Head of Product Management & Innovation

Our client is seeking a Product Manager to lead product and engineering direction across its product portfolio. This role will oversee product strategy, innovation, lifecycle management, and continuous improvement while leading an engineering team and collaborating closely with Sales, Marketing, Manufacturing, and other stakeholders.
The ideal candidate will bring a strong combination of product management, engineering leadership, manufacturing knowledge, and commercial awareness, with the ability to take products from concept through production and continuously improve the portfolio.

Lead and develop the Engineering team, establishing priorities for product development and technical initiatives.
Develop and maintain the product strategy and roadmap based on customer needs, market trends, competitive analysis, and business priorities.
Own the full product lifecycle from concept and development through production, launch, and post-launch improvement.
Lead product innovation, redesign, teardown analysis, and product enhancement initiatives.
Standardize and improve existing products, components, and processes to enhance quality, efficiency, and cost.
Manage product development and engineering budgets, team performance, and key product KPIs.
Engage directly with customers through field visits, trade shows, dealer meetings, and voice-of-customer activities.
Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or a related technical discipline.

• 7-10 years of experience in product management, product development, or engineering leadership within a manufacturing or durable-goods environment.
• 3+ years of direct experience managing engineers or technical teams, including coaching and performance management.
• Experience with product-line margins, P&L, or commercial/product financial management.
• Strong understanding of CAD, PLM/PDM, and ERP/BOM structures.
• Comfortable interacting directly with customers and gathering market feedback.
• Experience establishing product development processes, roadmaps, stage-gate processes, and engineering change controls.

Assets

MBA

Experience with commercial vehicles, truck bodies, trailers, storage systems, or metal fabrication.
S. manufacturing operations.
Customer-focused and commercially minded.
A continuous improvement mindset with a focus on product quality, efficiency, cost, and customer value.
Combination of office, manufacturing-floor, engineering, and customer-facing work.
Regular travel between Canadian and U.S. facilities, with additional travel for customers, dealers, suppliers, and trade shows.
Ability to travel across the Canada-U.Occasional extended hours may be required during product launches, budgeting periods, and customer commitments.

At Aplin - together with our brands CompuStaff, Impact Recruitment, and Vantix Systems - we connect great people with great organizations across North America. We use AI tools to assist in a fair and efficient matching process, helping our recruiters connect the right people with the right opportunities. Accommodation is available upon request throughout all stages of the recruitment process.