Global Application Development Leader

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a global application development organization supporting strategic customer opportunities and new product/process commercialization.
• Establish clear technical and commercial prioritization aligned with business strategy and growth objectives.
• Drive customer-focused innovation and application solutions across key market segments.
• Partner closely with commercial, product management, operations, R&D, regulatory, and quality teams to accelerate growth opportunities.
• Build a culture of patient first/customer centricity, accountability, collaboration, agility, and execution excellence.
• Lead the global quoting and opportunity intake process to ensure responsiveness, prioritization, and resource alignment.
• Drive governance processes for opportunity qualification, quote strategy, and investment decisions.
• Improve quote cycle time, win rates, and resource utilization through standardized processes and data-driven decision making.
• Partner with commercial leadership to align technical support with strategic growth priorities.
• Lead rapid prototyping capabilities to accelerate customer development cycles and speed-to-market.
• Establish scalable processes and operating models for quick-turn customer support and feasibility assessment.
• Balance speed, technical rigor, and operational scalability in prototype development.
• Drive continuous improvement in prototyping effectiveness, turnaround time, and customer experience.
• Support stage-gate and innovation governance processes to ensure disciplined project execution and portfolio prioritization.
• Allocate technical resources effectively with differential management.
• Ensure effective communication and alignment across global business units and functions.
• Identify capability gaps and build organizational plans to support future growth.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Materials Science, Chemistry, Biomedical Engineering, or related technical field required; advanced degree highly preferred.
• 15+ years of leadership experience in application development, product development, technical service, R&D, or related functions. 10+ years’ experience with advanced degree may be considered.
• Experience leading global and cross-functional teams in a matrix organization.
• Strong commercial orientation with demonstrated ability to support growth initiatives and customer engagement.
• Experience managing complex technical projects from concept through commercialization.
• Proven ability to drive organizational change, process improvement, and operational discipline.
• Strong executive communication, influence, and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience in healthcare, medical devices, polymer processing, specialty materials, or regulated industries highly preferred.

Key Leadership Competencies

• Strategic thinking and prioritization.
• Customer-centric innovation.
• Cross-functional leadership and influence.
• Organizational change leadership.
• Operational excellence and process governance.
• Talent development and team building.
• Strong communication and executive presence.
• Bias for action and execution.