Product Director - Industrial Gas Plants

Nikkiso Clean Energy & Industrial Gases is a leading provider of cryogenic pumps, heat exchangers, process systems, services, and solutions for the LNG and industrial gases industry. We are a subsidiary of Nikkiso Company Ltd, a global industrial manufacturer with over $1.5 billion in annual revenue and 8,000+ employees worldwide.

About the role

As a strategic senior member of the Product Management team, you will serve as the Product Director for all Industrial Gas Plants within the Nikkiso Applied Technologies Business Unit. This role drives product success from concept through development, launch, and lifecycle management, ensuring global market penetration and alignment with business objectives. You will lead product strategy, market research, innovation, and cross-functional collaboration to optimize product performance, manufacturability, and market positioning.

The product family includes Air Separation Units, Nitrogen Generators, Oxygen Generators, and Industrial Gas Plants.

Responsibilities

• Life Cycle Management: Oversee each product’s journey from initial idea through development, manufacturing, service, maturity, and eventual retirement.
• Product Strategy & Roadmap: Develop and execute a clear product strategy and multi-year roadmap aligned with business objectives, including defining and evolving the product vision.
• Market Research & Value Proposition: Conduct thorough market, industry, and competitive analysis to identify customer needs, trends, and gaps. Use insights (including direct Voice of Customer feedback) to define compelling value propositions for new and existing products.
• Continuous Product Improvement: Enhance manufacturing processes, operating configurations, features, and benefits while leveraging low-cost techniques to create competitive separation. Incorporate closed-loop feedback from engineering, operations, sales, and customers.
• Identifying Customer Needs: Maintain close interaction with customers and the sales team to define requirements and deliver optimal product offerings.
• Understanding Market Trends: Leverage in-depth market knowledge to proactively pursue opportunities for developed or innovative new products, even if they extend beyond current offerings.
• Understanding Competitor Landscape: Gain key insights into competitor offerings, differentiators, and strategies to strengthen our product’s market position.
• New Product Development and Innovation: Identify and evaluate new product opportunities and enhancements. Build robust business cases for investment, including ROI analysis, and lead Voice of Customer research to translate pain points into clear product requirements. Serve as a core team member in development projects to ensure customer needs are met.
• Working with Cross-Functional Teams: Collaborate with sales, marketing, and engineering to align product configurations and features with customer and market needs. Work with Sales and Marketing to develop strategies and materials in coordination with Nikkiso Applied Technologies’ overall marketing scheme.
• Inorganic Developments / Growth Opportunities: Develop at least one inorganic opportunity per quarter (e.g., acquisitions, joint ventures, conglomerations) that aligns with the Business Unit’s growth strategy for the product family and Nikkiso CEIG’s overall objectives. Strategies may include Horizontal/Vertical Integration, Product/Market Extension, or Roll-Up Potential.
• Sales Support & Customer Engagement: Serve as the product expert and champion. Provide ongoing support to the global sales team and channel partners by addressing inquiries, joining customer calls, and delivering product training. Gather customer feedback to drive continuous improvements and advocate for customer needs internally.

Key Performance Indicators

• Product Line Revenue Growth: Year-over-year increase in sales revenue for the product category, measured in total dollars and percentage growth.
• Profitability & Gross Margin: Profit generated by the product line after costs, tracked via gross margin percentage and overall contribution to profit.
• Market Share Expansion: Growth in the product category’s share of the relevant market, or proxy metrics like win/loss rates against competitors or growth in key customer accounts.
• New Product Introduction (NPI) Success: Effectiveness of launching new products on time and within budget, including time-to-market and percentage of annual revenue from new products (e.g., launched in the last 1-3 years).
• Product Adoption & Sales Mix: Uptake of products in the portfolio, measured by units sold or revenue by product, especially for recently launched products.
• Customer Satisfaction: Metrics such as Net Promoter Score (NPS), Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) surveys, warranty claim rates, or return rates.

Requirements

• A minimum of 10 years of industry experience with related equipment, preferably in technical sales, project management, or general management.
• Proven track record of overachieving business development targets, sales targets, forecasting, strategic planning, and budgeting.
• Experience developing teams for technical business development.
• Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical or Chemical Engineering, or Business with relevant work experience.
• Previous experience working in a manufacturing/engineering environment is strongly preferred.
• Equivalent combination of experience and skills may be considered.

Skills

• Knowledge of industry best practices and standards of excellence.
• Extensive experience with relevant product lines, including cryogenics and industrial gas.
• Exceptional problem-solving, negotiating, time management, and general management skills.
• Strong financial acumen, including familiarity with revenue, bookings, gross margin, EBIT, project budgeting, and cost structure/management.
• Ability to motivate a results-driven team and collaborate across departments to achieve meaningful outcomes.

Work Environment and Physical Demands

• May require standing, walking, sitting, reaching, climbing, stooping, kneeling, talking, hearing, and using hands to feel objects or controls.
• Overtime may be necessary, including weekdays, weekends, nights, and holidays.
• Ability to lift up to 40 lbs. may be required.
• Primarily office-based but may involve extensive international travel to client sites, production facilities, trade shows, or industry events. Conditions will vary by location.
• Extensive periods of sitting and standing during meetings, presentations, and travel may be necessary.
• Valid driver’s license and clean driving abstract required for travel between Nikkiso facilities and client sites.
• New employees must complete safety training, including Safety Awareness and job-specific modules as required.
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) must be worn as needed, including safety shoes, glasses, face shields, FR clothing, cryogenic gloves, aprons, cut-resistant gloves, hearing protection, hard hats, and dust masks. Non-compliance may result in disciplinary action.

Pay

$127,000 - $187,000 annually