New Product Specialist

Founded in 1966, Canplas is a leading manufacturer of innovative high-quality products for the plumbing, grease interceptor, roof ventilation, and central vacuum markets. Based in Barrie, ON, we have developed expertise in plastic injection molding through continued investment in our equipment and people. Our mission is to make a positive impact by delivering superior products and services while caring for our employees, customers, and community.

This position is an integral part of The Innovation Team where you’ll help create solutions that meet our clients’ toughest challenges. We’re dedicated to developing sustainable and innovative products for the markets we serve. By providing cutting-edge solutions to our global customers, we stay ahead of industry trends and meet the evolving needs of our clients.

***Position Summary**:
The New Product Specialist is responsible for leading innovative product development projects using the Stage Gate model (Canplas AIM process). In this role you will lead New Product Development process activities to take ideas from concept to product launch, working with internal cross functional teams, and as needed, external industry experts and stakeholders. The new product development projects will be across multiple Canplas’ product segments including plumbing, roof ventilation, separation technologies (grease interceptors) and central vacuum fittings.

This role is based in our Barrie office.

**Major responsibilities include**:

- Lead Cross-Functional Team projects comprised of colleagues from Product Design, Marketing, Operations, Sales, Logistics and Finance on each active project assigned by the Innovation Manager.
- Follow the company’s AIM Process (Stage Gate), prepare documents and project deliverables based on the input from the cross functional team, and present findings and recommendation to middle or senior management.
- Use available market and sales data to prepare accurate market size and sales forecast projections
- Visit customers and industry professionals to present products, ideas, and prototypes, communicating this “Voice of Customer” information back to the cross functional team.
- Work with outside consultants (such as patent lawyers, design consultants and other experts) as is required to substantiate the reason.
- Lead proof of concept product testing in both the field and laboratory environments
- Support customer training sessions on new product introductions
- Support the development of marketing materials and assets
- Work with the Innovation team to identify and validate new projects and new products
- Use and maintain project information in the Portfolio software for assigned new product development projects

**Requirements**:
**Qualifications**:

- A college diploma or university degree in Business, Marketing, Engineering, or equivalent.
- Project Management experience leading cross functional teams in a corporate environment is a definite asset.
- Proficiency with Microsoft tools: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Project, Teams
- Highly organized, able to prioritize multiple projects simultaneously and demonstrate effective time management skills.
- Ability to influence and advocate for the project with internal stakeholders
- High attention to detail and ability to produce quality work.
- Ability to use judgement based on previous practices and precedence.
- Strong presentation abilities with excellent command of the English language with coherent written and verbal communication.
- A self-starter, using creativity to solve complex problems in a team environment.
- Ability to understand and articulate project financials with experience using financial systems such as ERP software to pull data including product cost and bills of materials.