NPD Readiness Lead Job Brooklyn Park area,Minnesota USA,Manufacturing / Production

Role Summary

The NPD Readiness Lead is responsible for ensuring all new products are fully prepared for service execution prior to and during launch, acting as the operational bridge between Product Development, Engineering, and Aftermarket teams. This role owns end‑to‑end service readiness for new product introductions (NPD)—including diagnostics, documentation, training alignment, field readiness, and early‑life support.

Key Responsibilities

End‑to‑End Service Readiness Ownership (NPD):
Own service readiness for all new product introductions; ensure readiness across technical support, field service, training, documentation; define readiness criteria; prevent gaps that could lead to escalations or field failures; manage project deliverables when required.

Cross‑Functional Coordination:
Act as the primary operational interface between Engineering/Product Development, Support, Contact Center, Field Service, and Training; ensure alignment between product design intent and serviceability; translate technical details into clear service requirements.

Diagnostic & Technical Readiness:
Define, validate, and document diagnostic pathways prior to launch; collaborate with Engineering and operational teams to identify failure modes, develop troubleshooting logic, and validate support resolution pathways.

Training Alignment & Capability Enablement:
Partner with Technical Training specialists to develop training content before launch; validate readiness of dispatch/warranty owners, customer operations lead, and field/ASAs for first‑time resolution.

Documentation & Knowledge Readiness:
Ensure all service‑facing content—work instructions, diagnostic flows, technical documentation, job aids—is complete and validated before launch; establish single source of truth and close gaps that create confusion.

Launch Execution & Early‑Life Support:
Provide heightened oversight during early product lifecycle, monitor early failure trends, escalation patterns, diagnostic gaps, and quickly resolve readiness issues.

Diagnostic Troubleshooting & Resolution:
Lead technical diagnosis of equipment issues using structured methods; identify root cause, resolve via phone, remote guidance, or dispatch; reinforce diagnose‑before‑dispatch principles.

Demand & Failure Mode Feedback Loop:
Capture and analyze early‑life failures, repeat issues, and escalation drivers; translate insights into improvements for engineering, training, and support.

Risk Identification & Mitigation:
Identify readiness risks (diagnostics, training gaps, documentation deficiencies, field readiness) before launch; proactively mitigate and ensure launch occurs with clear visibility of status.

Key Decisions

Readiness status determination (ready vs. at risk vs. not ready).
Prioritization of readiness gaps impacting launch success.
Escalation of product, capability, or documentation risks.
Validation of diagnostic readiness and service pathways.
Recommendations for product or training adjustments based on early‑life performance.

Measures of Success

First‑Time Resolution (New Products):
Strong resolution quality at launch.
Early‑Life Failure Rate:
Reduction in repeat issues and failures.
Escalation Rate:
Minimized escalations due to readiness gaps.
Time to Stability:
Speed at which new products reach steady‑state performance.
Customer Effort Score (CES):
Reduced friction during initial product adoption.
Training Readiness:
Capability achieved ahead of or at launch.
Documentation Completeness:
Availability and usability of service content.
Field Dispatch Accuracy:
Reduction in unnecessary or incorrect dispatch.
Readiness Compliance: % of readiness criteria achieved before launch.

Qualifications & Experience

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in a technical, engineering, or service‑related field.
5–8+ years of experience in technical support, field service, product support, or NPD environments.
Experience working cross‑functionally with engineering, product, and service operations teams.

Skills & Competencies

Strong technical and diagnostic understanding.
Systems thinking across product, service, and customer impact.
Cross‑functional leadership and influence without authority.
Ability to…