Senior Manager of Commercialization

Organic Valley•Town of Portland, WI

1d•$111,987 - $149,323•Remote

About The Position

The Senior Manager of Commercialization translates approved business opportunities into successful execution through launch, stabilization, and post-launch evaluation. The role leads CROPP’s commercialization portfolio across innovation, renovation, productivity, packaging, manufacturing network changes, regulatory initiatives, and decommercialization activities. The position owns commercialization processes, portfolio prioritization, resource planning, risk management, and execution standards, ensuring alignment with organizational priorities, growth objectives, operational capabilities, and customer commitments. It leads and develops Commercialization team members and partners closely with Product Development, Marketing, Sales, Finance, Regulatory Affairs, Legal, Quality, Supply Chain, Procurement, and external partners. The role is eligible to be performed remotely. Employees residing within 100 miles of Organic Valley offices in Wisconsin are expected to collaborate onsite in a hybrid fashion four days per month. Employees residing farther away travel onsite four times per year for collaboration and connection. The position is salaried and eligible for a 25% annual incentive bonus based on cooperative and individual performance. It is not safety sensitive.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Food Science, Business, Supply Chain, Engineering, Project Management, or a related discipline.
Five or more years of experience in commercialization, project management, product development, supply chain, innovation, or a related function within food, beverage, consumer packaged goods, manufacturing, or a related industry.
Demonstrated experience leading complex cross-functional initiatives from concept through implementation.
Experience leading people, developing talent, and building high-performing teams.
Strong portfolio, program, and project management expertise.
Strong business and financial acumen, including understanding business cases, revenue, margin, cost, and operational impacts.
Ability to influence stakeholders, resolve conflicts, and drive alignment without direct authority.
Experience developing processes, performance metrics, reporting frameworks, and continuous improvement initiatives.
Strong communication, facilitation, negotiation, and presentation skills, including interaction with senior leadership.
Ability to manage ambiguity, competing priorities, and organizational change effectively.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills to assess risks and opportunities and develop actionable recommendations.

Nice To Haves

PMP, PMI, or similar project management certification.
Dairy experience.
Knowledge of commercialization, portfolio management, ERP, PLM, and project management systems.

Responsibilities

Lead the commercialization portfolio in alignment with organizational priorities, strategic objectives, resource availability, and business commitments.
Develop and maintain an integrated commercialization roadmap across innovation, renovation, productivity, regulatory, customer, and supply chain initiatives.
Set portfolio priorities and identify risks, dependencies, capacity constraints, and competing resource requirements.
Provide portfolio insights, trade-off analyses, and recommendations to support business decision-making.
Establish and monitor portfolio health indicators, commercialization KPIs, and resource utilization measures.
Own and continuously improve commercialization processes, standards, tools, and ways of working.
Lead and improve the Stage Gate process, ensuring initiatives meet readiness criteria, decision requirements, and business expectations.
Establish project management standards, decision-making frameworks, escalation paths, and accountability mechanisms.
Lead portfolio planning and governance in partnership with other functions, supporting financial objectives and adherence to business guardrails.
Promote consistent execution through standardized methodologies, templates, reporting structures, and best practices.
Identify opportunities to improve speed-to-market, execution quality, resource efficiency, and cross-functional collaboration.
Ensure commercialization initiatives are delivered from approval through launch, stabilization, and closure.
Oversee project plans, timelines, milestones, resource requirements, implementation strategies, and success measures.
Manage project risks, issues, and escalations to minimize impacts to scope, timing, quality, cost, operational readiness, and customer commitments.
Ensure commercialization activities meet quality, food safety, regulatory, operational, and financial requirements.
Lead and influence cross-functional teams, fostering collaboration, accountability, and alignment.
Serve as the primary commercialization partner to Product Development, Marketing, Sales, Finance, Supply Chain, Quality, Regulatory Affairs, Legal, Procurement, and external manufacturing partners.
Communicate portfolio and project status, risks, decisions, priorities, resource needs, and business impacts.
Facilitate timely decision-making through recommendations, trade-off evaluations, and escalation of critical issues.
Lead, coach, and develop Commercialization team members; establish goals, expectations, and development plans aligned with organizational objectives.
Build capabilities in project management, stakeholder engagement, risk management, and commercialization execution.
Support talent development, succession planning, onboarding, and knowledge sharing.
Foster accountability, collaboration, continuous improvement, and ownership.
Develop reporting, dashboards, and scorecards showing portfolio performance, resource utilization, risks, and business outcomes.
Conduct post-launch reviews and assess project results against business objectives and success measures.
Partner with Finance and business stakeholders to evaluate commercial outcomes and identify improvement opportunities.
Apply lessons learned to improve commercialization processes, tools, and organizational capabilities.
Perform other duties as assigned.

Benefits

Comprehensive health insurance, with plan choices for employees and families, including plans that can be paired with an HSA to which CROPP contributes.
Supplemental accidental, critical illness, and hospital indemnity insurance.
136 hours of time off in the first year, prorated by start date, plus nine paid holidays and one floating holiday.
Six weeks of paid parental leave for partners in childbirth or adoption.
Vision and dental insurance, including a free annual eye exam, discounts on glasses and contacts, a flexible dental network, and adult orthodontia.
401(k) matching: 100% match on the first 3% of employee contributions and 50% on contributions from 3.1% to 5.0%.
Free services at five local Neighborhood Family Clinics.
Tuition reimbursement of up to $1,500 per year for continuing higher education.
CROPP-funded $50,000 life insurance policy, with supplemental voluntary coverage available for employees, spouses, and children.
Short-term and long-term disability and AD&D insurance; CROPP-funded coverage is described as $50,000 of life insurance and $50,000 of AD&D coverage.
Free and confidential Employee Assistance Program for employees, spouses, and dependents.
Free onsite fitness centers available 24/7.
Free biometric screenings and health coaching.
Financial advisors and seminars.
Annual $360 Lifestyle Spending Account.
On-site all-organic cafeterias.
Eligibility for a 25% annual incentive bonus based on cooperative and individual performance.