Capgemini Invent - Sr. Product Innovation & Strategy Manager

Capgemini • San Francisco, CA

2d

About The Position

At Capgemini Invent, we believe difference drives change. As inventive transformation consultants, we blend our strategic, creative and scientific capabilities, collaborating closely with clients to deliver cutting-edge solutions. Join us to drive transformation tailored to our client's challenges of today and tomorrow. Informed and validated by science and data. Superpowered by creativity and design. All underpinned by technology created with purpose. Synapse, a part of Capgemini Invent, is a product development consultancy working with the world’s most ambitious companies to envision, create, and launch breakthrough AI-powered intelligent products. Sitting at the intersection of hardware, embedded systems, and AI, we specialize in engineering-led innovation that transforms business and unlocks entirely new market categories. Join an innovation team based in the heart of Silicon Valley at Capgemini’s global innovation hub, Mission Rock. We bring new human-centered products to market through close collaboration across three capability units: Synapse, frog, and AIE. Product Innovation & Strategy at Synapse: The Product Innovation & Strategy team builds business value by connecting user needs, market trends, and client goals. We identify unmet customer needs and competitive opportunities, developing innovative and implementable product ideas. Our reason for being is to deliver a strategy that “ships,” with a particular focus on AI-driven and hardware-enabled innovation. We work upstream in the product development lifecycle, framing opportunities through research, user insights, stakeholder alignment, and competitive analysis while maintaining line of sight to what is actually possible. We design and facilitate workshops to generate and evaluate early-stage concepts followed by multidisciplinary refinement, proofs of concept, and rapid prototyping. We prioritize the most promising ideas and assess them across user desirability, technical feasibility, sustainability, and business viability. Once vetted, we collaborate with engineering and other teams to further define, de-risk, and translate concepts into product requirements, design and engineering timelines, and product roadmaps, supporting development through manufacturing readiness. Your Role As a Product Innovation & Strategy Manager, you will play a pivotal role in guiding clients through the early stages of product development - from ideation to impact.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Engineering, Design, or a related field; Masters degree (MBA, Master's in Design Strategy) is a plus.
• 7+ years of experience in strategy consulting, corporate innovation, product management, product marketing, design research, or a related field.
• Proven experience leading ideation and innovation processes with a track record of identifying successful new opportunities.
• Excellent facilitation and storytelling skills, with the ability to engage stakeholders from C-suite to technical teams.
• Demonstrated experience in market research, competitive analysis, and GTM strategy.
• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to synthesize complex information into clear strategies and product concepts.
• Proficiency in innovation tools and methodologies, such as design thinking, Lean Startup, and agile frameworks.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively with strategy, design, and engineering teams in a fast-paced environment.
• A passion for technology and innovation in the AI-powered physical product space.
• To better understand your thinking and approach, we ask that candidates share a portfolio of past work as part of the interview process.
• Travel is required per 50-75% dependent on client need.

Nice To Haves

• Masters degree (MBA, Master's in Design Strategy) is a plus.
• Experience with sustainable product design is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Opportunity Framing & Concept Development Lead client engagements focused on identifying new product and service opportunities across AI and physical technologies.
• Conduct market research, trend analysis, and competitive benchmarking to uncover strategic opportunity areas.
• Lead client interviews to identify business goals, pain points, and unmet user needs.
• Facilitate ideation workshops to co-create innovative product and service concepts.
• Develop and downselect product concepts using our desirability-feasibility-sustainability-viability framework.
• Visualize and communicate ideas using customer journey maps, service blueprints, and value proposition canvases.
• Develop GTM strategies and monetization models aligned with market and business dynamics.
• Cross-Collaboration & Execution Collaborate with UX, Engineering, Project Management, Supply Chain, and Sustainability to refine and de-risk concepts.
• Design and lead early-stage validation sprints, including assumption mapping, customer testing, and feedback loops to shape MVP direction.
• Work with project managers to create actionable plans for transition into prototyping and product development.
• Develop roadmaps for future products and features.
• Provide strategic support throughout the product lifecycle, from concept to market.
• Commercial Development Support new client pitches and proposals and contribute to thought leadership to grow our reputation and brand awareness in this space.
• Support development of our commercial growth strategies to connect with new clients in need of this capability.
• Build a network within the Capgemini Group and contribute to the education of other Business Units around Life Sciences practice offerings to support existing account expansion
• Play a significant role in client proposals and RFI/RFP responses from initial brief to final sales presentations
• Nurture and expand existing account relationships
• Identify potential personal business relationships that can be leveraged by the practice to develop new business
• Identify potential project extension and expansion opportunities while staffed on projects
• Support the development of thought leadership and innovative offerings as they relate to AI/Data Science, Digital Customer Analytics, and Operational Analytics.
• Support the upskilling of the Life Sciences team members on topics related to Data & Analytics

Benefits

• Paid time off based on employee grade (A-F), defined by policy: Vacation: 12-25 days, depending on grade, Company paid holidays, Personal Days, Sick Leave
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage (or provincial healthcare coordination in Canada)
• Retirement savings plans (e.g., 401(k) in the U.S., RRSP in Canada)
• Life and disability insurance
• Employee assistance programs
• Other benefits as provided by local policy and eligibility

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees