Director, Product Management - Backplane

Job Overview

The Director, Product Management will lead the global high-speed interconnect product portfolio, driving strategy development, business planning, and cross-functional execution to deliver sustained growth. This individual will oversee a team of product managers located around the world and will be accountable for developing the long-term vision, defining go-to-market strategies, and managing the full product lifecycle. This includes new product development through commercialization and post-launch performance.

A commercially savvy and growth-oriented leader, the Director will own the key product strategies and business execution for a rapidly expanding global business. This role carries full responsibility for product strategy, business leadership, and achieving sales, profit, and financial objectives. Partnering closely with Sales, Marketing, Engineering, and Operations, the Director will ensure alignment on strategy, development priorities, and manufacturing capabilities to meet business targets at the right cost, schedule, and quality.

In addition to driving organic growth, the Director will identify and lead opportunities for expansion through licensing and strategic partnerships. Acting with an entrepreneurial mindset and a general management approach, this individual will bring strong strategic acumen, global perspective, and a deep understanding of the cloud and data center ecosystem. We are also looking for someone with experience with Cloud Service Providers and GPU companies is highly desirable. The Director, Product Management will champion a culture of customer obsession, fostering collaboration across functions to enhance responsiveness and strengthen customer engagement.

Key Responsibilities

• Analyze market and industry trends, demand drivers, customer needs, and the competitive landscape to identify growth opportunities.
• Conduct market segmentation, competitive analysis, and benchmarking to define segment-specific value propositions that outperform the competition.
• Develop long-term product roadmaps aligned with overall business strategy, collaborating with R&D and operations to create products that meet current and future customer requirements.
• Design go-to-market strategies, including channel and partnership models, and manage the full product lifecycle from concept through post-launch optimization.
• Define resource requirements and work cross-functionally to align sales, technology, and operations strategies with financial objectives.
• Establish pricing policies and develop annual operating plans, including sales and margin targets.
• Engage with customers to understand their strategic priorities and ensure product plans align with their needs.
• Champion new growth initiatives and assess opportunities for new product development.
• Plan and execute product launches, including marketing and sales enablement, while ensuring accurate demand forecasting for S&OP.
• Negotiate directly with customers on major program opportunities and provide thought leadership within the interconnect and cable ecosystem market.
• Partner with marketing communications to create collateral and digital content that articulates product value propositions.
• Manage the P&L for assigned portfolios to deliver sustained, profitable growth.
• Support sales teams through training and the creation of materials that strengthen customer engagement.
• Oversee special pricing requests and address product-related issues such as quality or delivery challenges.
• Track performance against business plans and facilitate corrective actions to close gaps.
• Lead, motivate, and develop a global, multicultural team of product managers, fostering collaboration and growth through coaching and performance development.

Key Qualifications

The ideal candidate will bring a minimum of five years of product management experience and at least ten years in B2B commercial roles, with a strong record of leading strategic growth initiatives in engineering- and manufacturing-driven industries. This individual will demonstrate exceptional strategic thinking, analytical ability, and executional excellence

• Deep understanding of cloud and datacenter hardware architectures.
• Experience with high-speed interconnects—such as twinax cabling, near-chip connectivity, or high-speed I/O—strongly preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree in a technical or business discipline required; advanced degree (MBA) and relevant P&L management experience preferred.
• Strong business acumen with the ability to grasp technically complex concepts and translate them into actionable strategies.
• Proven experience negotiating large, high-stakes contracts.
• Creative, innovative thinker capable of shaping product strategies and executing corresponding business plans.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities and drive results in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Exceptional interpersonal, organizational, and teamwork skills, with a proven ability to influence and collaborate across global, cross-functional teams.
• Skilled leader adept at building strong internal and external relationships.
• Excellent presentation and communication skills, with the ability to convey complex information clearly and effectively across all organizational levels.
• Willingness and ability to travel regionally and globally (approximately 10–25%).

Competencies