Senior Director, Product Marketing

NLM Photonics is pioneering the next generation of electro-optic materials and photonic technologies that enable dramatically faster, lower-power optical interconnects for AI, datacenter, telecommunications, and advanced computing applications. By combining breakthrough material science with scalable semiconductor manufacturing processes, NLM is accelerating the future of high-performance computing and optical networking.

As we move from technology development to commercial scale, we are seeking a Senior Director, Product Marketing to drive marketing strategy, product positioning, customer engagement, and commercialization efforts across our photonics portfolio.

Position Summary

The Senior Director, Product Marketing will serve as the bridge between engineering, business development, customers, and industry partners. This individual will develop product positioning, market intelligence, competitive analysis, messaging, and go-to-market strategies that support commercialization of NLM’s electro-optic materials and photonic solutions.

The ideal candidate combines strong technical aptitude with exceptional marketing and communication skills and has experience in semiconductors, photonics, optical communications, advanced materials, or related deep-tech industries.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop clear value propositions, product messaging, and market positioning for NLM’s technology portfolio.
• Translate complex technical innovations into compelling customer-focused narratives.
• Define target markets, customer segments, and application opportunities.
• Support product roadmap decisions with market and competitive insights.
• Collaborate with leadership on commercialization and market-entry strategies.
• Monitor industry trends in AI infrastructure, datacenter networking, optical communications, silicon photonics, and advanced semiconductor packaging.
• Perform competitive analysis and market sizing activities.
• Identify emerging customer needs, technology shifts, and partnership opportunities.
• Gather and synthesize customer feedback to inform product strategy.

Go-to-Market Execution

• Develop and execute launch plans for new technologies and products.
• Create product collateral, presentations, white papers, case studies, website content, and sales tools.
• Support business development efforts with customer-facing materials and messaging.
• Enable sales and partnership teams with training and market insights.

Industry Engagement

• Represent NLM at industry conferences, trade shows, and customer meetings.
• Manage external communication surrounding product launches and strategic partnerships.
• Support analyst relations, media engagement, and thought leadership initiatives.
• Work with technical teams to develop conference abstracts, presentations, and marketing content.

Cross-Functional Leadership

• Partner closely with R&D, engineering, applications, and executive leadership teams to develop and grow the product marketing team and product line management.
• Coordinate messaging across customers, partners, investors, and industry stakeholders.
• Help establish scalable marketing processes and metrics as the company grows.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Engineering, Physics, Materials Science, Business, or related field.
• 10+ years of experience in product marketing, technical marketing, product management, or commercialization roles.
• Experience in one or more of the following industries:
  • Photonics
  • Semiconductors
  • Advanced materials
  • Deep-tech hardware companies
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to translate highly technical concepts into customer value.
• Experience developing product positioning, messaging, and go-to-market strategies.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced startup environment.

Preferred

• Advanced degree (MBA, MS, or PhD).
• Experience with silicon photonics, electro-optic materials, optical interconnects, or datacenter technologies.
• Knowledge of AI infrastructure and high-performance computing markets.
• Experience marketing components, platforms, or materials sold into OEMs and semiconductor ecosystems.
• Background working with technical founders and R&D organizations.

In the first 12 months, the Senior Director, Product Marketing will:

Success Metrics

• Establish differentiated positioning for NLM’s technology platform.
• Build a comprehensive set of customer-facing sales and marketing assets.
• Develop market segmentation and strategic account targeting frameworks.
• Launch thought leadership initiatives that increase industry visibility.
• Drive measurable support for customer engagement, partnerships, and revenue growth opportunities.

What We Offer

• The opportunity to shape a foundational technology platform that will redefine compute and communication infrastructure for the AI and quantum eras.
• Competitive executive compensation package including meaningful equity ownership.
• A collaborative, missiondriven environment working with worldclass scientists and engineers.