Sr. Principal, Lifecycle Program Lead – Instrument Replacement Excellence

Waters Corporation•Milpitas, CA

4d•Hybrid

About The Position

Our Enterprise Transformation team is on a mission to improve business outcomes and employee experiences by driving step-change improvements in critical enterprise processes, and the technology and analytics supporting these. As a Sr. Principal, Lifecycle Program Lead, you will be responsible for delivering transformative improvements in enterprise Instrument Replacement capabilities, defining and scaling a consistent, data driven approach to managing instrument lifecycle replacement across business units, regions, and commercial motions. This role is accountable for end‑to‑end replacement excellence, supporting the commercial teams with installed base intelligence, replacement strategy and playbooks to improve commercial execution, governance model, and value realization. Partnering with global sales leadership, commercial excellence, finance, IT, and operations, the desired business outcomes include translating lifecycle strategy into repeatable operating models that improve revenue retention, revenue growth and customer loyalty.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in business, Engineering, Economics, or a related field
12+ years of experience in lifecycle management, commercial excellence, sales operations, service operations, or enterprise transformation
Proven experience leading complex, cross‑functional programs in a global, multi‑BU environment
Strong understanding of: Installed base management and asset lifecycle concepts, Commercial motions supporting replacement, upgrades, and renewals, Sales and service operating models
Experience working with CRM, installed base, and analytics platforms (e.g., Salesforce or similar)
Demonstrated ability to influence without authority and drive alignment across senior stakeholders
Strong analytical mindset with the ability to translate strategy into execution
Results‑oriented, with a strong sense of ownership and urgency

Nice To Haves

Lean / continuous improvement experience a plus

Responsibilities

Enterprise Instrument Replacement strategy: Collaborate with commercial leadership and functional SMEs in the definition of the enterprise instrument replacement strategy, ensuring a consistent, scalable approach across regions, product lines, and customer segments
Lead gap analysis, future-state model for replacement timing logic, segmentation, and prioritization frameworks anchored in installed base health, service signals, technology evolution, and customer value
Facilitate cross-functional working sessions to define clear principles for repair vs. replace, upgrade pathways, and trade‑in / migration models ensuring consistency while allowing business unit flexibility
End‑to‑End Lifecycle model design: Collaborate with commercial leadership and functional SMEs to design and support governing the future‑state replacement operating models, including: Installed base intelligence and lifecycle triggers, Commercial plays and GTM motions, Pricing guidance
Ensure replacement programs are simple to understand, easy to deploy, and measurable, enabling effective adoption by business units
Cross‑Functional Leadership & Governance: Lead cross‑functional collaboration across Sales, Service, Commercial Excellence, Sales, Service, Product Management, Finance, IT, and Analytics
Facilitate executive alignment and decision making by clearly articulating trade‑offs, value cases, and risks
Define success metrics, KPIs, and partner with stakeholders to support governance, operating cadence for instrument replacement excellence
Digital, Data & Analytics Enablement: Partner with the Commercial Operations and Customer 360 teams to: Ensure accurate and actionable installed base visibility, Embed lifecycle and replacement triggers into CRM and analytics platforms, Enable consistent tracking of replacement opportunities, conversion, and value realization
Value Realization & Continuous Improvement: Define and track enterprise‑level impact of instrument replacement initiatives on: Revenue retention and growth, Margin and asset productivity, Customer experience and loyalty
Identify systemic bottlenecks and improvement opportunities, partnering with business units to address them
Scale best practices globally while enabling regional and segment‑specific execution flexibility