Manager, Product Lifecycle Operations

FERGUSON

4d • $6,900 - $11,275 • Remote

About The Position

The Manager, Product Lifecycle Operations owns the continuous improvement, governance, and adoption of Own Brand product development and launch processes. The role drives all 21 Own Brand brands toward a consistent Stage Gate process and a common location for managing product development work, project stages, timelines, required activities, and cross-functional information. This position also leads the implementation of a new Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) system, partners with the selected third-party vendor and internal teams to deliver the project, and serves as the ongoing business owner of the platform after launch! This is approved to be Remote or will be hybrid if you are located close to one of Ferguson HQ locations, per Company Policy.

Requirements

• Experience leading cross-functional process improvement, transformation, governance, or enterprise technology implementation initiatives in a matrixed organization.
• Experience supporting Stage Gate, product development, new product introduction, sourcing, supply chain, operational excellence, or product launch processes.
• Ability to define end-to-end processes, workflows, business requirements, data points, governance models, roles, handoffs, and system requirements.
• Strong project and program leadership skills, including the ability to manage priorities, dependencies, risks, decisions, issues, and stakeholder expectations.
• Demonstrated change leadership, facilitation, training, user acceptance, and collaborator engagement capabilities.
• Ability to influence across companies, brands, functions, and organizational levels without direct authority.
• Strong problem-solving, process improvement, communication, and executive presentation skills.

Nice To Haves

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Operations, Supply Chain, Engineering, Product Management, Information Systems, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Experience leading or serving as a business owner for a PLM, workflow, ERP, PIM, MDM, or related enterprise system implementation preferred.
• Experience in partnering with IT, third-party software vendors, implementation partners, and project management organizations preferred.

Responsibilities

• Own, govern, and continuously improve the Stage Gate process for product development across all 21 Own Brand brands.
• Drive consistent adoption of common Stage Gate standards, required stages, workflows, roles, responsibilities, approvals, and documentation across brands and teams.
• Partner directly with Own Brand companies that are not currently using Hive to transition their product development work into the platform.
• Work with each brand to design a practical workflow that supports its business needs while meeting corporate process, governance, and reporting requirements.
• Lead training, user acceptance, adoption, and ongoing adherence activities to help each brand successfully implement and sustain the Stage Gate process in Hive.
• Maintain process documentation, templates, user guidance, and governance standards to support consistent execution across all brands.
• Own and improve the end-to-end product development and launch process, from concept through launch and lifecycle transition.
• Define clear process steps, ownership, required inputs, data points, dependencies, handoffs, and timing expectations across participating departments.
• Identify and remove bottlenecks, duplicate work, communication gaps, and inconsistent practices that affect launch timeliness and preparedness.
• Ensure teams understand the work required for each project, when it is due, and the information needed to complete it.
• Improve cross-functional communication and awareness of project status, launch milestones, open requirements, risks, and next steps.
• Partner with functional leaders to resolve process barriers and implement sustainable improvements.
• Lead the end-to-end implementation, launch, adoption, and ongoing business ownership of a new Product Lifecycle Management system.
• Serve as the business lead and primary partner to the selected third-party PLM vendor, IT, implementation partners, and project management resources.
• Define future-state processes, workflows, governance, user roles, required data points, data ownership, business rules, integrations, and system requirements.
• Engage interested parties across Product Development, Global Sourcing, Supply Chain, Product Data, Product Assurance, International Logistics, Marketing, Finance, Sales Operations, IT, and other functions to capture end-to-end requirements and drive the project to completion.
• Coordinate process validation, data preparation, user acceptance testing, training, communications, deployment, and business readiness.
• After launch, own platform governance, process alignment, user adoption, business support, and the prioritization of feedback, change requests, and enhancements.
• Partner with IT and the vendor on administration, integrations, releases, support, and continued improvement of the PLM system.
• Ensure the platform serves as a common source of product development information and supports consistent visibility across all brands and departments.
• Develop and deliver role-based training, job aids, and practical guidance for Stage Gate, Hive, PLM, and product launch processes.
• Lead team member readiness, communications, user acceptance, adoption, and reinforcement of new ways of working.
• Coach teams transitioning into Hive and common corporate processes while accommodating legitimate business needs within established standards.
• Influence across brands, functions, and organizational levels to drive timely decisions, sustained adoption, and process adherence.

Benefits

• health, dental, vision, paid time off, life insurance and a 401(k) with a company match
• mental health coverage
• gender affirming and family building benefits
• paid parental leave
• associate discounts
• community involvement opportunities

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: Associate degree