Product Director

Motivo 36•Rancho Dominguez, CA, CA

2d•$140,000 - $160,000

About The Position

Motivo is seeking a Product Director to lead a portfolio of complex engineering and product development programs. You will manage a team of direct-report Project and Product Managers to deliver creative solutions, cultivate deep client partnerships, and drive sustained business growth. As a member of the leadership team, you will also champion continuous improvement across Motivo’s people, processes, and tools. If you are a builder who thrives in ambiguity and can translate a big-picture vision into concrete, client-ready solutions, we want you on our team.

Requirements

8+ years of progressive leadership in engineering, design, NPI, or product development.
Proven history managing senior stakeholder relationships, handling executive escalations, and delivering excellent CX.
Success building, mentoring, and managing high-performing teams, shaping culture, and resolving personnel challenges.
Ability to formalize and scale operating systems, processes, and cross-functional governance frameworks.
Experience negotiating major follow-on contracts, managing scope creep, and optimizing portfolio profitability.
Strong written and verbal skills capable of bridging technical teams, corporate management, and client executives.
Ability to travel domestically up to 20% of the time.

Nice To Haves

Experience in complex hardware sectors (automotive, aerospace, robotics, autonomous systems, energy).
Strong familiarity with engineering workflows, product lifecycles, and NPI complexities.
PMP Certification or an MBA (or equivalent exposure to business cases and startup economics).
Forward-thinking approach to integrating Gen AI tools into workflows to drive team efficiency.
US Citizenship or Permanent Residency (due to export-controlled industries).

Responsibilities

Act as the senior escalation point across all engagements to ensure a top-tier client experience (CX).
Establish the strategic direction for business unit accounts, integrating market trends and client insights into long-term portfolio planning.
Collaborate with Business Development to onboard new clients, and lead negotiations to close major follow-on contracts.
Structure, support, and mentor a team of 3–6 project and product managers, making key resource and project assignments.
Define staffing needs, set clear performance expectations, identify skill gaps, support development plans, and proactively resolve performance shortfalls.
Identify, document, and scale core PM processes and cross-functional tools to ensure continuous operational improvement.
Cultivate an internal culture of collaboration while expanding Motivo’s external footprint through community and non-profit connections.
Oversee project planning complexities, approve PM estimates, and develop recovery strategies for major deviations or overruns.
Support reporting workflows to maintain high stakeholder satisfaction, tracking how reporting impacts client engagement.
Review and approve Change Orders and PM contracts while collaborating internally to improve governance templates.
Balance PM workload and project assignments, partnering with HR to resolve resource constraints.
Mentor Product Managers on early-phase product roadmapping, feature definitions, and client alignment communications.