Innovation Leader

Barry-Wehmiller Companies Inc.; Nottingham; On-site; GBP 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Barry-Wehmiller Packaging, UK, seeks a Leader, Innovation to steer an engineering team that delivers machines solving customer problems and setting market standards. You’ll partner with product, operations, and sales to align customer needs with the portfolio and drive cross-functional execution.

You will lead prototypes, testing, and roadmap planning while coaching engineers to grow and deliver high-impact solutions in a global setting.

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science in an Engineering discipline.
• 6+ years of engineering experience with increasing complexity and responsibility, including leading projects or technical teams.
• Experience delivering product development projects through stage gates.
• Strong mechanical, electrical, and/or controls aptitude and engineering fundamentals, with working knowledge of machine controls and automation.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of innovation engineers, in person at UK sites and with teams abroad.
• Set clear, measurable goals with each team member and conduct regular performance reviews.
• Visit customer sites to observe machines in operation and capture field feedback for product improvements.
• Translate market and customer requirements into engineering specifications and roadmaps.
• Oversee prototype build, testing, and validation to ensure designs meet standards.

Skills

Leadership

Project management

Analytical skills

Communication

Education

Bachelor of Science in Engineering

Job description

About Us

BW Packaging is driving performance at the intersection of people, technology, and customer care. As part of the privately held Barry-Wehmiller family, we unite a global team of packaging experts with a clear purpose: People Who Care, Building Solutions that Perform. We take on our customers’ toughest challenges as our own — delivering both innovative and enduring solutions that set the standard for value and performance. Our strength comes from our people and the power of our brands — trusted names in packaging that are known worldwide for engineering excellence, application expertise, and lifetime commitment to customer success. Truly Human Leadership guides our belief that exceptional business results and profound respect for people together provide the foundation of enduring success. We are committed to forging lasting partnerships with our customers, earning their trust through integrity, expertise, and execution. With our full range of packaging solutions and long term partnership and service, we help customers achieve operational excellence today while building the future of packaging together.

Job Description

The Leader, Innovation leads an innovation engineering team within BW Packaging and is accountable for what that team brings to customers and markets: machines that solve real customer problems, perform reliably in the field, and set the standard in their markets. The Leader turns customer needs, market opportunities, and the portfolio’s priorities into work plans, engineering specifications, and marquee products that win in their target markets. The Leader develops and directs the team’s engineers, oversees projects from specification through launch, plans capacity, and serves as a technical authority. The Leader partners closely with product line leaders, Operations, Engineering Operations, Supply Chain, and Commercial Sales teams so that customer and market needs are understood and built into the product. The Leader combines deep knowledge of mechanical, electrical, and controls engineering fundamentals; machine design; design standards, including modularity and configurability; agile project management; and prototyping and testing. The Leader cares about the customers who run our machines, and helps each team member discover, develop, and apply their talents, so that they and the business reach their full potential.

Key Responsibilities

Team Leadership & Development

• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of innovation engineers, in person at UK sites and through regular time with team members in other countries.
• Foster an environment of respect, accountability, and continuous improvement, with clear roles and responsibilities for each team member.
• Build the team’s capabilities: identify skill gaps against upcoming work, and close them through training, stretch assignments, mentoring, and cross‑training across product lines.
• Support each team member’s professional growth: hold regular career conversations, agree a development plan, and follow through on it.
• Recruit and grow talent for the team.

Performance Management

• Set clear, measurable goals with each team member, tied to project and team commitments.
• Hold regular one‑on‑ones, and give timely, specific feedback on results and behaviors.
• Complete mid‑year and year‑end reviews on time, with ratings based on evidence and shared standards.
• Differentiate performance: recognize strong contributors, and address underperformance early with clear expectations and a plan to improve.
• Follow through on what was agreed in reviews, including development actions.

Customer & Market Focus

• Visit customer sites and see machines running there, and make sure the team’s engineers do too.
• Understand the customer’s process, constraints, and goals well enough to challenge and sharpen requirements.
• Join customer trials, acceptance tests, and technical discussions alongside Sales and Product Management, and act on what customers say.
• Follow machines into the field, and use installation, service, and aftermarket feedback to improve current and future designs.
• Keep the team current on market needs and competing technologies and build a team that treats the customer’s problem as its own.

