Innovation Engineering Manager

Come be DISRUPTIVE with us!At Milwaukee Tool, our most valued resource is our dedicated team of employees - employees who work with a passion to be the best and have an unparalleled pride in their work and in the Milwaukee brand. We know that the only way to sustain growth and success is to value the growth and success of each person within the organization that's why we invest in an individual's growth and development from day one.

Behind our doors you'll be empowered every day to own it, drive it, and do what it takes to design and develop the biggest breakthroughs in the industry. Meanwhile, you'll have the support and resources of the fastest-growing brand in the construction industry to make it happen.

Year after year, our team continues to make significant breakthroughs in the industry. We're just getting started. To learn more about our story click HERE.

As the Front-End Innovation (FEI) Manager, you will lead and develop a team of FEI Engineers that are obsessed with creating safer and more productive construction jobsites through innovating products in our PPE, Storage, Hand Tool and Layout products. Candidates for this role are driven by solving ambiguous problems, great at fostering creativity, and passionate about developing high potential engineers.

You'll also be DISRUPTIVE through these duties and responsibilities:

• Develop the Team:

  • Lead and grow a staff of FEI engineers

  • Support FEI roadmap development and resource plan to ensure a balance with resources and skills

• Team Leadership: Provide thought leadership to the organization including:

  • Sharing constructive feedback to inspire team members to produce great work and ensure they follow through with comprehensive attention to detail

  • Mentoring engineers on innovation methods, prototyping, and user research best practices

  • Coaching team to develop and deliver presentations, linking innovation work to user insights, brand stories, and business strategy.

  • Discovering and nurturing talent inside and outside the company

  • Build Relationships: Build and manage relationships with internal business teams working with the FEI Team in a way that reflects that we are a trusted partner that provides world-class thought leadership

• Front-End Innovation Leadership:

  • FEI Process Definition: Responsible for ensuring clear process and robust training for core Concept Team members and stakeholders

  • Guide and influence teams both in the way of thinking and in the way of working throughout the process of Concept/Front-End Innovation projects: from project scoping, problem framing, discovery and ideation, to design development, implementation and learning.

  • Infuse Disruptive Innovation Practice and Methods: Create, socialize, and nurture a toolbox of innovation practices, methods and processes; seamlessly integrate new methodologies and language used by internal teams. Advocate innovation methodologies and the value of our team capability within businesses.

• Project Team Coach:

  • Technical and User Integration: coach engineers to identify the key user and technical risks to product success and define the necessary scope to resolve and drive execution.

  • Define Completeness: Understand the NPD design process (deliverables, timing, pitfalls) to anticipate where work will go and guide teams to deliver appropriate and effective solutions. Support project leads in clarifying expectations and gauge quality of work to ensure output is complete and usable.

What TOOLS you'll bring with you:

• 7+ years of experience working on a product innovation team.

• 1+ years of management / team leadership experience preferred

• Expertise with design-thinking methods, processes, tools, & creativity.

• BS in Engineering or BA Industrial design are preferred.

• Experience designing & engineering durable good products

• Inventor:Irresistible drive to invent new solutions to old problems.

• Creativity:Original problem-solving skills coupled with a hands-on approach.

• Irreverence:Actively challenges behavior paradigm's both internally and externally.

• Critical Thinking:Thrives in ambiguous scenarios in which the correct direction(s) is not yet obvious. Great at gleaning meaning from whatever data is available and making decisions.

• Intuition:Knows the most effective and efficient methodologies to meet project goals.

• Aptitude:Possesses strong mechanical & manufacturing background to ground ideas but has a finger on the pulse of emerging technologies.

• Communication:Up, down, and throughout the organization - speaking the lexicon of the creative, technical and the trade.

• Cross-functionality:Works effectively with Engineering, Marketing, Industrial Design, & Design Research. Understands the strengths, value, and knows how to correctly utilize each member of the team most effectively.

We provide these great perks and benefits:

• Robust health, dental and vision insurance plans.

• Generous 401 (K) savings plan.

• Education assistance.

• On-site wellness, fitness center, food, and coffee service.

• And many more, check out our benefits site HERE.