Product Planner

Winnebago Industries•Forest City, IA

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The primary objective of the Product Planner position is to provide product definition and direction to facilitate the efficient and successful development, production, and marketing of the assigned Winnebago motorhome series. This role involves leading front-end efforts using Winnebago’s NPD process to develop successful features and floorplans that meet revenue and profit objectives. The Product Planner will also lead new product mockup and floorplan development, conduct iterative design sprints, and identify unmet customer needs through voice of the customer research. They will propose new product ideas and designs, assist with product lifecycle management, and create and maintain accurate product plans. A deep understanding of owners, their usage patterns, and subcultures of the assigned product class is essential. The role requires using User Experience (UX) design principles and iterative prototyping to drive innovation, validating designs through user experience, VOC, and testing. The Product Planner will also provide updates and recommendations for the Multigenerational Product Plan (MGPP), conduct efficient and accurate analysis, forecasting, and reporting for assigned industry segments, and participate in warranty and cost reduction teams. Developing expert product knowledge of competition and market conditions, assisting the sales and training team with competitive comparisons, product training materials, and support at RV shows, and providing product information for marketing and retail inquiries are also key responsibilities. Other responsibilities may be assigned based on business need.

Requirements

Industrial Design, Engineering, or similar product development education or experience
Ability to work in a collaborative environment
Excellent Communication skills
Strong work ethic and time management skills
Proficiency in Microsoft Office, WGO mainframe, D365, and Power BI

Nice To Haves

UX design training and experience (e.g. model making for rapid visualization, sketching, customer interviews etc.)
Product management training or experience
Design software experience- especially Siemens NX and Team Center
AI in product development including design iteration
Desire to use RV’s to gain firsthand experience
Functional understanding of RV systems and usage (electricity, water, etc.)

Responsibilities

Utilize Winnebago’s NPD process to lead front end efforts to develop successful features and floorplans meet revenue and profit objectives
Lead new product mockup and floorplan development
Lead iterative design sprints
Identify unmet needs of our customers through voice of the customer research using industry best practices
Propose new product ideas and designs to the product manager based on sound VOC research
Assist product manager for product lifecycle management of assigned products
Create and maintain accurate and complete product plans for assigned products
Develop an expert level of understanding of our owners, their usage patterns, and sub cultures of the assigned product class
Use User Experience (UX) design principles and iterative prototyping best practices to drive innovation
Validate designs through internal and external user experience, VOC, and testing
Provide regular updates, and recommendations for Multigenerational Product Plan (MGPP)
Efficient and accurate analysis, forecasting and reporting for assigned industry segments
Participate in warranty and cost reduction teams for assigned products
Develop expert product knowledge of competition and market conditions
Assist sales and training team with competitive comparisons, product training materials and product training and sales support at RV shows
Provide product information for marketing, retail inquiries and to assist owner relations