The Project Manager is responsible for leading customer projects from concept through commercialization and production. This role coordinates cross-functional teams including R&D, Operations, Quality, Procurement, Regulatory, Packaging, and Sales to ensure projects are delivered on time, within budget, and meet customer expectations.
Key Responsibilities
· Manage new product development and commercialization projects from initiation to launch.
· Serve as the primary point of contact between customers and internal teams.
· Develop project timelines, milestones, and deliverables.
· Coordinate formulation, packaging, sourcing, production trials, and scale-up activities.
· Track project progress and communicate status updates to customers and leadership.
· Identify project risks and implement mitigation plans.
· Ensure compliance with quality, regulatory, food safety, and customer requirements.
· Coordinate artwork, packaging specifications, and label approvals.
· Work closely with manufacturing, procurement, and supply chain teams to secure materials and production capacity.
· Lead cross-functional project meetings and document action items.
· Basic technical understanding of equipment and troubleshooting is neededÂ
Qualifications
· Bachelor's degree in Engineering
· 3–7+ years of project management experience, preferably in consumer packaged goods (CPG) manufacturing.
· Experience working with private label and contract manufacturing customers.
· Strong understanding of product development and commercialization processes.
· Excellent organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills.
· Proficiency in project management software and Microsoft Office Suite.
Preferred Experience
· Shelf-stable food and beverage manufacturing.
· Retort, aseptic, hot-fill, or beverage production processes.
· Retail and foodservice product launches.
· Regulatory compliance, labeling, and quality systems.
· Managing multiple customer projects simultaneously.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
· On-time project completion rate
· Successful product launches
· Customer satisfaction scores
· Budget adherence
· Production readiness and launch success
· Cross-functional team effectiveness
Skills
· Project planning and execution
· Customer relationship management
· Risk management
· Timeline management
· Cross-functional leadership
· Negotiation and conflict resolution
· Process improvement
· Strong attention to detail
Pathway Group is a Recruitment and Staffing service dedicated to the Manufacturing Industry. We pride ourselves on being expert recruiters in the space staying true to our manufacturing recruitment vertical. The vast majority of our placements are contract to hire and direct hire placements. Our goal is to add value to the client and candidate. Placing the right candidate into their next career. We focus on positions like mechanical assemblers, electrical assemblers, CNC operators, CMM operators, composite technicians, quality technicians, engineers, managers, etc.