Job Description

Product Projects Lead – Exports (Trucks & Buses)

Drive end-to-end strategy and execution of product projects for Export Truck & Bus platforms, ensuring delivery on Quality, Cost, and Timing targets, while enabling competitive and market-relevant products through strong cross-functional and global alignment, thereby contributing to organizational success.

Main task 1.

Ownership:

• Taking ownership for the complete project targets (Quality – Cost – Delivery / Timing) across all assigned projects
• Responsible for end-to-end delivery and achievement of project milestones

• Responsible for managing the project funding within given targets and ensuring optimal utilization

2.

Strategy:

• Responsible for evaluation and steering of variant requests in alignment with Market & Sales requirements
• Monitor, evaluate, and report product characteristics and project metrics to ensure strategic oversight
• Support development of long-term product strategy and platform roadmap decisions

3.

Planning & Execution:

• Platform Lead – Responsible for planning, assessing, reporting, and steering of all projects and deliverables
• Responsible for structured project planning and execution across QG stages (QG09 to QG01)
• Ensure alignment of project timelines, deliverables, and cross-functional dependencies
• Drive readiness for industrialization and smooth ramp-up of project volumes

4.

Steering & Financial Management:

• Responsible for overall project steering, including progress tracking and performance monitoring
• Ensure adherence to cost targets and financial governance of projects
• Provide regular status updates, escalation of issues, and decision-making inputs
• Drive alignment between project performance and business objectives

5.

Continuous Improvement & Risk Management:

• Conduct risk identification, assessment, and mitigation across all projects
• Monitor and report project performance metrics to drive continuous improvement
• Establish feedback loops and lessons learned mechanisms across projects
• Identify training needs for project team members and drive capability enhancement

6.

Global Alignment:

• Lead cross-functional team alignment to understand market requirements and finalize product concepts
• Collaborate with Daimler global teams for platform harmonization and best practice sharing
• Present recommendations and updates to IPSC and iPC forums
• Ensure alignment between local and global product strategies

7.

Leadership:

• Lead Product Projects team at DICV, ensuring alignment towards organizational goals
• Responsible for development, motivation, and performance management of team members
• Drive cross-functional team meetings (CTMs) to review progress and resolve challenges
• Lead people management initiatives, mentoring, and capability building

Communication relations

Stakeholder

Purpose of Communication

Frequency

Head of Product Management & Strategy / LeadershipAlignment on strategic direction, project priorities, and key decisions

Often

Cross-functional Teams (Engineering, M&S, Quality, Costing, Procurement, IT, Logistics, Project Leads)Ensure alignment on project deliverables, timelines, and issue resolution to achieve QCD targets

Often

DICV Management / OpComProvide regular updates on project progress, risks, cost performance, and strategic alignment

Often

Daimler Global Teams / Central FunctionsDrive platform alignment, knowledge exchange, and best practice sharing across global projects

Often

Education

• B.E (Mechanical / Automotive) , Masters (will be an added advantage)

Experience:

• 12–20 years of experience in the automotive industry, preferably in commercial vehicles

• Proven experience in product project management / program management across full lifecycle

• Prior experience in leading cross-functional teams and complex projects

• Exposure to global collaboration / multi-region project environments

• Experience in change management and driving organizational alignment

Skill Sets:

• Leadership & Behavioral Traits:

• Strong leadership and team management, with focus on mentoring and people development

• High ownership, accountability, and execution focus

• Strategic thinking with ability to translate into execution

• Ability to influence and align cross-functional and global stakeholders

• Strong communication, interpersonal, and negotiation skills

• Proven ability to build high-performing teams and develop future talent

• Adaptability, resilience, and decision-making under ambiguity

  Functional Traits:

  • Strong expertise in project and program management (QG / milestone-based execution)

  • Good understanding of product lifecycle management and vehicle development processes

  • Knowledge of costing, financial management, and budget control

  • Experience in risk identification, assessment, and mitigation

  • Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities

  • Good understanding of Truck & Bus platforms / automotive systems

  • Strong ability to interpret customer and market needs across India and export markets (South East Asia, Indonesia, Australia) to drive product decisions