Program Manager

Solar World
Hillsboro, Oregon

Company/Position Overview: Build a Bright Future; Come Shine with us!

At SolarWorld, each and every one of our green-collar employees is helping to save the world by delivering clean energy from sand and sun.  Our vision is simple: We Build the SolarWorld. We are the global leader in providing customer-oriented solar energy solutions, striving to make solar energy competitive and affordable for the average consumer.  The SolarWorld group is dedicated to the core business of solar photovoltaic products and technology, operating production facilities in Germany and the USA.  With 500 MW of production capacity at our state of the art manufacturing facility in Oregon, SolarWorld operates the largest solar manufacturing site in North America.

Innovation, customer focused and growth not only define our company, but also describe our employees – the foundation of our success.  SolarWorld is dedicated to providing a work climate that promotes career growth, open communication and new ideas.  To ensure employees’ success, we provide best-in-class benefits that focus on delivering quality of life and personal development. SolarWorld employees enjoy a minimum of 4 weeks of vacation (5 weeks for exempt) and reimbursement of education expenses for qualified degree level programs!

Our culture not only encourages, but also demands personal responsibility, diversity, and an entrepreneurial way of thinking.    Join us in a bright future and build a successful career for yourself.   Feel good knowing that the work you do every day will build a better tomorrow for generations to come!

Job Accountabilities:

Reporting to the Manager of Product Marketing, the Product Manager develops marketing plans and activities for the Inverters product line to establish, enhance or distinguish product placement within the competitive arena. This role assists in the development of business plans and product positioning in the marketplace, oversees market research, monitors competitive activity and identifies customer needs, establishes pricing strategies and works with engineering, manufacturing and sales to enhance existing products or product lines.

Primary responsibilities for this position include the following:

• Serve as the inverter product line expert and champion for SolarWorld’s inverter offering throughout the Americas.
• Work within the Global Product Management team to champion the market requirements for the American markets.
• Manage new product development and new product launch activities.
• Identify customer and market requirements and translate them into detailed product recommendations.
• Develop product data sheets, sales brochures, and competitive comparisons to effectively communicate the product value proposition.
• Provide content, expertise and source material to support marketing communications.
• Provide protocol for SolarWorld’s technical sales support team. Provide occasional sales support on a case by case basis.
• Responsible for the inverter product roadmap for the Americas.
• Responsible for profit/loss of inverter product lines.
• Provide occasional sales support on a case by case basis.
• Other duties as assigned

Job Requirements:

The ideal candidate for this position brings an enthusiasm for saving the environment through our philosophy of sustainability – “clean energy from sand and sun”.  All employees of SolarWorld must be able to operate in a fast-paced, high-growth work environment and be able to tolerate ambiguity as we develop processes and operate entrepreneurially to accomplish deliverables.  Our employees relish a challenge and look forward to exercising creative freedom to accomplish new tasks.

The successful candidate will possess the following combination of experience, knowledge, and skills:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering, Marketing, Business Administration, or similar field or combination of education and work experience, preference for candidates with MBAs.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in a Product Management or New Product Development role supporting a growing product line.
• Preference for experience in solar inverters.
• Strong market research experience in the areas of competitive analysis and feature/benefit analysis.
• Experience managing the full product lifecycle (prototypes, documentation, research, etc) with heavy interdepartmental communication (engineering, manufacturing, management, sales/marketing, etc.).
• Strong communication skills, both written and oral with demonstrated ability to represent SolarWorld on technical presentations.
• Highly motivated with demonstrated ability to work independently with minimal supervision.
• Ability to work in a dynamic and changing environment.
• Must have the ability to prioritize multiple and often competing priorities.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, a collaborative style and the ability to communicate effectively at all levels.
• Ability to effectively accomplish goals while working in a team-based, open-office environment.
• Strong desire to bring best practices to the team, share your knowledge and expertise and enable your team members’ mutual success as the organization continues to grow.
• Attendance is a mandatory function of this position.

SolarWorld is an Equal Opportunity Employer – M/F/Disabled/Veteran/G

All offers of employment are contingent upon a candidate’s successful completion of SolarWorld’s pre-employment drug testing, and background investigation, which includes employment, education and criminal histories.