Product Development Manager

Job Summary

We are seeking an experienced and highly motivated Senior Industrial Designer / Product Development Manage with 5-7 years of experience leading product development and innovation initiatives from concept through commercialization. This role combines product development leadership with innovation process deployment, tool implementation, and organizational capability building.

UFP Innovation is looking for the right candidate with a strong background in ​Industrial Design, Consumer-Centric Innovation, and Cross-Functional Leadership. The ideal candidate is passionate about helping teams transform ideas into successful products while serving as a leader and trainer of innovation best practices, methodologies, and continuous improvement. This individual will drive adoption of innovation frameworks, facilitate workshops, coach cross-functional teams, and establish repeatable processes that improve the effectiveness and speed of new product development.

Preferred Locations:

• Grand Rapids, MI (Preferred)
• Cincinnati, OH
• St. Louis, MO

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

• Lead the design and development of new physical product concepts from opportunity identification through launch.
• Translate customer needs, market insights, and business objectives into compelling product solutions.
• Create and evaluate product concepts, prototypes, and design specifications.
• Collaborate with engineering and manufacturing teams to ensure design feasibility and commercialization success.
• Lead projects through structured Innovation and Stage-Gate development processes.
• Facilitate ideation sessions, design sprints, and innovation workshops.
• Apply Design Thinking, Lean Innovation, and customer discovery methodologies to identify unmet market needs.
• Conduct concept testing and consumer validation activities.
• Support portfolio management and prioritization activities.
• Partner with Business Leaders, R&D, Engineering, Operations, Marketing, and Commercial teams.
• Build strong relationships and influence decision-making across multiple levels of the organization.
• Present concepts, recommendations, and project updates to senior leadership.
• Conduct customer interviews, ethnographic research, usability studies, and competitive assessments.
• Translate consumer insights into actionable design and development opportunities.
• Monitor industry trends, emerging technologies, materials, and manufacturing innovations.
• Provide support for other department projects as needed

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Industrial Design, Product Design, or closely related field (Required).
• 5-7 years of product development experience.
• Experience developing physical products from concept to commercialization.
• Demonstrated success working within structured product development environments.
• Experience collaborating with engineering, manufacturing, marketing, and commercial teams.