Vice President Of Product Development

Company Overview

Our client is a leading global manufacturer of high-quality culinary equipment for domestic and commercial use, accessories, and appliances solutions, as well as a service provider of workspace optimization, for the food service and convenience store industries. They are part of a multinational compounded organization with several divisions and operations across continents, offering a century of experience working with tailormade equipment for the largest and most recognized organizations in the food service industry worldwide.

They are also highly competitive business partners with brands in expansion, and chain organizations in different other segments.

Their corporate strategy is based on their insightful knowledge of their customers core business, being a strategic partner in tailoring their solutions towards automation and equipment interoperability, as clients continue to seek better and more efficient ways to operate their restaurant systems.

Additional information will be provided to qualified candidates later in the process.

Title: Vice President of Product Development

Location: Nashville suburbs area, Tennessee

Reports to: CEO

The Position

The VP of Product Development is a crucial global leadership role responsible for driving the innovation and development of new products within the division. This individual will play a vital role in ensuring the continuous growth and success of the organization in the highly competitive foodservice industry, with a combination of technical expertise, leadership skills, industry knowledge, and a passion for innovation.

The ideal candidate will demonstrate a track record of driving successful product launches, a strategic mindset, and the ability to collaborate effectively across teams, to identify new products with return opportunities to add to or replace existing products in their range or offerings to the foodservice industry.

This individual will be responsible for driving the development of the products from engineering through manufacturing, along with quality assurance product acceptance procedures to market release.

Aligning efforts to corporate goals, the ideal candidate will create, direct, and implement strategic plans in the matters of product development, developing strong relations with the appropriate authorities and testing laboratories for product approval. Will also provide direction manage all product related regulatory matters, including the legalities of patent infringement, patent application, patent research and product liability. Will also be the face of the Company at trade association meetings, conventions, and client summits.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Managing the development process for new and/or potential products; liaising with customer and/or other departments to gain approval along with appropriate authorities and testing laboratories
• Take lead role in the development and establishment of all business tools and standards for the global smallware product development groups; support of all global smallware’s teams to maximize information sharing and minimize product duplication
• Approving products for market release, maintaining all relevant data records and providing accurate information to product management. Work with other departments to recommend selling price and forecast sales of new and/or potential products
• Directing and implementing strategic plans ensuring alignment with corporate goals
• Provides direction and/or manages all product related legal issues including patent infringement, patent application, patent research and product liability
• Analyzing and controlling expenditures of the department to conform with budget requirements
• Liaise with FAS to ensure all materials and processes are compliant with ANSI/FDA standards and testing is conducted to ASTM standards
• Ensures employees Business skills requirements and current level of FAS, providing necessary training
• Negotiate and establish price adjustment terms based on commodity indices and exchange rates
• Creating conceptual design, recommending materials and manufacturing details
• Research, recommend and implement new manufacturing/sourcing channels to maximize competitive advantage
• Manage all global smallware product complaints and any subsequent liability to ensure corrective actions are established and executed to minimize impact to the Division and its customers
• Representing the Company at trade association meetings, conventions, and client meetings
• Coordinates, with Human Resources, all aspects of employee relations including recruiting, hiring, training & development, coaching and counseling, scheduling, among others
• Conducting market analysis of new and/or potential products to identify market size, price and share
• Identifying and qualifying new products for development
• Implementing standards, policies, and procedures in the Product Development department

Qualifications

• Strong strategic thinker, organizational leadership skills, innovation mindset, communicator and collaborator, project management skills and quality focus approach
• A deep understanding of the food service industry dynamics is necessary. This includes knowledge of market trends, customer needs, and a competitive landscape. Commercial kitchen equipment and systems knowledge is a plus
• Extensive experience on creating and developing global Quality high performance teams
• A robust experience in product development is essential, preferably in the foodservice industry or industries with similar challenges. Candidates should have a proven track record of successfully launching new products and managing the end-to-end product development process in a global business environment
• Engineering degree, preferably with a master's degree in relevant fields (engineering, or industrial design)
• Ability to travel within the US and abroad