Senior Vice President - Chief Roadmap and Innovation Officer

Overview 

The Chief Roadmap and Innovation Officer will lead the vision, strategy, and execution of our global product and innovation roadmap — unifying near-term priorities with long-term disruptive thinking. This leader will anticipate market trends, and bring to life innovations that define the future of consumer experience and product technology. 

In this role, you will oversee the end-to-end product lifecycle, while fostering a culture of innovation, efficiency, fast and agile excellence.  This role leads a global team ensuring consumer-centric, 5-star product development to include developing a product roadmap, building unstoppable teams, and being a thought leader.  

Here are some of the exciting things you'll be doing: 

Lead Agile Product Development: 

• Maximize revenue and gross margin for each subcategory to deliver at least 20% growth YoY. 

• Delivers at least one new product in a new category every year that results in at least $50M in revenue in Year 1. 

• Ensures the Product Roadmap delivers viral product performance AND viral product aesthetic by driving ID and CMF excitement from mass production through EOL. 

• Oversee a global team with a “fail fast” approach, emphasizing rapid testing, and iteration as well as an insatiable impatience for action. 

• Foster a culture of continuous improvement and agility to enhance product offerings. 

• Ensure the right processes and practices are in place to support the agile approach. 

• Inspire and Empower Teams by leading and managing a global team, coaching and developing them to deliver successful client solutions. 

• Cultivate an environment of innovation, autonomy, and high performance. 

Operational Excellence: 

• Lead the optimization of end-to-end product development processes, from concept ideation through commercialization. 

• Continuously assess and refine product development workflows, methodologies, and tools to drive efficiency and reduce time-to-market. 

• Implement robust project management practices to ensure the timely and cost-effective delivery of products. 

• Oversee the integration of new technologies and best practices in product development to maintain competitive advantage. 

• The candidate will be capable to Identify and understand risk and opportunities for improvement through multiple workstreams. 

Cross-Functional Collaboration: 

• Provide support to the Engineering teams for the design, development and manufacture for products.  

• Foster strong relationships with key departments including R&D, design, marketing, operations, supply chain, and quality control to ensure product development is aligned with customer needs, quality standards, and manufacturing capabilities. 

• Act as a bridge between the product development team and other departments, ensuring clear communication and alignment on goals, deliverables, and timelines. 

Innovation & Market Insight: 

• Stay abreast of market trends, emerging technologies, and consumer behavior to drive product innovation and maintain the company's competitive edge. 

• Identify and analyze consumer needs and market opportunities, ensuring the product portfolio aligns with evolving customer preferences. 

• Build strategic partnerships with vendors, technology providers, and innovation hubs to stay ahead in the industry. 

Financial & Resource Management: 

• Ensure that the most cost-effective way is sought to achieve the relevant primary functions whilst ensuring quality / reliability  

• Manage the product development budget, ensuring cost efficiency and high ROI. 

• Optimize the product development processes, supply chain, and resource allocation for maximum efficiency. 

• Drive P&L ownership of the product portfolio, ensuring profitability and sustainable growth. 

• Manage talent development, and hiring to ensure the team has the required skills and capacity to execute the product strategy. 

Risk Management & Compliance: 

• Identify and mitigate risks associated with the product development process, including supply chain disruptions, manufacturing delays, and regulatory challenges. 

• Ensure compliance with relevant industry regulations, safety standards, and environmental guidelines throughout the product lifecycle. 

Performance Tracking & Reporting: 

• Establish and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) for product development operations, tracking progress against goals and providing regular updates to executive leadership. 

• Leverage data analytics to identify areas for process improvement and decision-making. 

Qualifications / Requirements 

The successful candidate will have proven manufacturing / quality leadership experience and the ability to deliver results in larger matrix organizations. 

• 15+ years of experience in product development within the consumer products industry (e.g., CPG, electronics, home goods, beauty, apparel, etc.). 

• Proven track record of leading product innovation and successful launches at a large-scale company or high-growth brand. 

• Strong background in R&D, design thinking, and market-driven product strategies. 

• Experience managing large teams and complex product portfolios. 

• Deep knowledge of consumer insights, supply chain, regulatory standards, and sustainability trends. 

• Exceptional leadership, strategic thinking, and communication skills. 

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Industrial Design, Business, or related field (MBA preferred).  

Additional Requirements  

• Fanatical drive for edge: The ability to remain vigilant, with a productive paranoia around where things might be off track but to be equally driven to get to a differentiated enough insight to create a competitive advantage.  

• Genuine belief & commitment: Deeply bought into the OE approach to creating value. They don’t fight the system or try to bring just a “best practice” approach from somewhere else.  

• Deep-seated confidence: Enormous confidence in your own ability to solve any problem that is put in front of you. These problems are not solved through creative genius or a brilliant insight, but by breaking them down into pieces, trying something, learning, and pivoting. 

• Insatiable impatience for action: Ability to recognize that if they aren’t working on a problem, they are falling behind someone who is.  Personally own the outcomes and take daily action, and learn from it;