Senior Product Manager

Graco manufactures and markets premium equipment to move, measure, control, dispense and spray a wide variety of fluid and powder materials. What does that mean? Well, we pump peanut butter into your jar, and the oil in your car. We glue the soles of your shoes, the glass in your windows and the screen on your phone. We spray the finish on your vehicle, coatings on your pills, the paint on your house and texture on your walls. Graco is part of your daily life.

The Senior Product Manager will lead global product management for the Contractor Division’s Pavement, Turf, and Flooring sub-vertical, with a primary focus on driving growth across line striping, field marking, surface preparation, and flooring equipment. This role supports new product development and portfolio management by shaping strategy, identifying growth opportunities, and driving disciplined execution for sustainable growth.

The Senior Product Manager will manage and lead the full product lifecycle for the assigned product category. This role will collaborate with divisional marketing, sales, engineering, and operations to execute on a 5-year product roadmap. This individual will need a blend of technical knowledge, market insights, strategic thinking and project execution skills to ensure the alignment of the product category to the customer needs and divisional goals. The Senior Product Manager will define and oversee the delivery of the strategy and roadmap for the products to achieve both customer (buyers and users) outcomes and organizational financial objectives. The Senior Product Manager is effectively the ‘voice of the customer in the product’. The Senior Product Manager continuously uses data to empower decision making and inform product direction in ways that build toward positive business outcomes for the division and the customers.

What You Will Do at Graco

Product Strategy, Development and Management

• Discover valuable problems to solve and validate potential solutions with customers and the market.

• Develop a deep understanding of business goals and processes to inform product priorities and improvement recommendations.

• Socialize the product strategy and ensure a collective understanding among internal and external stakeholders.

• Lead product strategy, planning, and lifecycle management efforts to support the ongoing evolution and innovation of the product line.

• Monitor and analyze business, marketing and technology trends and competitive intelligence to inform product strategy and proactively propose innovative solutions.

• Establish product roadmaps and release plans that satisfy requirements and achieve desired customer outcomes.

• Contribute to translating desired business outcomes into actionable products and technical requirements.

• Continuously monitor and evaluate product performance, including sales and usage metrics, to monitor product health and make maintain/refresh/retirement recommendations and decisions.

• Define, track, and communicate relevant KPIs for the product to measure performance and contribution to business goals and strategy.

• Guide and empower the product engineering team to scope, plan and deliver work, applying established delivery methodologies (e.g. agile methodology) and best practices (e.g. reusability).

• Collaborate with category marketing to drive adoption and consumption of product capabilities, inclusive of identifying specific product experience enhancements intended to drive acquisition and expansion.

• Execute a five-year product roadmap for assigned product category aligning with the division’s global strategy and market trends.

• Oversee product development processes from ideation to launch, working closely with engineering and operations.

• Forge strong partnerships with operations and engineering for product development execution to the Customer Requirements Documentation (CRD).

• Oversee testing and validation of new products to ensure they meet quality and performance standards.

• Manage entire product category lifecycle, from introduction to exit.

• Engage with relevant stakeholders to discuss cost structures and explore alternative options to optimize product development costs without compromising quality.

• Work closely with engineering teams to assess the feasibility of proposed solutions and prioritize features based on technical constraints and business objectives.

• Define and communicate clear product scopes, outlining features, functionalities and deliverables to meet customer needs and expectations.

• Develop technical product content and SKU information to support sales and marketing efforts.

Product and Technology Optimization

• Manage SKU rationalization and portfolio management for assigned products.

• Identify and evaluate technical requirements and optimization across products for compliance and market acceptance.  

Market Research, Analysis and Insight Utilization

• Utilize data analytics to continuously re-evaluate product performance and customer satisfaction, adjusting as necessary to meeting evolving market demands.

• Capture, analyze and standardize product finding to drive continuous improvement and maintain consistency in product data.

Customer Engagement, Testing and Training

• Establish and implement field tests and demo plans to maximize product impact and validations.

• Collaborate with training and engineering teams to develop and deliver product training materials, covering operation, service, maintenance and repair.

• Oversee the trademark registration process for new products to protect intellectual property rights and prevent infringement.

• Plan and conduct field tests with customers prior to product launch to gather feedback, identify potential issues, and validate product functionality.

• Coordinate and oversee material testing processes to ensure product quality, compliance and durability.

What You Will Bring to Graco

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, Engineering, or a related field.

• 5+ years of experience in product development and management.

• Proven track record of successfully managing products from concept to launch.

• Exceptional capability to collaborate with cross-functional teams and manage complex projects.

• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with experience reporting to senior leadership.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a data-driven approach to decision-making.

• Solid technical aptitude with the ability to understand complex engineering concepts.

• Ability to travel approximately 20% of the time, both domestic or international.

Accelerators

• Global industrial manufacturing experience and knowledge.

• Fluid and material management equipment product development knowledge.

• MBA or equivalent advanced degree.

#LI-Hybrid

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States. This role is not eligible for immigration sponsorship now or in the future (e.g., H-1B, TN, F-1 OPT).

At Graco, you truly make a difference. Your unique talents contribute to our organizational growth and future. Not only do you make a difference, but Graco’s culture empowers employees to create their own career path. Whether you choose to advance within your current department or explore new opportunities in different divisions, you have the ability to build your future. Our managers are here to provide support and guidance as you continue to grow within your career.

Graco has excellent opportunities available to individuals who want to be part of a fast-moving, growing company that is committed to quality, innovation and solving fluid handling problems for our customers. Graco is proud to be named a Best Place to Work by Fortune Magazine in 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021 & 2022. Graco offers attractive compensation, benefits and career development opportunities. Graco’s comprehensive benefits include medical, dental, stock purchase plan, 401(k), tuition reimbursement and more.

Our company uses E-Verify to confirm the employment and eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify.

The base pay range for this position is listed below, exclusive of fringe benefits or other compensation.  If you are hired, your final base hourly rate will be determined based on factors such as geographic location, skills, competencies, education, and/or experience.  In addition to those factors, we will also consider internal equity of our current employees.  Please keep in mind that the range provided is the full base salary range for the role.  Hiring at or near the maximum of the range would not be typical to allow for future and continued salary growth.