Director, Product Management
About the role
Brief Description ifm is seeking a proven, visionary leader to further competitively advance our US Product Management Team. This position jointly ensures our competitiveness where customers demand world-class products and services. ifm significantly invests in research and development and its market launch strategy to provide the best products and consultation services globally to serve its existing and future customers. The Director, Product Management elevates a highly experienced team of Product Managers by further fostering critical and strategic thinking to drive product strategy, development, commercialization, and lifecycle management across assigned portfolios. The Director ensures that product decisions are data-driven, market-aligned, and executed in collaboration with Engineering, R&D, Manufacturing, Sales, and Global Product Management (Germany).
Responsibilities
Team Leadership & Development
- Lead, coach, and further develop an existing team of Product Managers to strengthen strategic thinking, customer focus, and cross-functional execution.
- Set clear expectations, guide prioritization, and ensure alignment between team initiatives and company strategy.
- Foster a collaborative, innovative environment that supports continuous improvement and knowledge sharing.
Product Strategy & Roadmap Leadership
- Develop and maintain product strategies and roadmaps for assigned product lines, ensuring alignment with company goals and market needs.
- Serve as the strategic owner of the IO-Link product line, including market analysis, roadmap creation, competitive positioning, and feature prioritization.
- Lead market research efforts to identify customer needs, technology trends, and new product opportunities.
Product Development & Launch Execution
- Collaborate with Engineering, R&D, and Manufacturing to drive new product development from requirements through validation.
- Ensure products meet customer needs, quality expectations, and regulatory requirements.
- Oversee product launch planning with Sales and Marketing, including promotional materials, sales enablement, forecasting, and demo strategies.
Product Lifecycle Management
- Manage the full lifecycle of assigned product lines, including IO-Link: introduction, maturity, performance monitoring, and end-of-life decisions.
- Evaluate customer feedback and field performance to drive iterative improvements and updates.
- Drive pricing strategies in collaboration with Sales and leadership to ensure competitiveness and profitability.
Cross-Functional & Global Collaboration
- Partner with Sales to support large customer projects, key account opportunities, and proof-of-concept engagements.
- Coordinate priorities and product plans with Global Product Management (Germany) to ensure alignment and successful global execution.
- Represent assigned product lines at industry events, internal meetings, and customer visits as required.
Process, Tools, & Continuous Improvement
- Exhibit improvement of product management processes, including roadmap planning, requirements development, and cross-functional collaboration.
- Ensure adoption of Agile/Lean methodologies to enhance efficiency and product quality.
- Model a data-driven approach to strategic decisions using analytics and customer insights.
Required
- Bachelor’s degree in engineering, marketing, business, or related field.
- 6+ years of product management experience, including leadership responsibilities where career development of direct reports was clearly demonstrated.
- Proven ability to understand and communicate industrial automation and sensor technologies.
- Demonstrated significant role in success of bringing new products to market and managing full product lifecycles.
- Proven strategic thinking, analytical ability, and communication skills as individual and leader.
- Demonstrated ability to build strong cross-functional relationships and influence without authority.
- Continue to self-evolve via feedback and business needs by continuously learning and demonstrating self-improvement as a leader.
PREFERRED
- Advanced degree (MBA or technical Master’s).
- and/or related certifications.
- Experience with global product management organizations in industrial automation/process industries.
- Hands-on background working with IO-Link, digital communication technologies, PLCs, or automation networking.
- Familiarity with Agile/Lean development methodologies.
- Ability to travel up to 25–30%, including international travel.