New Product Development Program/Project Manager

About the role

At Rite-Hite, your work makes an impact. As the global leader in loading dock and door equipment, we design and deliver solutions that keep our customers safe, secure, and productive. Here, you'll find innovation, stability, and the chance to grow your career as part of a team that's always looking ahead. The Enterprise Project Management Office (EPMO) Program/Project Manager for New Product Development (NPD) provides strategic leadership and hands-on orchestration of complex, cross-functional, system-level engineering programs that span hardware, controls, software and manufacturing domains from concept through commercialization. This leader builds and manages integrated program plans across all functions to deliver innovative solutions that meet the highest safety, quality, cost, customer value and overall business impact. The Program/Project Manager fosters collaboration, innovation and learning across functions and drives execution through schedule integrity (capacity planning, critical path), proactively identifies and mitigates risks, ensures manufacturing and supplier readiness, and facilitates governance using Rite-Hite's New Product Development process and the appropriate Waterfall/Agile/Hybrid methods. Additionally, the Program/Project Manager will help evolve and shape Rite-Hite's NPD process to scale appropriately for the various types of NPD projects and business needs while driving consistent adoption through the NPD stakeholder community. The Program/Project Manager integrates systems thinking, data-driven decision-making, and an iterative approach to accelerate value delivery and build a culture of transparency and continuous improvement. KEY OUTCOMES On-time to launch: ≥ 90% of NPD stage gate milestones met; ≥ 85% of programs launch on or before target dates. Quality at launch and customer value: First-pass build yield and early field performance meet or exceed targets; post-launch defect rate/warranty within target thresholds while delivering tangible customer and market value. Business case realization: Internal program cost + orders, sales and margin aligned with business case; variance drivers identified with corrective actions. Readiness: Manufacturing, supplier, service and go-to-market readiness complete per integrated system-level program plan; no critical "late surprises." ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned: Strategic Leadership: Partner with the business unit leadership team to execute prioritized complex, multi-disciplinary New Product Development programs to deliver target safety, quality, cost, customer value and overall business impact. Ensure alignment on requirements (VOC), product/feature scope and acceptance criteria. Apply systems engineering management principles to ensure integration across mechanical, controls, electrical, and software disciplines. Facilitate business and technical trade-offs to protect customer value; escalate issues with data, options and recommendations. Act as a connector between strategy and execution, aligning engineering, product, and business roadmaps. Provide thought leadership on program management best practices and emerging trends and supporting technologies in the field. Support business unit annual capacity planning to help determine next fiscal year roadmaps and strategic plans. Program and Project Management: Aligned with the business unit strategy and roadmap, build and maintain integrated program plans across Product Management, Engineering, Marketing, Quality, Distribution, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Applications, Service, IT, HR, Legal/IP and Finance. Own the integrated program plan with explicit dependencies, resource loading and a continuously maintained critical path. Establish and manage scope/schedule/cost baselines with formal change control. Maintain a living schedule risk analysis with scenario planning; create what-if plans and recovery paths. Governance and Standardization: Adhere to enterprise-wide project management methodologies, frameworks and processes. Ensure consistent application of governance policies, risk management, and quality assurance across all projects and programs. Operate within Rite-Hite's New Product Development process; scale the process as appropriate for the scope of each program; prepare and run program reviews (core team, stakeholder updates, stage gates with clear entry/exit criteria), documented decisions and follow-ups. Champion and continuously improve Rite-Hite's New Product Development stage gate process across all functions with ongoing training, standard tools/templates, and best practice sharing. Blend Waterfall/Agile/Hybrid appropriately across hardware and embedded/software components; ensure traceability from requirements to test/validation. Identify and eliminate systemic bottlenecks that limit innovation or cross-functional efficiency. Resource Management: Lead resource planning and allocation across projects and program

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