Job Details

Product Development Lab Manager

Office Location: Houston, TX preferred

Business Function/Department: Technology / Product Development

General Role Description: Establish and manage a test facility to validate and certify power electronics products to meet Mid-Range Plan (MRP) commitments within defined capital and human resources limits.

Role Accountabilities:

• Build and lead a team of committed and capable employees to ensure successful testing, validation, and certification of power electronic-based products
• Create, develop, budget, and manage lab's capital investment activities to meet business needs
• Create, implement, and monitor a process for efficient resource assignments
• Define validation objectives, test methodologies, and acceptance criteria based on product specifications, customer requirements, and regulatory standards (e.g., UL, CSA)
• Develop and manage comprehensive validation schedules, ensuring alignment with overall product development timelines
• Anticipate required resources and schedule their acquisition on a timeline to meet the validation schedule
• Ensure the timely and accurate execution of complex validation tests, including functional, performance, reliability, environmental, durability, and stress testing
• Troubleshoot abnormal testing results, identify root causes of failures, and propose effective corrective and preventative actions (CAPA)
• Utilize and maintain specialized test equipment and instrumentation, ensuring calibration and proper functioning
• Generate comprehensive validation reports, summary documents, and presentations for internal and external stakeholders, demonstrating compliance and providing clear recommendations
• Participate in design reviews, FMEAs, and other cross-functional team meetings, representing the validation function
• Translate design requirements into testable validation objectives and provide critical feedback for design improvements, in collaboration with R&D and Design Engineers
• Facilitate cooperation and coordination in design and development planning and project execution through establishing and maintaining effective working relationships and productive communication with parent company
• Lead internal and external audits, providing necessary documentation and explanations of validation processes
• Provide technical consulting, coaching, and training to group company engineering and commissioning team members to transfer knowledge of Company process and product solutions and ensure successful project execution, as assigned
• Provide technical support to the business unit sales team in the areas of product development, technical presentations, and proposal review, and advise as assigned
• Lead and perform lab maintenance in accordance with the lab maintenance schedule
• Identify new standards and revisions to standards that relate to the products of the company, providing sufficient advance notice to the development team of changes needed in the products or the lab.
• Provide technical consultation on products to the development team for the development of solutions for internal clients
• Expand business unit (BU) product offerings so that they provide client value across the Company's business segments
• Define and develop new tools and enhancements to existing tools that improve engineering productivity and engineered system quality
• Monitor and investigate international and country-specific codes and standards to ensure compliance where applicable

General Employee Accountabilities:

• Bring full effort to bear on tasks assigned by manager
• Give manager best advice
• Give earliest notice when work cannot be delivered as specified
• Cooperate and collaborate with peers and interact cross-organizationally as specified by manager
• Exemplify Company Core Values: Integrity, Client Focus, Team Orientation, and Personal Commitment
• Comply with all Company policies, practices, and procedures and all regulations and laws
• Recommend viable improvements proactively
• Ensure effective utilization of business tools and processes

Manager Accountabilities:

• Build and lead a team of committed and capable employees
• Plan for, appropriately assign, resource, and integrate the work of the team
• Lead, expect, and implement continuous improvement
• Own the output of the team
• Ensure team members fulfill functional and general employee accountabilities
• Exercise effective managerial leadership to include:
• Two-way managerial team working
• Fair and just treatment of direct reports
• Context setting
• Planning
• Task assignment
• Ongoing performance management
• Coaching
• Selection and orientation
• De-selection and dismissal