Project Planning & Delivery

• Translate market and customer requirements into engineering specifications with product line leaders and project teams.
• Define work plans and milestones for the team, aligned with the portfolio’s priorities, and deliver stage‑gate commitments on time.
• Plan capacity and match engineers to the highest‑priority work; tell the Director early when projects compete for the same team members or a milestone is at risk.
• Support team members in contributing to other teams as priorities shift.
• Oversee prototype build, testing, and validation, and ensure deliverables meet engineering specifications and design standards.

Technical Leadership

• Serve as the team’s technical authority and a subject matter expert, giving input and direction across the engineering organization and to those outside the immediate span of care.
• Coach the team to design standards and engineering excellence, including modularity and configurability.
• Lead design reviews and resolve technical problems within projects.
• Assess emerging and competing technologies relevant to target markets, and present findings to the Director and product line leaders.

Cross‑Functional Collaboration

• Work with product line leaders to gather market requirements, and give feasibility, effort, and risk input to the roadmap.
• Work effectively with Operations, Engineering Operations, and Supply Chain on manufacturability and production handoff.
• Work effectively with Commercial, Sales, Service, and Aftermarket teams, so that designs reflect what the market needs and how machines perform in the field.
• Collaborate with other Innovation teams to share designs, practices, and resources.

Performance Monitoring & Process Improvement

• Track and report project status, milestones, risks, and decisions needed, clearly and on a regular cadence.
• Review completed projects with the team and apply the lessons to the next ones.
• Implement and improve agile project management processes and tools for fast, repeatable output.

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor of Science in an Engineering discipline.
• 6+ years of engineering experience with increasing complexity and responsibility, including leading projects or technical teams.
• Experience delivering product development projects through stage gates.
• Strong mechanical, electrical, and/or controls aptitude and engineering fundamentals, with working knowledge of machine controls and automation.
• Deep technical curiosity, professional courage, and drive for advancing ambitious ideas, while balancing and mitigating associated risks.
• Strong analytical skills and a creative approach to problem solving.
• Excellent project management and organisational skills, with the ability to lead, track, and advance multiple projects concurrently.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication, and presentation skills, with engineers, customers, and commercial partners.
• Proven ability to motivate and develop team members; previous experience as a people leader preferred.
• Experience working in globally distributed teams, and with more than one product line or machine type, preferred.
• Flexibility to take on evolving responsibilities in response to strategic priorities and business needs.
• Must have a valid driver’s licence, good driving record, and the ability to obtain a passport.

Success Profile

• The Leader, Innovation makes a team deliver well and grow, wherever its members are located.
• The Leader pairs hands‑on technical depth with disciplined planning, stays close to the work, the team, and the customer.
• Coaches and gives honest, specific feedback.
• Success is measured by milestones met, by designs that hold to standard and serve the customer, and by engineers whose skill and responsibility increase over time.

Soft Skills & Working Style

• Working Style: Organized and hands‑on; keeps several projects and priorities in balance.
• Leadership & Influence Style: Leads by example and coaching; persuades with facts and clear reasoning.
• Learning Style: Curious; learns from testing, design reviews, and project retrospectives.
• Thinking Style: Analytical and practical; breaks complex technical problems into workable steps.
• Relating Style: Approachable and direct; builds trust through technical credibility and follow‑through.
• Signature Tone: Calm, clear, and encouraging under pressure.

Physical Demands & Work Environment

• Frequent use of computers, mobile devices, and standard office equipment. Ability to remain stationary for extended periods while working at a computer or participating in meetings. Frequent movement throughout office, engineering lab, assembly, and manufacturing environments. Ability to communicate effectively in person, virtually, and via telephone. Ability to travel between sites, regionally and internationally up to 40% of the time. Ability to occasionally lift, carry, or transport prototype parts or equipment weighing up to 11 kg (25 pounds). Ability to stand and walk for extended periods during machine builds, testing, customer visits, and facility tours. May require use of personal protective equipment in manufacturing, assembly, test, and customer environments.

At Barry-Wehmiller we recognize that people come with a wealth of experience and talent beyond just the technical requirements of a job. If your experience is close to what you see listed here, please still consider applying. We know that our differences often can bring about innovation, excellence and meaningful work—therefore, people from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply to our positions. Please let us know if you require reasonable accommodations during the interview process.

Company: BW Packaging Throughout Barry-Wehmiller, we hold ourselves to a unique measure of success: by the way we touch the lives of people. It’s that vision that drives us in creating world‑class experiences and solutions for our customers and unites us around our common goal—to use the power of our business to build a better world.

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