied to work at Capital One because it had an inclusive, diverse and collaborative culture. The flexible hybrid working policy really appealed as it offered the best of both worlds, working from home and in the office. I was also impressed by the company’s investment into graduate development and the ongoing training to help expand our skillset and set us up effectively for our careers. The role I applied for, Product Manager, excited me because I could see it offered a lot of variety. Another aspect of it that appealed was the opportunity to make meaningful contributions through innovative products and features that solve real life problems for consumers. I could see it would have a positive impact on their lives.

I am based at Nottingham Trent House, and the best things about the location are the gym, the café and the comfy places to sit and work. The biggest (and best) surprise about working here has been the wide range of good food options available for breakfast and lunch!

Training in the workplace and developing my career

The product management graduate scheme gives me the opportunity to rotate to different parts of the business. Getting exposure to different teams and products and growing my experience as a Product Manager were key aspects of the training that attracted me to the firm in the first place. One of my favourite projects so far has been the opportunity to work in a team with other product management graduates to solve a realistic business scenario over a number of months. We were responsible for exploring different consumer needs, devising our own strategies and testing different solutions. The project took us through the product management lifecycle from ideation to delivery and helped us develop skills, tools and techniques used by product managers at the company.

I do want to emphasise that while technology is a key part of being a Product Manager at Capital One because you work closely with software engineers to deliver projects, a tech background is not necessary for success – neither are you disadvantaged if you don’t have one. Many of the Product Managers here (myself included!) have not come from a tech background.

As a graduate trainee you will have many onboarding sessions to help you get started and understand the business and ways of working. As the graduate scheme progresses you also have opportunities to partake in different skill development workshops, for example presentation skills. You have weekly one-to-one check-ins with your allocated mentor (who is an experienced Product Manager) and a buddy (a product manager who has recently completed the graduate scheme). They are there to help you adjust to your new role and to support you throughout the graduate scheme.

The key skills for success

If anyone reading this is thinking of applying to be a Graduate Product Manager here, my advice is, don’t be afraid if you do not have product or tech experience because you will have plenty of opportunities to learn the ropes, and Capital One will help you every step of the way! Focus on building strong foundations such as teamwork, analytical thinking, communication, problem solving, adaptability and leadership skills.

I would say the key skills that foster success in a Product Manager’s role are:

• Communication skills, which are crucial and enable us to articulate our vision and strategies to other stakeholders; we align cross-functional teams and create a shared understanding to ensure everyone is on the same page
• Analytical skills, because they help us interpret data effectively, make better informed decisions and refine strategies where needed
• Teamwork, as we often work with people with different skillsets and perspectives, so knowing how to collaborate effectively helps lead to better problem solving, creative thinking and successful product development.