VP of Engineering, Research & Development

Conair LLC; Stamford (CT); Hybrid; USD 250,000 - 350,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, Vision plans

Paid Time Off

401(k) with Company Match

Parental Leave

Job summary

Conair LLC in Stamford, CT, seeks a visionary Vice President of Global Engineering & R&D to build an in-house capability and own product architecture, IP, and lifecycle execution across Beauty, Personal Care, Home and Culinary. You will lead a large, multi-site organization, set technical standards, and accelerate innovation with high quality, on-time launches.

Reporting to the COO, you will shape the engineering function, establish Centers of Excellence, and partner across functions to advance

Qualifications

• 15+ years of progressive engineering and R&D leadership in consumer products.
• Experience leading global, multi-site engineering organizations.
• Ownership of full product development lifecycle and IP.
• Executive presence with COO and PE partners.

Responsibilities

• Define and drive the global engineering and R&D strategy with clear ownership of architecture, requirements, standards, and IP.
• Partner with Product Marketing/Development to translate priorities into engineering plans and IP.
• Lead a large, multi-site organization across regions with senior leaders and technical teams.

Skills

Engineering leadership

Global multi-site leadership

Product development lifecycle

Executive presence

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical or Electrical engineering

MS/MBA preferred

Job description

VP Engineering, Research and Development

The Vice President, Global Engineering & R&D will be the senior technical leader accountable for building a world-class in-house engineering capability, partnering on end-to-end product development lifecycle, and delivering proprietary IP and blockbuster products that compete on innovation, quality, cost, and speed to market.

The VP will carry this transformation forward by building the global engineering infrastructure — talent, governance, technical standards, tools, stage-gate discipline, and Centers of Excellence — required to move Conair from supplier dependency to true technical ownership. The role will have broad authority to shape the engineering organization, influence talent and resource decisions, establish enterprise technical standards, and create the operating cadence needed to accelerate innovation across Beauty, Personal Care, Home and Culinary.

Position Summary

Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, and serving as the enterprise’s most senior engineering executive, the Vice President, Global Engineering, Research and Development sets and executes the global engineering and innovation strategy for Conair’s portfolio.

Leading a large, multi-site, multi-layered engineering organization through senior functional leaders and discipline teams across Product Engineering & Development, R&D, Industrial Design, Project Engineering/EPM, Systems, Engineering COE, NPI/Sustaining Engineering, and regional engineering teams, the VP owns product architecture, critical requirements, test evidence, and design-change authority. The role builds technical depth, and partners with Sourcing, Quality, Product Marketing, and the business units to deliver differentiated, high-quality products on time and on cost — while establishing Conair’s ownership of IP and its capability to incubate repeatable, category-defining innovation.

This is an opportunity for a proven engineering leader to build the function, not simply inherit it — with the mandate to set standards, upgrade capability, strengthen technical leadership, and create a repeatable innovation engine for one of the most recognized consumer-products companies in the market.

What Success Looks Like

• Establish a clear global engineering operating model with defined ownership, decision rights, technical standards
• Build and scale the engineering talent bench across the U.S., Asia and EMEA, including senior functional leadership, technical specialists, and succession depth.
• Reduce supplier dependency by bringing critical product architecture, requirements definition, test evidence, and IP ownership in-house.
• Deliver a disciplined pipeline of high impact launches that improve speed to market, product quality, cost performance, and category differentiation.

Essential Duties And Responsibilities

Strategic & Innovation Leadership

• Define and drive the global engineering and R&D strategy that moves Conair from supplier-dependent product development to an in-house model with clear ownership of architecture, requirements, technical standards, and IP.
• Partners with Product Marketing/Product Development by translating category and product priorities into engineering strategy, technical feasibility, product architecture, execution plans, and proprietary IP.
• Serve as a key member of the operations leadership team and partner closely with the COO; present engineering strategy, progress, and risk to the executive leadership team, Board, and private equity partners with clarity and confidence.

