JOB DESCRIPTION
Employee: Project Manager – New Product Development
FLSA Status: Exempt/Bonus Eligible
Reports To: Chiara Gunning, Director of Strategy & Product Management
Department: Product Management
POSITION SUMMARY The Project Manager – New Product Development is responsible for leading cross-functional product development projects. This role owns end-to-end execution across multiple related projects, ensuring alignment with strategic goals, timelines, and financial targets. The role acts as a central interface across departments such as product management, engineering, marketing, and operations.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBLITIES:
- Plan, manage, and coordinate product development projects end-to-end
- Lead product development projects (e.g., faucets, showers) using:
- KPIs
- Milestones
- Risk tracking
- Coordinate closely with cross-functional departments
- Clarify and evaluate project scope; obtain approval for execution
- Define project organization and assemble the project team
- Create, maintain, and optimize project timelines
- Derive and assign work packages from the project plan
- Control and track costs (overall budget and manufacturing costs)
- Lead stage gate reviews & audits
- Manage resource planning (people, machines, tools, equipment)
- Maintain project documentation throughout the development process
- Ensure product approvals and releases
- Ensure master data readiness (Master Data Monitor, Readiness Tracker)
- Provide regular project status updates to stakeholders and leadership, proactively escalating risks, tradeoffs, and decisions needed to maintain timing and budget.
Successful project execution in terms of:
- Timing: Product launch and market introduction (incl. POS display & print media)
- Budget: Investment, overhead costs, margin, manufacturing costs
- Performance: KPIs, milestones, and risk management
LANGUAGE SKILLS:
- Fluent in English. German language skills beneficial.
- Ability to respond to all levels of leadership, external vendors, customers, common inquiries and requests.
- Develop and maintain relationships with functional owners and stakeholders including gaining support of assigned projects
- Ability to effectively present information to top leadership & management, vendors, agencies, internal/external partners, public/community groups/members.
KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS:
- New Product Development Project Management experience for manufactured finished goods is required
- Strong project management skills in ideating, leading, or working on cross-functional projects with cross-cultural teams
- High proficiency in Jira or other project management tools
- Ability to solve problems and motivate others to find creative solutions to problems
- Must be able to multi-task and function in fast-paced working environments
- Strong financial understanding
- Ability to be detail oriented without losing sight of the big picture
- Effective communication skills, always demonstrate the highest level of professionalism and consistently serve as a role model for outstanding customer service at all times
- Demonstrated cultural competency
- Building Industry, specifically Plumbing Industry knowledge and experience preferred
- PMP certification preferred
EDUCATION AND WORK EXPERIENCE:
- Bachelor’s degree in Electrical, Mechanical, or Industrial Engineering, or other technical field, or equivalent combination of education and work experience
- Solid ability to analyze data to manage ROI for positive results
- Experience leading & working with cross functional teams
- 5+ years’ experience in New Product Development Project Management with a proven track record of successfully managing projects from concept to mass production
- Exceptional communication, facilitation and analytical skills
- Highly proficient in leveraging Copilot, MS Office Suite specifically PowerPoint and Excel
- 35 % travel required related to area of responsibility incl. international travel
