Director of Product Management

Tempo Communications•Vista, CA

8d•$180,000 - $220,000•Onsite

About The Position

Tempo Communications is seeking a hands-on product leader to personally own a product category, including its roadmap and financial results, while leading three Product Line Managers responsible for other parts of the portfolio. The role reports directly to the CEO and helps determine what the company builds, where it invests, and how it measures success. The Director directly manages a product line or category such as Location & Markers, Fiber Test & Measurement, Copper & PoE, or Tools, with accountability for roadmap, P&L, pricing, margin, product mix, and portfolio health. The role combines strategic portfolio leadership with direct execution. Responsibilities span customer discovery, roadmap decisions, business cases, pricing and margin choices, product requirements, launch readiness, and post-launch results. The Director works closely with technicians, installers, distributors, sales teams, Engineering, manufacturing partners, Marketing, Operations, and channel partners to translate customer needs into commercial outcomes. The position is full-time and on-site at Tempo’s headquarters in Vista, California, and requires approximately 25–30% business travel. Base salary is $180,000–$220,000, plus an annual performance bonus. Benefits include medical, dental, and vision coverage, a 401(k), and paid time off.

Requirements

At least eight years of product management or product line management experience for physical products such as test and measurement equipment, instruments, electrical/electronic hardware, or professional tools.
Current, direct ownership of a product line, category, or portfolio, including personal product and roadmap decisions and accountability for business outcomes.
Demonstrated ownership of product financials, including pricing, margin, portfolio rationalization, and/or P&L responsibility.
Track record of building and defending business cases, prioritizing development investments, and explaining the results of launched products.
Experience with a formal stage-gate or phase-gate product development process, including responsibility for evidence and decisions at key gates.
Strong market sizing, segmentation, competitive analysis, and customer discovery skills.
Ability to interpret SKU-level margin and mix, price realization, launch results, and other business data to guide decisions.
Technical and commercial credibility to work directly with Engineering and overseas contract manufacturers on requirements, trade-offs, prototypes, and first-article reviews.
Experience managing or mentoring product managers.
Willingness to travel approximately 25–30%.
Ability to work in person at Tempo’s Vista, California office; the position is not remote or hybrid.

Nice To Haves

Experience in communications infrastructure, fiber optics, utility locating, electrical contracting, or adjacent technical markets.
Prior experience as a technician, installer, or field engineer, or substantial time observing customers using products in the field.
Experience with two-step distribution and/or product-line integration following an acquisition.
Experience with structured customer preference or pricing research, such as conjoint, MaxDiff, Kano, or price-sensitivity analysis, and judgment about when formal research is worth the investment.
Comfort using AI-assisted research and analysis tools.

Responsibilities

Personally own a product category or line, including its roadmap, P&L, pricing, margin, mix, and portfolio health.
Make and defend product decisions from customer problem definition and requirements through prioritization, launch, and lifecycle management.
Use SKU-level performance, price realization, revenue, margin, and product vitality data to guide investment, improvement, repositioning, or discontinuation decisions.
Conduct customer discovery with technicians, installers, distributors, sales teams, and other users through interviews, ride-alongs, field observations, and product feedback.
Build a multi-year roadmap aligned with customer needs, competitive position, technology direction, commercial opportunity, and company investment priorities.
Size markets, assess segments and competitors, and explain the assumptions behind recommendations.
Build and defend business cases that communicate assumptions, financial analysis, risks, and expected outcomes.
Prioritize the development funnel based on strategic fit and financial merit, recommending which projects to fund and which to stop.
Own the NP&SI stage-gate process for the assigned category, ensuring gates have defined deliverables, evidence, accountable owners, and go/no-go decisions.
Work with Engineering and manufacturing partners to define requirements, manage trade-offs, review prototypes and first articles, and resolve issues through launch.
Partner with Sales, Marketing, Engineering, Operations, and channel partners to bring products to market.
Own results against plan, including revenue, margin, launch performance, and product vitality.
Ensure application notes, sales tools, product information, and training materials are ready to support adoption and channel execution.
Review post-launch performance, capture lessons, and apply evidence to future decisions.
Lead and develop three Product Line Managers across the rest of the portfolio.
Coach product team members on customer discovery, product strategy, market analysis, business cases, prioritization, and commercial accountability.
Set clear expectations and review team performance while remaining personally accountable for execution and results in the owned category.
Travel approximately 25–30% for business.