Product Development & Engineering Execution

• Own the complete R&D lifecycle — from core technology and concept validation through detailed 3D/PCB design, prototyping, design freeze, and mass production — across Beauty, Personal Care, Home and Culinary categories.
• Establish and enforce discipline-level technical standards, design-for-manufacturing rigor, test protocols, and standardized engineering deliverables for contract-manufacturer production.
• Direct Industrial Design, Mechanical, Electrical/Firmware, Tooling, MIE and Packaging engineering to deliver against cost, quality, and schedule targets.

Organization Build & Center of Excellence

• Stand up and scale the Shenzhen Engineering Center of Excellence and build the discipline SME bench, recruiting high-caliber R&D, NPD and NPI engineering talent to close capability gaps.
• Design the engineering organization, leveling framework, and technical career paths for both people leaders and senior individual contributors; influence headcount planning, capability development, and succession for the function.
• Lead, coach, and develop a large global engineering organization through senior functional leaders and technical teams across the U.S., Asia (Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Dongguan) and EMEA; foster a culture of engineering rigor, innovation, collaboration, and accountability.
• Integrate the global engineering footprint — aligning the Shenzhen Center of Excellence, U.S., and Asia engineering — under a single set of standards, tools, and stage-gate governance.

Cross-Functional Partnership

• Partner with Sourcing / Supplier Management on the single-supplier interface, supplier qualification, and the transition of IP ownership from suppliers to Conair.
• Collaborate with Quality on PFMEA, supplier process audits, and the shift from reactive inspection to proactive quality engineering.
• Align with Product Marketing and the business units on category direction, product roadmap, and commercial targets; ensure engineering priorities serve the P&L.
• Support the Transition Office and change-management workstreams to protect business continuity, product launches, and future ways of working during the operating-model transformation.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Electrical, or a related engineering discipline; advanced degree (MS/MBA) strongly preferred.
• 15+ years of progressive engineering and R&D leadership in consumer products, small appliances, or comparable high-volume, design-led hardware categories.
• Proven experience leading global, multi-site engineering organizations — ideally spanning U.S. and Asia (China/Hong Kong) — through a build-out or ODM-to-JDM (and ultimately OEM) transformation.
• Demonstrated ownership of the full product development lifecycle, and delivery of proprietary IP and major innovation launches.
• Deep fluency across Industrial Design, Mechanical, Electrical/Firmware, Tooling and NPI, with the credibility to lead senior technical experts.
• Track record of building and scaling engineering talent, standards, and technical career frameworks.
• Executive presence to engage the COO, ELT, Board, and PE partners; able to translate technical status into business clarity.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience competing directly with innovation-led peers and knowledge of their speed-to-market and 24/7 innovation models.
• Prior accountability for a Center of Excellence stand-up or greenfield engineering site in Asia.
• Background across both beauty/personal care and culinary/kitchen electrics categories.
• Familiarity with private-equity-owned, transformation-driven environments and value-creation plans.

Environmental Factors

• Working conditions are normal for an office and engineering-lab environment.
• Must be able to sit for extended periods and use a computer keyboard and monitor.
• Must be willing to work a hybrid schedule from the Stamford, CT office and travel domestically and internationally (including to Asia engineering sites) on a regular basis.

What We Offer

• Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision plans
• Generous Paid Time Off programs
• Life and Disability Insurance
• FSA, HSA, and Dependent Care FSA programs
• Paid Parental Leave
• 401(k) with Company Match
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Wellness Programs
• Paid Volunteer Time Off
• Complimentary breakfast and lunch in the Stamford office

About Conair

Conair is a leading international designer, manufacturer, and marketer of branded personal care products, small kitchen appliances, cookware, hairbrushes and accessories, cosmetic bags, and travel accessories.

Since its founding in 1959, Conair has built a reputation for innovation, quality, and category leadership. Today, Conair products are sold in more than 120 countries through a portfolio of globally recognized brands, including Conair®, Cuisinart®, BaBylissPRO®, Scünci®, TRAVELSMART® by Conair, and Waring®.

With more than 1,000 patents worldwide and a long-standing commitment to innovation, Conair continues to develop products that enhance consumers' lives while expanding into new markets around the world.

Conair creates confidence and connection

Equal Opportunity Employer Minorities/Women/Protected Veterans/Disabled