Customer Experience Director

Federal Signal Openings•Elgin, IL

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Customer Experience Director will partner with internal key stakeholders to manage and coordinate the new/enhanced product evolution from concept to launch and beyond. This role involves presenting new ideas to senior leadership, driving issue resolution, monitoring results, and ensuring projects proceed as scheduled. The Director will also lead and coach employees, strengthen OEM partner relationships, manage new business approaches using Design Thinking and Lean Startup methods, and ensure a deep understanding of target markets and customer needs to drive innovation and organic growth. Responsibilities include validating market demand, managing costs for profitability and market share, ensuring Voice of Customer (VOC) focus, tracking market trends, developing business cases, formulating plans to gain market rank, outlining international market opportunities, developing compelling value propositions, innovating go-to-market processes, driving sales growth, and prioritizing Product, Problem, Inventory (PPI) initiatives. A product consolidation roadmap will be developed and maintained with ongoing stakeholder communication.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in business, Engineering, Finance, Information Technology or related discipline required.
Fifteen years’ cumulative experience demonstrated high performance in two or more of the following areas: Marketing, Engineering, Sales, or Product Management is required.
10 years of customer-facing experience.
Proven mechanical aptitude and ability to demonstrate understanding of mechanical products required.

Nice To Haves

Master’s Degree highly desirable.

Responsibilities

Partner with internal key stakeholders to manage and coordinate the new/enhanced product evolution from concept, to design, prototype, testing, cost, mass production, promotion, serviceability and support.
Present new ideas to the General Manager and ETV President to gain acceptance and approval to develop product lines and partner with internal stakeholders through product launch lifecycle.
Drive resolution on issues quickly and pursue opportunities aggressively to maximize potential revenue options.
Monitor results and adjust development plans as needed to attain desired outcome.
Perform in a consistent state of Plan - Do - Check – Act and ensure that every phase of a project proceeds as scheduled and pivot and address issues and challenges.
Lead and coach employees with a focus on career development and working towards clear annual business goals, with an ongoing cadence of feedback.
Strengthen and maintain the relationship of OEM partners for the advancement of Elgin Sweeper product offerings.
Manage new business approaches and product development through the application of Design Thinking and Lean Startup methods.
Ensure a clear and deep understanding of target markets, customer behaviors, and unarticulated needs in order to convert that understanding into meaningful and innovative solutions that support organizational strategy and fuel organic growth.
Ensure validation of market demand and willingness to pay for new products or services using rapid prototypes and concept testing via face-to-face engagements, focus groups or other methods.
Manage all costs with a focus on achieving profitability and market share targets.
Ensure Voice of Customer (VOC) focus and execution where needed, for the identified product market and ensure needed messages get to all relevant parties for course correction.
Track market trends and develop business cases for product alignment to those trends.
Formulate and execute plans to reverse the competitor’s rank in the market.
Outline the opportunities/requirements for international market success and support it with data or roadmap for testing assumptions.
Ensure development, test, and communication of compelling value propositions for managed programs including current and new products, services, and other business opportunities.
Partner with key internal organizations to innovate go-to-market processes, as required, to ensure growth objectives are achieved.
With other key partners and organizations (Internal & external), assist in driving sales growth for programs targeted to both new and existing customers, via new markets for existing products, and development of new customer acquisition and customer retention programs.
Prioritize the Product, Problem, Inventory (PPI) initiatives.
Develop and maintain product consolidation roadmap for products with ongoing communications to all stakeholders (engineering, channel, factory, supply chain).