Division InformationThe Home & Garden business unit of Spectrum Brands is based in St. Louis, Missouri with distribution, manufacturing and sales offices throughout the US and globe. We are a leading supplier of consumer products nationally for the home, lawn and garden, insect and weed control markets. We deliver groundbreaking products of exceptional value and top-notch quality to consumers with our well-recognized brands including Spectracide®, Hot Shot®, Cutter®, Repel®, Black Flag®, Garden Safe®, EcoLogic® and Liquid Fence®.
Job SummaryLead New Product Development (NPD) projects to introduce product innovations into the marketplace. Plan, direct, manage, the new product development processes and facilitate new product and product changes from conception to launch. Drive continuous improvement within the NPD process.
Primary Duties & ResponsibilitiesProject Management - Identify, plan, and coordinate cross functional team activities required to launch new and changing products.
- Lead complex innovation projects.
- Create and manage project timelines for cross-functional teams and hold team members accountable for meeting deadlines.
- Identify and call out project's critical path and key milestone dates.
- Lead project teams to resolve roadblocks or delays - negotiate resolutions.
- Serve as liaison between Marketing, Graphics, R&D, Regulatory, Packaging, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, Sourcing, and Contract Manufacturing departments.
- Develop and execute project management methodologies to determine and track constraints for multiple, concurrent plans.
- Identify and communicate to all levels of the organization risk management plans.
- Multi-Stakeholder management.
- Manage direct reports.
Manage Stage Gate new product development process and meetings: - Facilitating new product development meetings, preparing reports, leading discussions, and publishing action items.
- Provide guidance and expertise with regards to guidelines and rules within the stage gate. process ensuring all projects adhere to H&G business objectives.
- Train cross-functional teams on all change processes.
- Produce monthly key performance indicators (KPI) reports as they pertain to the product development process.
- Create monthly key project communications to be utilized by all levels of the organization.
- Identify process gaps and work towards resolution.
- Lead offline meetings as needed for complex project resolution.
Manage NPD database with regards to project management - Entry of project descriptors with emphasis on milestone and key performance indicators.
- Maintenance and upkeep to projects considering scope change or process interruption.
- Ensure accuracy of task and data management.
- Drive teams to utilize and capture information in product development systems.
- Identify improvements to increase efficiencies within the team.
Continuous Improvement - Lead project management team with internal process improvement.
- Facilitation of NPD stage gate process improvements based on business needs.
- Optimize and broaden data collection to improve KPI's.
- Identify alternative project management methodologies for speed to market and project efficiencies.
- Create and maintain a positive environment for all employees free of intimidation and harassment.
- Must always understand and demonstrate safe work practices to ensure a safe work environment.
- Comply with all company policies and procedures.
- Other duties as assigned.
Education and Experience Profile - Bachelor's degree in Business or Operations Management or an equivalent combination of education and/or experience
- 6+ years of operations experience, preferably in project management
- PMI certification preferred
- Consumer product goods experience preferred
Required Skills - Solid understanding of PM methodologies.
- Working knowledge of the stage gate or similar process.
- Proactive problem solver with the ability to assess risks/benefits and act decisively.
- Able to communicate effectively with all levels of the organization.
- Leadership role within product development teams.
- Effective meeting management skills.
- Excellent organizational skills.
- Excellent communication skills both written and oral.
- Able to manage direct reports.
- Strong people motivation and negotiating skills.
- Able to manage multiple complex product development projects.
- Highly motivated, self-starter with prioritization skills.
- Proven ability to manage multiple stakeholder relationships.
Work EnvironmentWorking conditions are normal for an office environment.
The above information on this description has been designed to indicate the general nature and level of work performed by employees within this job/classification. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required of employees assigned to this job.
Spectrum Brands is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer.
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