Program Manager

Location:  Hybrid at Kohler, WI

Opportunity

As a member of a New Product Development project team

• Focus on categories within Kitchen Faucets and Fixtures for North America and Global projects.
• Lead product development teams to launch innovative new products and improve the quality, performance and/or cost of existing products.
• Manage cross functional teams using the KBDP new product development process through market launch. Drive each Program to defined metrics.
• Develop and manage the project budget with the team including development expense, capital tooling and expense tooling. Guide the team to develop new products that meet cost targets.
• Develop and monitor project schedules and adhere to the KBDP process.  Manage deliverables and tasks within each phase of a project. Anticipates and manages tasks/risks within each project. 
• Participate in performance expectations and evaluations for cross functional teams. Provide leadership and mentoring to less experienced team members as needed.
• Communicate to senior management on project status, execution plans, and process.
• Define and facilitate decision-making process for development teams. Coaches project team personnel to develop and implement cross-functional solutions to complex issues.
• Establish and maintain relationships with senior management for the purpose of aligning NPD objectives and removing obstacles for project completion.
• Drive improvements in creative problem solving and continually improve the KBDP process and organization.

Specific Responsibilities

Project Management

• Lead regional and global projects of moderate-to-high complexity, risk and business impact.
• Provide structure and leadership for solving technically complex design and business problems.
• Proactively identify and plan for project risks, communicating risk clearly, early and appropriately to management
• Managing your assigned projects' timing and financial adherence to plan. 

Leadership

• Challenge project teams to achieve innovative solutions.
• Willing and successful in taking moderate risk.
• Identify opportunities for organizational and process change.
• Work effectively when organizational structure or processes are unclear or conflicting.
• Lead brainstorming discussions
• Able to facilitate & resolve conflict and problem solving.

Decision-making

• Make decisions with moderate levels of ambiguity.
• Chooses appropriate action and alternatives with rationale that is consistent with facts, constraints, and predicted consequences.
• Take independent action with insight into global and regional business impact.
• Willing to speak up and raise concern in global and regional settings
• Provide options, scenarios and recommendations to overcome obstacles