Product Manager – Chemicals

Reports to: Director, R&D

Job Summary:

The Product Manager is responsible for chemicals product line contribution as a business unit. This includes identifying opportunities for new products, increasing the profitability of existing products, supporting chemical production plant, managing suppliers relationship, competitive monitoring, developing go-to-market strategies and generally supporting the needs of sales, marketing and management teams to provide technical support and training related to the strategic direction of the company.

Responsibilities:

• Manage the entire lifecycle of the product portfolio, and champion the interests of this category worldwide.
• Develop new product ideas based on industry experience, new legislations and feedback from sales representatives, customers, colleagues in sales organizations, and business partners.
• Devise product positioning that align with target customers.  Articulate clear value proposition. Collaborate with the marketing department for new product launch and promotional strategies.
• Conduct market research on customers and prospects in order to specify market requirements for existing and upcoming products. 
• Manage quality control process for chemical offering.
• Support WALTER chemical plant when needed. 
• Assist with development and maintenance of private label business. 
• Manage tech support line for chemicals category.
• Oversee the product launch process, including defining and tracking schedules and other related deliverables.
• Obtain necessary industry certifications and approvals on new and existing products as required by different end-user segments.
• Test and analyze competitive products and offerings. Analyze market and price positioning in all related countries. Provide full competitive analyses for use in new product development and for the benefit of our sales organizations.
• Provide product related info to internal stakeholders (sales, marketing, training, etc).
• Travel as needed to meet business partners, accompany salespersons on the road, and attend tradeshows (5-10% of the time).
• Ensure legal compliance with different governmental bodies. 
• Maintain product artworks, Safety Data Sheets and Technical Datasheets.

Knowledge, skills and abilities:

• Strong problem analysis and problem solving skills.
• Results oriented and ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Demonstrated success in product launches.
• Excellent negotiation and interpersonal skills. 
• Able to build and maintain lasting relationships with corporate departments, key business partners, and customers. 
• Excellent presentation skills, including experience presenting to large (50 ) audiences.
• Computer literate with excellent knowledge of Microsoft Office applications – Word, Excel, PowerPoint.
• Ability to write clearly and concisely.
• Knowledge of industrial distribution and/or metalworking industry is a plus

Experience and Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in chemistry, chemical engineering or a technically related field. An MBA would be an asset.
• Minimum of 3 years experience in a product management role.
• Technical background with minimum of 3 years experience in an industrial chemical environment.
• Experience in the industrial cleaners or disinfectants category would be an asset.