Sr Program Manager Connected Products

Fortune Brands; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company is seeking a Senior Program Manager to lead consumer validation efforts for innovative smart home products. This role involves designing and executing testing programs that enhance product quality and user satisfaction. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in program management and a strong understanding of software and hardware integration.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in program or project management.
• Strong understanding of software and hardware development cycles.
• Experience designing or managing alpha, beta, and/or delta testing programs.

Responsibilities

• Design and manage consumer validation programs across alpha, beta, and delta stages.
• Lead all aspects of test execution: recruitment, logistics, and reporting.
• Analyze consumer feedback and provide actionable insights.

Skills

Program Management

Consumer Validation

Agile Methodologies

Interpersonal Skills

Problem Solving

Education

BA/BS degree or equivalent practical experience

Tools

Power BI

Tableau

Job description

Job Description

The Senior Program Manager, Beta is an engaging and challenging opportunity that is instrumental in the creation and launch of groundbreaking smart home products. We are looking for a creative, customer-obsessed and results-oriented Senior Program Manager who wants to live on the edge of technologies that bring software and hardware together, within the connected home. We are seeking someone to lead end-to-end consumer validation efforts for new product introductions (NPI) and software releases. This role will design and execute alpha (early concept), beta (pre-release) and delta (post-release enhancement) test programs that validate consumer experience and improve product quality, user satisfaction and speed to market.

Job Location: This position is eligible for a hybrid schedule based out of Deerfield, IL or San Francisco, CA office location.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Design and manage consumer validation programs across alpha (early concept), beta (pre-release), and delta (post-release enhancement) stages.
• Collaborate with Product to understand the product roadmap, define test opportunities, and identify participant selection criteria.
• Lead all aspects of alpha, beta, and delta test execution: tester recruitment, communications, logistics, issue tracking, and reporting.
• Develop test strategies and timelines in line with product launch plans and key milestones.
• Coordinate all required software and hardware to ensure readiness for all test phases.
• Engage one-on-one with test participants to gather feedback, resolve issues, and maintain high levels of participation and satisfaction.
• Analyze consumer feedback, test metrics, and issue trends to provide actionable insights to Engineering, QA, Product, and Design teams.
• Identify and manage risks and potential project pitfalls, ensuring validation activities are completed on time and align with broader launch plans.
• Drive continuous improvement of testing frameworks, support tools, and feedback loops across all stages of consumer validation.
• Serve as the primary advocate for real-world user feedback and the consumer experience across internal teams.
• Focus for this role will be launching new connected products within our Security and Water portfolio.

Qualifications:

• BA/BS degree or equivalent practical experience.
• 5+ years of experience in program or project management, ideally in new product development or software.
• Knowledge of software development lifecycles, including design, development, test, build, deployment processes and timelines.
• Experience designing or managing alpha, beta, and/or delta testing programs with cross-functional stakeholders.
• Strong understanding of software and hardware development cycles and product validation needs at each phase.
• Ability to troubleshoot, interpret technical feedback, and communicate findings clearly to diverse audiences.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple parallel programs.
• Comfortable using agile tools and data metrics to drive communication and improvements.
• Excellent interpersonal, written, and presentation skills; a team player with a proactive, problem-solving mindset.
• Proven success influencing product decisions through customer insights.
• Experience with business intelligence tools such as Power BI / Tableau.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience with delta testing and post-launch product validation cycles.
• Prior roles in quality assurance, customer support, or community engagement.
• Familiarity with agile methodologies and software/hardware integration.
• Background in connected devices, IoT, or smart home technologies.