RD&E Director, Dishmachine Program - Institutional North America

Job Summary

Want to build a brighter, bolder future and cultivate your career? Join Ecolab's Institutional RD&E team and help create a world in which we all thrive. We are seeking a Director, Dish machine RD&E - Institutional North America to lead the strategy, new product development, and lifecycle management of Ecolab's dish machine, dispensing, and connected equipment portfolio. This high-impact leadership role will shape innovation for a significant North America business by integrating equipment, chemistry, digital connectivity, customer insights, and field execution to deliver measurable value for customers across food service, hospitality, healthcare, education, and related markets.

In this role, you will partner across RD&E, Marketing, Digital, Field Operations, Supply Chain, Quality, and Commercial teams to deliver solutions that improve customer outcomes, enable operational efficiency, support sustainability goals, and strengthen Ecolab's leadership across institutional warewashing.

• Opportunity to lead a highly visible innovation portfolio within a growth-oriented global company.
• Ability to shape the future of connected dish machine and dispensing solutions for customers across North America.
• Collaboration with talented technical, digital, commercial, and field teams focused on solving meaningful customer challenges.
• A culture that values safety, innovation, inclusion, continuous improvement, and career development.
• Competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits consistent with Ecolab programs.

• Define and lead the North America RD&E strategy for dish machine, dispensing, and connected equipment platforms, aligning innovation priorities with customer needs, market opportunities, and business growth objectives.
• Own the end-to-end portfolio roadmap, including new product development, platform lifecycle management, technology advancement, cost optimization, reliability, serviceability, sustainability, and long-term value creation.
• Translate customer insights, field experience, service data, and market trends into differentiated dish machine and digital solutions that strengthen Ecolab's leadership in institutional warewashing.
• Establish clear portfolio priorities, investment recommendations, technical milestones, risk mitigation plans, and governance routines to ensure disciplined execution and enterprise-level accountability.
• Champion customer validation, field testing, launch readiness, and post-launch performance management to ensure solutions deliver measurable impact in real-world operating environments.
• Build, develop, and engage a high-performing technical organization, fostering a culture of safety, quality, inclusion, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Influence senior stakeholders through concise, data-driven communication on portfolio progress, business impact, resource needs, risks, and strategic recommendations.

• Primary location:
  North America;
  Eagan, Minnesota or other approved Ecolab location may be considered based on business needs
• Travel: up to 15%, including customer visits, field testing, supplier engagement, and team meetings
• Role type:
  Full-time leadership position within Institutional RD&E

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Chemistry, Science, Product Development, or a related technical discipline
• 5-7+ years of experience in RD&E, product development, engineering, equipment development, or related technical leadership
• Experience leading cross-functional teams and delivering complex technical programs from concept through commercialization
• Demonstrated ability to influence across functions, manage priorities, and communicate effectively with technical and business stakeholders
• Ability to travel up to 15%

• Advanced degree in Engineering, Science, Business, or a related field.
• Experience with connected equipment, IoT-enabled products, embedded systems, digital platforms, or data-driven service models.
• Experience leading equipment, hardware, dispensing, or appliance product portfolios.
• Strong understanding of customer validation, field testing, reliability engineering, quality systems, and lifecycle management.
• Proven ability to build talent, lead through ambiguity, and create an inclusive, safety-focused team culture.

The base salary range for this position is $ - $. This position is eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentives based on performance, per plan terms. Many factors are taken into consideration when determining compensation, such as experience, education, training, geography, etc. We comply with all minimum wage and overtime laws.

Ecolab strives to provide comprehensive and market-competitive benefits to meet the needs of our associates and their families.

To meet customer requirements and comply with local or state regulations, applicants for certain customer-facing roles may need to:

• Undergo additional…