Product Line Manager

NOKIA; Sunnyvale (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Nokia is seeking an experienced product management professional in Sunnyvale, CA to drive lifecycle management for connectivity products and services. You will translate market needs into product requirements, lead cross-functional teams, and ensure successful market launches of new offerings.

Responsibilities include building business cases, defining technical requirements, and collaborating with R&D, marketing, and sales to balance customer demands with technical feasibility.

Qualifications

• 7–10 years of experience in product or program management.
• Deep knowledge of telecom and networking domains.
• Experience translating market needs into product requirements.

Responsibilities

• Synthesize input from regions, marketing, and customers to prioritize features with high business impact.
• Build business cases to justify development opportunities and revenue growth.
• Define detailed technical requirements for product development and testing teams.
• Review specifications and test plans for alignment with market needs and strategy.
• Coordinate with R&D, marketing, and sales to ensure successful product launches.

Skills

Linux

Containerization

IP Networking

Embedded OS

Automation platforms

Education

Master's degree

Tools

gRPC

NETCONF

REST

Job description

Family Description
Product, Portfolio & Solution Management (PP) covers the provision of input to the complete set of all products / services related to design, production, maintenance, and termination information processes. Ensures the optimal allocation of resources between different products / services and areas of potential improvement to balance the products / services mix and maintain alignment between Nokia's products / services and the overall business strategy. Ensures a successful launch of the products / services in the market applying go-to-market strategy. Translates key market, business and customer needs into products / services and solutions.
Subfamily Description
Product Management (PRM) ensures the management of specific products / services as they progress along their lifecycle with both operational and strategic responsibility. Comprises positioning of the product / service in the respective markets, defined business models, segmentation, and pricing. Contains implementation of strategies set by portfolio management and ensures that products / services are developed or updated accordingly to the portfolio and in close linkage of R&D, technology, and markets (operators, end-users).

Some of the responsibilities of this role include:

• Synthesizing input from regional business centers, pre-sales organizations, marketing, business development groups, standards bodies and customers to identify and prioritize development of features and products with maximum business impact
• Building business cases to select and justify development opportunities that optimize short & long term revenue and profit by delivering real value to our customers
• Defining detailed technical requirements for product development and test groups, including but not limited to scaling, redundancy, security aspects, and overseeing the technical development and implementation of those requirements
• Reviewing functional specifications and test plans with R&D to ensure requirements alignment, and reviewing marketing and documentation strategy and collateral
• Balancing market & customer demands with R&D capabilities/resources and general NI strategy and direction
• Searching for opportunities to open new markets and differentiate vs competitors but also be practical to ensure we spend dev effort on profitable ventures
• Preparing and hosting decision review meetings for new releases in coordination with all stake holders and driving it to approval
• Staying up to date in your areas of responsibility by reading standards, talking with customers & regional colleagues, looking at competitor whitepapers & communications
• Creating technical customer documentation with the help of the technical writers
• Supporting sales & support teams with product expertise and delivering presentations to internal groups and external customers
• Supporting the RFI, RFP processes including network design, bill of material creation, and guiding strategy product pricing
• Working with NPI and regional teams to build and execute demonstrations and PoC's
• Occasional travel to other Nokia sites and customer premises

Impact

Impact is primarily short term and typically functional, departmental or small single geographic in scope through management of resources. Accountable for department/program goals, achievement and cost performance. Actions and errors will normally impact business, program, project, function. Marked contribution to defining the direction for new products, processes, standards or operational plans based upon business strategy.

Scope & Contribution

Individual Contributor: Independently carrying out consulting, specific functional work within a Business Unit/Geography. Assumes broad perspective. Resolves unique and highly complex problems within own discipline. Makes decisions about own and/or project work using known solutions as basis. Managerial/Supervisory: Typically, second (occasionally first) level of solid line management. Effective management of resources and development/implementation of plans and processes. Interprets policies and establishes procedures. Increased awareness and influence of other functions outside of own business area. Decision making often repeated in similar manner - able to choose correct solution or modify existing solution.

Innovation

Highly independent and self-directed. Develops plans, measures effectiveness. Assess customer relationships and service levels. Can develop and implement complex and innovative concepts. Problems require searching and selecting. Anticipates problems, seeks opportunities. Models creative and innovative work methods.

Communication

Communicates with parties within and outside of own job function, which may include external customers or vendors depending upon the job function. Requires ability to influence others outside of own job area on policies, practices and procedures. Has cross-cultural knowledge and global mindset. Works to influence others to accept job function's view/practices and agree/accept new concepts, practices, and approaches. Requires influencing others outside of own job area on policies, practices and procedures, e.g. by expressing complex information in an engaging and inspiring manner.

Knowledge & Experience

Management Experience / Mastery of a specific professional discipline combining deep knowledge of theory and practice within a function. Expert in more than one area, broad perspective. Typically requires 7-10 years extensive relevant experience and/or a graduate / postgraduate equivalent degree.

Technical Experience

• Deep knowledge of Linux and the primitives enabling containerization
• Excellent technical expertise in Telecommunications, IP Networking, Router or switch architecture and Embedded Operating Systems, and the automation platforms that drive them
• Experience in technologies used in modern networking managements stacks; gRPC, NETCONF, REST.
• Experience in the technologies behind networking AI datacenters, including congestion prevention techniques (ECN, PFC, DLB), DPU management, job scheduling, and rail/rail optimized architectures
• Strong interpersonal, cross-team collaboration and negotiation skills as well as the ability to influence others
• Familiarity with software and hardware product development methodology
• Ability to rapidly build solid technical understanding across a broad set of functionality and design

Advancing connectivity to secure a brighter world.

Nokia is a global leader in connectivity for the AI era. With expertise across fixed, mobile and transport networks, powered by the innovation of Nokia Bell Labs, we're advancing connectivity to secure a brighter world.

Learn more about life at Nokia.

Our recruitment process

We act inclusively and respect the uniqueness of people. Our employment decisions are made regardless of race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, disability, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by law. We are committed to a culture of inclusion built upon our core value of respect.

The length of the recruitment process may vary depending on the specific role's requirements. We strive to ensure a smooth and inclusive experience for all candidates. Discover more about the recruitment process at Nokia.