Product Manager - North American Warewash and Waste Division

Illinois Tool Works (ITW) is a Fortune 200 company that produces diversified products in global markets.  Some of its products include welding equipment, automotive components, construction materials and commercial food equipment.  The Food Equipment Group is one of seven ITW decentralized business segments.  The Warewash and Waste Division of ITW’s Food Equipment Group, is seeking a Product Manager. Reporting to the Director of Marketing, this in office position will work from the ITW Hobart Technology Center located in Troy, OH, about 20 minutes north of Dayton.

The Warewash and Waste Division produces Hobart, Stero, and Somat brand commercial dishwashers and waste equipment for use in hotels, casinos, restaurants, health care, cruise ships, schools and universities and retail. We are in search of a Product Manager to help support and grow the FEG Warewash business through market research, product development, go-to-market planning, demand generation, and sales and channel support for our commercial line of dishwashers.  This position champions the voice of the customer with engineering and product development teams and provides support to our sales development managers and field sales organization to maximize sales volume for the business unit’s products.

Summary:

As part of the Marketing team, the Product Manager will help identify new market opportunities, manage the product portfolio, create marketing plans for new and existing products, define product training requirements, and develop programs to ensure the field sales organization and dealer and consultant communities have accurate product knowledge and a clear sales narrative to drive success with the Hobart line.

We are seeking candidates with experience that includes marketing support for product development, product launches (sales and service training plans, marketing operations, and content development), and analysis and interpretation of market and competitive data.

What you will do:

Product Development & Management

• Support ongoing discovery of new product and business opportunities through competitor and market analysis and primary and secondary customer research using ITW’s Market-Segment-Focus approach.
• Work with various stakeholders and partners inside and outside the company to understand market, customer needs, competitive changes and provide clear product specifications, business plans & value propositions for commercial dishwashing equipment targeting the US market.
• Ensure that New Product Development teams are aligned with North American commercial dishwashing customer needs and pain points through clear product specifications, business plans and product launches for each product line.

Support for Business Development & Product Line Growth

• Support organic revenue growth goals through commercialization, demand generation, customer engagement, and sales support and enablement activities.
• Create go-to-market and commercial launch plans for new product launches.
• Provide customized marketing, product specification, research, and other direct support to sales teams for key account opportunities.
• Provide product sales training and support through product presentations, product marketing collateral and in-the-field training.
• Provide continuous updates to competitive and market intelligence and customer trends that affect success in targeted accounts and segments.

Leadership

• Provide and facilitate project management for sales, marketing and engineering teams for effective product development and product launches.
• Spend time in key segments and channels with team members and customers to understand market needs and provide training on warewash products and sales narratives.

What we are looking for:

• Knowledge of product marketing concepts and strategies
• Ability to demonstrate and analyze data and draw meaningful conclusions
• Experience interacting with and presenting to customers and a variety of business stakeholders
• Primary and secondary market research experience
• Ability to translate customer requirements into product specifications
• One significant product launch cycle, preferred
• Commercial kitchen equipment knowledge, preferred
• Experience with engineering stage gate process, preferred
• Ability to travel approximately 20% of the time

Education and experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree (Marketing, Business or Engineering, preferred)
• 5+ years of experience in a relevant role with demonstrated results
• Minimum of 2 years of food service industry experience, preferred
• Excellent verbal, written, interpersonal communications as well as effective presentation skills
• Proficiency in MS Office applications

Benefits:

Take this opportunity to join a successful and enthusiastic global team where we value the inclusion of diverse team members.  You will enjoy a competitive salary and generous benefits that include health, dental, life and STD/LTD insurance, 401k (with match), and an education tuition reimbursement program. 

ITW is an equal opportunity employer. We value our colleagues’ unique perspectives, experiences and ideas and create workplaces where everyone can develop their careers and perform to their full potential. 

As an equal employment opportunity employer, ITW is committed to equal employment opportunity and fair treatment for employees, beginning with the hiring process and continuing through all aspects of the employment relationship. 

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age, disability, protected Veteran status or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws.