Assistant Product Manager / Product Manager

ideaForge; Navi Mumbai; On-site; INR 1,100,000 - 1,800,000; Full time

Job summary

ideaForge Technology in Navi Mumbai is seeking an Associate Product Manager / Product Manager for the Small Hybrid Verticals portfolio. You will own the product lifecycle from concept to scale, coordinating with engineering, regulatory teams, and manufacturing to balance performance, cost, and compliance.

You will drive roadmaps, perform market research across defense buyers, and collaborate with sales for tender responses and pricing strategy, while mentoring junior teammates.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Electronics & Communication, Systems Engineering, or equivalent technical discipline.
• 3–5 years of product management, program management, or systems engineering experience in hardware-software integrated products (UAVs, aerospace, robotics, automotive, or defense systems).
• Demonstrated experience managing product lifecycle from concept through production, including involvement in design, testing, and field deployment.
• Strong technical aptitude. Ability to understand complex hardware and software architectures, flight dynamics, payload integration, and avionics.
• Excellent cross‑functional communication skills. Proven ability to align engineering, manufacturing, sales, and leadership around product priorities.
• Analytical and data‑driven mindset. Comfortable with financial modeling, cost analysis, and business case development.
• Familiarity with regulatory and certification frameworks (DGCA, FAA, EASA, or similar) and willingness to deepen expertise in aviation regulations.
• Strong organizational and project management skills. Track record of driving initiatives to completion in cross‑functional environments.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute the multi-year product roadmap for Small Hybrid Verticals. Define product variants, performance tiers, and feature evolution across the Switch family.
• Work with engineering leadership to balance feature requests, technical feasibility, development timelines, and manufacturing capacity.
• Forecast revenue, unit economics, and market penetration for roadmap milestones.
• Lead integrated product development programs with hardware, software, and manufacturing teams. Facilitate requirements clarity and milestone achievement.
• Chair product reviews, design reviews, and launch readiness gates. Escalate risks and resolve trade‑offs between cost, performance, and timeline.
• Mentor junior product team members and interns in requirements gathering and market analysis.

Skills

Product lifecycle ownership

Cross-functional leadership

Regulatory understanding

Financial analysis

Technical aptitude

Education

Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Eng./Mechanical/Electrical/Electronics & Communication/Systems Engineering

Job description

JD: Associate Product Manager (APM) / Product Manager (PM) | Small Hybrid Vertical

Department: Product Management

Location: Navi Mumbai

Reports To: Senior Product Manager

About Us

At ideaForge Technology, we are pioneering the future of autonomous flight. We design, manufacture, and deploy cutting‑edge Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) that solve complex challenges across industries—from defence, homeland security and infrastructure inspection to emergency response and delivery.

Role Summary

As an Assistant Product Manager (APM) / Product Manager (PM) for the Small Hybrid Verticals portfolio within the Switch UAV family, you will own the product lifecycle, strategy, and market performance for this critical product line. You will report to the Senior Product Manager and operate as a leader within the product management function, bridging customer demand (defense, paramilitary, state agencies) with engineering capability, manufacturing constraints, and regulatory certification requirements.

This role blends strategic product development with hands‑on execution across requirements, regulatory alignment (DGCA, FCC, BlueUAS Certification), business planning, and cross‑functional team leadership. You will drive the product roadmap from market research through production at scale, managing trade‑offs between performance, cost, compliance, and customer needs.

Product Strategy & Roadmap Ownership

• Develop and execute the multi-year product roadmap for Small Hybrid Verticals. Define product variants, performance tiers, and feature evolution across the Switch family. Work with engineering leadership to balance feature requests, technical feasibility, development timelines, and manufacturing capacity.


• Drive business cases for new initiatives (new variants, payload integrations, airframe configurations). Forecast revenue, unit economics, and market penetration for roadmap milestones.

Customer & Market Intelligence

• Conduct ongoing market research across Indian defense buyers (Army Aviation, BRO, state police, paramilitary forces) and international defense bodies. Translate customer pain points and operational requirements into product requirements documents (PRDs).


• Lead competitive analysis of global and domestic UAV platforms operating in similar tactical niches. Track competitor capabilities, pricing, go‑to‑market strategies, and certifications.


• Support sales and business development teams with tender responses, feature positioning documents, and pricing justification. Participate in customer demonstrations and technical discussions to validate requirements.

Regulatory Certification & Compliance Leadership

• Own the regulatory certification pathway for Small Hybrid Verticals through DGCA Type Certification and international regulatory bodies (FAA, EASA, etc.). Coordinate with certification teams, external agencies, and technology partners.


• Ensure product design, documentation, and testing align with aviation regulations. Prepare certification‑readiness reports and mitigate compliance risks early in the development cycle.


• Manage dependencies with external regulatory bodies and elevate blockers to senior leadership.

Cross-Functional Program Leadership

• Lead integrated product development programs with hardware (airframe, propulsion, avionics), electronics, software, and manufacturing teams. Facilitate requirements clarity, dependency tracking, and milestone achievement.


• Chair product review meetings, design reviews, and launch readiness gates. Escalate technical risks and resolve trade‑offs between cost, performance, and timeline.


• Mentor junior product team members and interns. Provide guidance on requirements gathering, market analysis, and business case development.

Cost, Pricing & Business Performance

• Conduct cost‑of‑goods analysis for Small Hybrid Verticals. Build bottom‑up cost stacks including BOM, labor, overhead, and manufacturing yield. Identify cost‑reduction opportunities across design, sourcing, and manufacturing.


• Define pricing strategy and margin targets in alignment with MoD procurement patterns, competitive positioning, and profitability objectives.


• Track product P&L, unit economics, and market performance against forecast. Provide monthly/quarterly business reviews to senior leadership.

Go‑to‑Market & Launch Strategy

• Develop go‑to‑market plans for new variants or airframe configurations. Define launch messaging, positioning, channel strategy, and customer communication.


• Collaborate with sales, marketing, and customer success to prepare launch materials, data sheets, video content, and training documentation.


• Support contract negotiations and tender responses by providing technical specifications, performance claims, and regulatory compliance documentation.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor''s degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Electronics & Communication, Systems Engineering, or equivalent technical discipline.


• 3–5 years of product management, program management, or systems engineering experience in hardware-software integrated products (UAVs, aerospace, robotics, automotive, or defense systems).


• Demonstrated experience managing product lifecycle from concept through production, including involvement in design, testing, and field deployment.


• Strong technical aptitude. Ability to understand complex hardware and software architectures, flight dynamics, payload integration, and avionics. Comfortable reading design documentation, block diagrams, and engineering specifications.


• Excellent cross‑functional communication skills. Proven ability to align engineering, manufacturing, sales, and leadership around product priorities.


• Analytical and data‑driven mindset. Comfortable with financial modeling, cost analysis, and business case development.


• Familiarity with regulatory and certification frameworks (DGCA, FAA, EASA, or similar) and willingness to deepen expertise in aviation regulations.


• Strong organizational and project management skills. Track record of driving initiatives to completion in cross‑functional environments.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience with UAV, drone, or autonomous systems design and development.


• Familiarity with Indian defense procurement processes, MoD acquisition cycles, and government buyer workflows.


• Experience working in defense, aerospace, or highly regulated hardware sectors.


• Knowledge of avionics, flight control systems, power systems, or payload integration challenges.


• Exposure to Agile or lean product development methodologies.


• Experience with manufacturing, supply chain, or cost optimization initiatives.