Vice President-Design & Advanced Development
| Company | SharkNinja |
|---|---|
| Location | Needham, MA, USA |
| Salary | $Not Provided – $Not Provided |
| Type | Full-Time |
| Degrees | Bachelor’s |
| Experience Level | Expert or higher |
Requirements
- A degree in Product Design Engineering, Industrial Design, or a related field that blends design and engineering.
- 15+ years of experience in product design and innovation, ideally in high-volume consumer goods environments.
- A rich portfolio of category-defining consumer products that demonstrate design excellence, storytelling, and successful commercialization.
- Proven leadership in building and developing creative teams—mentoring talent, championing new voices, and fostering collaboration across disciplines.
- An ability to lead with vision and conviction while remaining hands-on, detail-oriented, and deeply engaged in the creative process.
- A natural presenter and communicator, with the charisma and clarity to sell ideas across all levels of the organization—from engineers to executives.
- Strong technical foundation in high-volume manufacturing and an appreciation for the intersection of creativity and feasibility.
- A love for “making”—whether sketching, building, modeling, or hacking together ideas to inspire others.
- Bold thinking, grounded in insight, empathy, and a deep understanding of consumer behavior.
Responsibilities
- Lead SharkNinja’s Front-End Innovation team, responsible for driving concept creation, design storytelling, and early platform exploration across all product categories.
- Inspire a team of Industrial Designers and Product Design Engineers to generate physical and visual prototypes that sell ideas and excite cross-functional partners and senior executives.
- Be a design storyteller—capable of pitching future-focused concepts in a way that connects emotionally and drives alignment across the business.
- Champion a studio culture that blends hands-on making, iterative sketching, advanced prototyping, and bold thinking grounded in technical feasibility.
- Partner with Mechanical Engineering, R&D, Product Development, and Product Marketing to ensure early concepts are rooted in a strong, scalable product strategy.
- Integrate deep knowledge of materials, manufacturing methods (e.g., plastic injection molding, die casting, sheet metal), and DFM/DFA to ensure ideas are not just exciting—but achievable.
- Bring context and imagination to every phase of development, combining user insights, trend forecasting, and emerging technologies to shape future design visions.
- Cultivate a high-energy environment where curiosity, creativity, and invention are celebrated and continuously pushed forward.
- Maintain a consumer-obsessed mindset, with a focus on developing products that change behaviors, exceed expectations, and lead markets.
Preferred Qualifications
- A PDE background is highly valued for its unique balance of technical rigor and creative thinking.