Design Manager Jobs in Beloit, KS (NOW HIRING)

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The Planter Platform Product Manager is responsible for the roadmap and lifecycle of the platform. This role ensures that these critical platforms align with the company's product platforms, brand differentiation strategies, and future technology integrations, while balancing cost, performance, and manufacturability.

A key aspect of this role is working closely with the Crop Care & Agronomy PM teams to ensure full integration of customer needs, brand specific requirements and product strategy to the platforms. Also analyzing, finding and translating non-brand specific customer requirements are part of the job position. Success in this role requires a deep understanding of mechanical systems, agronomics, technology integration, brand differentiation, and customer insights, as well as strong cross-functional leadership to align product, engineering, and commercial strategies. In this role you will work onsite to our Beloit KS, Hesston KS or Jackson MN facility to team up with your wonderful AGCO colleagues. 

Your Impact

• Roadmap and lifecycle
  • Own the product lifecycle (NPI & CPM) for specific Planter platforms, ensuring they align with brand strategies and market requirements.
  • Manage platform roadmaps, balancing modularity, scalability, and cost-efficiency while meeting brand & product-specific Points.
  • Ensure platform alignment with solution systems requirements, coordinating with Solution Systems PMs to deliver platform-specific contributions to integrated solutions.
  • Collaborate with Crop Care & Agronomy Product PM and deliver brand specific products and customer needs.
  • Monitor platform health, including quality, financial performance, and market share, and take corrective actions when needed.
  • Collaborate with engineering (PLE = single source of truth on projects and CPM) and supply chain to deliver innovative platform designs that meet sustainability and circular economy goals.
• Voice of Customer (VOC) - Future Needs & Strategy Validation
  • Lead specific and detailed VOC initiatives focused on your platform to identify:
  • Emerging customer needs for the next 5-10 years.
  • Pain points and opportunities for improvement in the platform in customer needs, efficiency, reliability and durability.
  • Market validation for ongoing module strategies, ensuring alignment with actual customer expectations.
  • Conduct structured customer interviews, farm visits, and dealer discussions to capture feedback directly from operators and fleet owners.
  • Translate insights into feature prioritization, investment roadmaps, and platform requirement adjustments.
  • Collaborate with customer support to understand platform field performance.
  • Work with CX PM and Agronomy teams to understand customer needs and requirements for his specific planter platforms, and value added by different Systems.
  • Collaborate with PA&D, PTX and R&AE teams to define valuable Smart Features & Components development plans impacting Planter products.
  • Participate in Innovation teams.
• Brand-Specific Requirements & Differentiation
  • Super emphasize collaboration with Product Managers, Agronomist, PTX, Mech module and Tech Module PMs to define future planter products.
  • Balance commonality vs. differentiation by defining where standardization can drive cost benefits and where brand-specific customization is essential.
  • Support early-stage price-by-feature studies in collaboration with Brand Product Managers and Market Intelligence to validate differentiation strategies.
• Competitive Benchmarking & Market Insights
  • Track competitor innovations and future technology roadmaps in your platform's advancements.
  • Seek regional differentiation insights through Global Brand Marketing teams, ensuring that platforms meet key market needs.
  • Leverage field test data, warranty reports, and customer feedback to refine performance targets and platform roadmaps.
• Cost, Supply Chain & Manufacturing Feasibility
  • Partner with Procurement & Supplier Teams to evaluate sourcing strategies, supplier capabilities, and cost structures for your platforms.
  • Work closely with Manufacturing & Industrialization to optimize platform design for assembly efficiency, cost control, and serviceability.
  • Drive cost-reduction strategies while ensuring performance and quality levels meet brand expectations.
• Product Integration & Cross-Functional Alignment
  • Ensure seamless planter integration into Crop Care product platforms, balancing performance, durability, and ease of manufacturing.
  • Collaborate with Aftermarket & Service Teams to ensure that platforms are optimized for serviceability and long-term total cost of ownership.
• Performance Measurement & Continuous Refinement
  • Define and track KPIs for platform performance, including:
  • Efficiency, reliability, operator experience, cost-effectiveness, and serviceability.
  • Conduct quarterly platform reviews, integrating field data, customer feedback, and competitive insights with roadmap adjustments.
• Work with Finance & Pricing Teams to ensure cost structures align with the required product positioning and profitability objectives.

Your Experience and Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, Automotive Engineering, Agronomy, Business Management or related field (MBA is a plus).
• 5+ years' experience in Product Management, Engineering, or Module Strategy roles.
• Industry experience in agriculture, construction, heavy-duty vehicles, or automotive powertrain systems preferred.
• Strong understanding of mechanical design, drivetrains, powertrains, and vehicle architecture.

Your Benefits

• Health care and wellness plans
• Dental and vision plans
• Flexible and virtual work options (where available)
• 401(k) Savings Plan with company match
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan offering eligible employees the ability to purchase AGCO stock at a discounted price
• Paid holidays and paid time off
• Health savings and flexible spending accounts
• Reimbursement for continuing education
• Life insurance and other supplemental insurance plans

Your Workplace

In this role you will work onsite to our Beloit KS, Hesston KS or Jackson MN facility to team up with your wonderful AGCO colleagues. This role follows AGCO's onsite work model, with employees primarily working from an AGCO location a minimum of 4 days per week to support collaboration and teamwork. 

We value inclusion and recognize the innovation a diverse workforce delivers to our farmers. Through our recruitment efforts, we are committed to building a team that includes a variety of experiences, backgrounds, cultures and perspectives.

Join our extraordinary team today and apply now!

AGCO is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We maintain a drug-free workplace and perform pre-employment substance abuse testing.