Automotive Product Development Manager Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Itron is innovating new ways for utilities and cities to manage energy and water. We create a more resourceful world to protect essential resources for today and tomorrow. Join us.

The Product Development Manager at our Oconee, SC manufacturing facility leads a multidisciplinary engineering team to design and deliver innovative electro-mechanical solutions for the Utilities and Energy sector, including smart grid and metering technologies. This role is ideal for a technically strong leader who can effectively bridge hardware and software domains. This leadership position owns the full product lifecycle-from concept through certification and manufacturing-driving customer-centric, innovative, and high-quality outcomes.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• Lead and develop a collaborative, authentic, and high-performing engineering team across electrical, mechanical, and firmware disciplines.
• Own end-to-end product development lifecycle (concept, design, prototype, validation, certification, and manufacturing handoff) with accountable delivery of scope, timelines, quality, and cost.
• Provide technical leadership across embedded systems and hardware design, ensuring customer-centric solutions aligned to smart grid and metering product needs.
• Drive agile and innovative development practices, improving processes for quality, reliability, and efficiency while ensuring compliance with industry standards (e.g., ANSI, FCC, UL).
• Partner cross-functionally to translate customer and business requirements into executable plans and sustain existing product portfolio performance.

Required Skills & Experience:

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related field.

• 8+ years of progressive product development experience, preferably in the electronics or electrical manufacturing sector.

• 5+ years of engineering leadership experience, including team management, coaching, and talent development.

• Proven experience managing full product lifecycle and delivering high-quality, high-reliability products in regulated industries.
• Demonstrated ability to drive execution, influence stakeholders, and build accountable, inclusive teams.
• Applied leadership in areas such as requirements analysis, design review, risk mitigation/FMEA, and design for manufacturability

Preferred Skills & Experience:

• Knowledge of analog/digital design, power management, or signal integrity.
• Strong software or firmware background with ability to integrate hardware and software solutions in a collaborative and agile environment.
• Familiarity with regulatory certification processes and manufacturing transfer (DFM, validation, sustaining).
• Understanding modern electronics and mechanical CAD design tools (e.g., Cadence Allegro, PTC Creo, etc.)
• Track record of fostering innovative, customer-centric product strategies and continuous improvement.

Travel: 0-10%

Physical Demands: This is a typical office job, with no special physical requirements or unusual work environment. This is a safety sensitive role.

Benefits Info:

This position also includes a competitive benefit package including; financial, social, health and wellbeing programs, paid vacation, 401k matching, employee stock purchase program, hybrid work schedule, and more! This position is eligible for our annual bonus program.

#LI-MD1

Itron is committed to building an inclusive and diverse workforce and providing an authentic workplace experience for all employees. If you are excited about this role but your past experiences don't perfectly align with every requirement, we encourage you to apply anyway. In the end, you may be just who we are looking for!
The successful candidate's starting wage will be determined based on permissible, non-discriminatory factors such as skills and experience.
Itron is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. If you require an accommodation to apply, please contact a recruiting representative at 1-800-635-5461 or email Accessibility@itron.com.

Itron is transforming how the world manages energy, water and city services. Our trusted intelligent infrastructure solutions help utilities and cities improve efficiency, build resilience and deliver safe, reliable and affordable service. With edge intelligence, we connect people, data insights and devices so communities can better manage the essential resources they rely on to live. Join us as we create a more resourceful world: www.itron.com