New Product Insights Development Engineer

3M•Maplewood, MN

4d•$164,612 - $201,193•Onsite

About The Position

The person hired for the position of NPI Market Development Engineer in the Abrasive Systems Division will lead Voice of Technology work to define and validate new growth spaces by uncovering unarticulated unmet customer needs. This role will strengthen ASD’s insight-led NPI pipeline by translating market, customer, competitive, and technology signals into qualified opportunity areas. Working closely with NPI Market Development Manager (business counterpart), application engineers, technical leaders, and cross-functional partners, this individual will shape opportunity hypotheses, apply AI-enabled tools where appropriate to strengthen market insight synthesis, and advance qualified concepts through early key NPI gates.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree or higher (completed and verified prior to start) from an accredited institution
Seven (7) years of combined experience in technical, engineering product, customer facing market development, strategy, customer insights, sales, engineering, or a related field in a private, public, government or military environment
Must be legally authorized to work in country of employment without sponsorship for employment visa status (e.g., H1B status).

Nice To Haves

PhD degree in science or engineering from an accredited institution
Five (5) years of in a technical, engineering, strategy or customer facing role] in a private, public, government or military environment
Knowledge of abrasives, industrial markets, manufacturing processes, customer applications, or adjacent spaces where technology can solve customer problems
Experience in NPI, front-end innovation, Voice of Customer/Market research, business development, growth strategy, or related market insight roles.
Familiarity with innovation and commercialization methods, including lean startup principles, customer discovery, business models, and opportunity assessment frameworks.
Experience conducting patent searches, literature reviews, competitive analysis, or technology white-space assessments and synthesizing and analyzing these data.
Ability to influence across functions, partner with technical teams, simplify complex analysis, and deliver clear recommendations to senior stakeholders.
Demonstrated success working in a global matrix organization with curiosity, resilience, collaboration, and comfort navigating ambiguity.

Responsibilities

Lead global Voice of Market discovery by engaging customers, application engineers, technology experts, and industry participants to uncover unmet needs and emerging application opportunities.
Define and prioritize technology-enabled market spaces using customer insights, market trends, competitive dynamics, intellectual property landscapes, manufacturing considerations, and AI-supported analysis.
Identify and shape a balanced opportunity pipeline across adjacent and emerging growth spaces, with a focus on developing significant NPI opportunities.
Partner with product, technical, and application teams to develop, test, and validate opportunity hypotheses, value propositions, target applications, and technical solution fit.
Translate complex technical, customer, and market inputs into clear opportunity narratives that connect customer value and commercial potential with technology capabilities.
Comply with corporate policies, procedures and security standards while performing assigned duties.
Contribute to a strong Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) culture by following safety policies, identifying hazards, and engaging in continuous improvement.