Job Details

Level: Senior

Job Location: CT Shelton - Shelton, CT

Salary Range: Undisclosed

Description

We are seeking a highly experienced and strategic Director of Strategic Program Management to lead our end-to-end new product development (NPD) process and ensure seamless coordination with both owned and third-party manufacturing partners. This role is critical to delivering high-quality products on time and within budget while aligning cross-functional teams and external stakeholders to achieve business objectives. The ideal candidate brings exceptional project management expertise, a strategic mindset, excellent collaboration skills and the ability to lead across disciplines including marketing, sourcing, procurement, and operations.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Planning

Partner closely with the Chief Product & Marketing Officer and executive team to align project roadmaps with business strategy and growth goals.
Translate business needs into executable plans and ensure alignment across all key functions and stakeholders.
Collaborate with executive team and VP of Transformation to lead strategic prioritization and trade-off discussions to optimize resource allocation and timelines.

Project Management

Own and drive the NPD lifecycle process from concept to commercialization, ensuring projects are delivered on time, within scope, and with high quality.
Build, manage, and continuously improve scalable project management processes and tools that support efficient execution across product lines.
Partner daily with Product, Marketing, Sales, Engineering & Supply Chain teams to drive efforts to deliver innovation and quality improvements.
Define and manage project timelines, resource plans, budgets, and risk mitigation strategies.
Establish KPIs and metrics to track project performance and ensure accountability.
Own the Make vs. Buy stage gate process and facilitate the executive review.
Take full accountability for hand-off of new items; starts with sample approval and concludes with receipt of goods from customers.
Embed quality checkpoints throughout the development lifecycle—from design reviews and prototyping to testing and manufacturing validation.
Establish feedback loops between field performance, customer feedback, and development to drive continuous product and process improvements.
Collaborate with Operations and Supply Chain teams to implement quality control systems at manufacturing and before shipment, tracking vendor performance against KPIs.
Lead root cause analysis and corrective action processes for product or process failures, applying insights to strengthen future outcomes.

Cross-Functional Team Leadership

Serve as the operational and strategic “glue” across all functions involved in product development—including Product, Engineering, Sourcing and both internal & 3rd party manufacturing.
Clarify roles, responsibilities, and dependencies to ensure effective collaboration and smooth handoffs across functions.
Build strong working relationships with cross-functional leaders to enable rapid decision-making and issue resolution.

Sourcing & Procurement:

Provide strategic guidance on global sourcing strategies, considering factors such as cost, quality, lead time, innovation and geopolitical risks.
Establish and manage supplier selection, evaluation, and qualification processes.
Negotiate and manage contracts with key suppliers, ensuring favorable terms and conditions.
Develop and implement procurement policies and procedures to ensure compliance and efficiency.
Drive cost reduction and value creation through strategic sourcing and procurement activities.

Team Leadership & Development:

Build and lead a high-performing team, fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement.
Provide coaching, mentoring, and development opportunities to team members.
Set clear performance expectations and provide regular feedback.
Support Chief Product & Marketing officer in managing departmental budgets and resources effectively.

Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business Administration, Engineering, or a related field; Master's degree preferred.
Minimum of 10+ years of progressive experience in project management, product development or operations with a proven track record of success in a senior leadership role.
Proven experience managing cross-functional projects in complex product environments, preferably with both owned and contract manufacturing sources.
Extensive experience in establishing, training and running a structured product development process. Strong preference for knowledge of stage-gate approach.
Technical aptitude and comfort with technical product development, along with ability to work alongside engineering, design and manufacturing teams.
Strong understanding of global supply chain dynamics and best practices.
Excellent negotiation, communication, and interpersonal skills.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
Proven ability to lead and develop high-performing teams.
Experience managing large budgets and resources.
Global experience is a plus.
Experience with horticultural products, agricultural supply chains, or related industries is a strong plus.
Willingness to travel 15-25% of the time may include some international travel.

Skills & Competencies

Strategic Thinking
Leadership
Project Management
Technical aptitude
Relationship Management
Problem Solving
Decision Making
Communication
Financial Acumen
Change Management