The Vice President, Global Engineering & R&D will be the senior technical leader accountable for building a world-class in-house engineering capability, partnering on end-to-end product development lifecycle, and delivering proprietary IP and blockbuster products that compete on innovation, quality, cost, and speed to market.
The VP will carry this transformation forward by building the global engineering infrastructure — talent, governance, technical standards, tools, stage-gate discipline, and Centers of Excellence — required to move Conair from supplier dependency to true technical ownership. The role will have broad authority to shape the engineering organization, influence talent and resource decisions, establish enterprise technical standards, and create the operating cadence needed to accelerate innovation across Beauty, Personal Care, Home and Culinary.
Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, and serving as the enterprise’s most senior engineering executive, the Vice President, Global Engineering, Research and Development sets and executes the global engineering and innovation strategy for Conair’s portfolio.
Leading a large, multi-site, multi-layered engineering organization through senior functional leaders and discipline teams across Product Engineering & Development, R&D, Industrial Design, Project Engineering/EPM, Systems, Engineering COE, NPI/Sustaining Engineering, and regional engineering teams, the VP owns product architecture, critical requirements, test evidence, and design-change authority. The role builds technical depth, and partners with Sourcing, Quality, Product Marketing, and the business units to deliver differentiated, high-quality products on time and on cost — while establishing Conair’s ownership of IP and its capability to incubate repeatable, category-defining innovation.
This is an opportunity for a proven engineering leader to build the function, not simply inherit it — with the mandate to set standards, upgrade capability, strengthen technical leadership, and create a repeatable innovation engine for one of the most recognized consumer-products companies in the market.
Establish a clear global engineering operating model with defined ownership, decision rights, technical standards
Build and scale the engineering talent bench across the U.S., Asia and EMEA, including senior functional leadership, technical specialists, and succession depth.
Reduce supplier dependency by bringing critical product architecture, requirements definition, test evidence, and IP ownership in-house.
Deliver a disciplined pipeline of high impact launches that improve speed to market, product quality, cost performance, and category differentiation.
Define and drive the global engineering and R&D strategy that moves Conair from supplier-dependent product development to an in-house model with clear ownership of architecture, requirements, technical standards, and IP.
Partners with Product Marketing/Product Development by translating category and product priorities into engineering strategy, technical feasibility, product architecture, execution plans, and proprietary IP.
Serve as a key member of the operations leadership team and partner closely with the COO; present engineering strategy, progress, and risk to the executive leadership team, Board, and private equity partners with clarity and confidence.
Own the complete R&D lifecycle — from core technology and concept validation through detailed 3D/PCB design, prototyping, design freeze, and mass production — across Beauty, Personal Care, Home and Culinary categories.
Establish and enforce discipline-level technical standards, design-for-manufacturing rigor, test protocols, and standardized engineering deliverables for contract-manufacturer production.
Direct Industrial Design, Mechanical, Electrical/Firmware, Tooling, MIE and Packaging engineering to deliver against cost, quality, and schedule targets.
Stand up and scale the Shenzhen Engineering Center of Excellence and build the discipline SME bench, recruiting high-caliber R&D, NPD and NPI engineering talent to close capability gaps.
Design the engineering organization, leveling framework, and technical career paths for both people leaders and senior individual contributors; influence headcount planning, capability development, and succession for the function.
Lead, coach, and develop a large global engineering organization through senior functional leaders and technical teams across the U.S., Asia (Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Dongguan) and EMEA; foster a culture of engineering rigor, innovation, collaboration, and accountability.
Integrate the global engineering footprint — aligning the Shenzhen Center of Excellence, U.S., and Asia engineering — under a single set of standards, tools, and stage-gate governance.
Partner with Sourcing / Supplier Management on the single-supplier interface, supplier qualification, and the transition of IP ownership from suppliers to Conair.
Collaborate with Quality on PFMEA, supplier process audits, and the shift from reactive inspection to proactive quality engineering.
Align with Product Marketing and the business units on category direction, product roadmap, and commercial targets; ensure engineering priorities serve the P&L.
Support the Transition Office and change-management workstreams to protect business continuity, product launches, and future ways of working during the operating-model transformation.
Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Electrical, or a related engineering discipline; advanced degree (MS/MBA) strongly preferred.
15+ years of progressive engineering and R&D leadership in consumer products, small appliances, or comparable high-volume, design-led hardware categories.
Proven experience leading global, multi-site engineering organizations — ideally spanning U.S. and Asia (China/Hong Kong) — through a build-out or ODM-to-JDM (and ultimately OEM) transformation.
Demonstrated ownership of the full product development lifecycle, and delivery of proprietary IP and major innovation launches
Deep fluency across Industrial Design, Mechanical, Electrical/Firmware, Tooling and NPI, with the credibility to lead senior technical experts.
Track record of building and scaling engineering talent, standards, and technical career frameworks.
Executive presence to engage the COO, ELT, Board, and PE partners; able to translate technical status into business clarity.
Experience competing directly with innovation-led peers and knowledge of their speed-to-market and 24/7 innovation models.
Prior accountability for a Center of Excellence stand-up or greenfield engineering site in Asia.
Background across both beauty/personal care and culinary/kitchen electrics categories.
Familiarity with private-equity-owned, transformation-driven environments and value-creation plans.
Working conditions are normal for an office and engineering-lab environment.
Must be able to sit for extended periods and use a computer keyboard and monitor.
Must be willing to work a hybrid schedule from the Stamford, CT office and travel domestically and internationally (including to Asia engineering sites) on a regular basis.
Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision plans
Generous Paid Time Off programs
Life and Disability Insurance
FSA, HSA, and Dependent Care FSA programs
Paid Parental Leave
401(k) with Company Match
Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Wellness Programs
Paid Volunteer Time Off
Complimentary breakfast and lunch in the Stamford office
Conair is a leading international designer, manufacturer, and marketer of branded personal care products, small kitchen appliances, cookware, hairbrushes and accessories, cosmetic bags, and travel accessories.
Since its founding in 1959, Conair has built a reputation for innovation, quality, and category leadership. Today, Conair products are sold in more than 120 countries through a portfolio of globally recognized brands, including Conair®, Cuisinart®, BaBylissPRO®, Scünci®, TRAVELSMART® by Conair, and Waring®.
With more than 1,000 patents worldwide and a long-standing commitment to innovation, Conair continues to develop products that enhance consumers' lives while expanding into new markets around the world.
Conair is a leading international designer, manufacturer, and marketer of branded personal care and small kitchen appliances, cookware, hair brushes & accessories, cosmetic bags, and travel accessories.
Conair has always been driven by a passion for innovation; it’s part of the Company’s DNA. Trendsetting products have been invented by Conair since its inception in 1959, keeping the Company always a step ahead of the competition. The company's domestic and international divisions offer a diversified mix of consumer and professional products sold in over 120 countries.
The Family of Conair brands includes CONAIR, Cuisinart, BaBylissPro, Scünci , TRAVELSMART by CONAIR, Cuisinart Outdoors and Waring.
Conair’s passion for innovation gets stronger with each decade, as evidenced by the over 1,000 patents the Company has obtained worldwide.
Today, Conair and its brands are names known throughout the world. Conair continues to introduce its brands to new and emerging markets, year after year. By the 1990s, most households in America owned at least one Conair product. Today many have more than one, and the Company’s goal is to ensure that every household in the world eventually owns one of our products.
At Conair, we inspire our customers with innovative quality products and brands that enhance their lives.
