Product Development Analyst

Product Line Analyst

Location: Downers Grove, IL

Schedule: Primarily onsite with flexibility for one remote day per week

Travel: Up to 25%

About the Opportunity

Ashton North is partnering with a growing manufacturing organization that is expanding its residential product presence beyond the U.S. and Canadian markets. This is an opportunity for an analytical and business-minded professional who wants to play a key role supporting product growth, new product launches, and market expansion within a fast-paced environment.

This position is ideal for someone who has experience supporting Product Managers, Marketing teams, Sales operations, or product lifecycle initiatives and is ready to step into a more visible role with broader ownership and influence. The company is looking for someone who can operate with urgency, communicate effectively across teams, and help drive products from concept through commercialization with minimal supervision.

The culture is collaborative, entrepreneurial, and performance driven. The organization values professionals who want to build a long-term career, contribute ideas, and grow alongside the business.

Position Overview

The Product Line Analyst will support the strategic growth and day-to-day management of the residential product portfolio while helping drive new product development initiatives and market expansion efforts. This role partners closely with Sales, Marketing, Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, and leadership teams to support product lifecycle management, competitive analysis, customer insights, reporting, and commercialization activities.

The ideal candidate brings strong analytical capabilities, project coordination experience, and the ability to balance operational execution with market and customer awareness in a fast-moving manufacturing environment.

Key Responsibilities

Product Portfolio & Market Support

• Support the development and execution of long-term product category strategies and product roadmaps
• Assist in identifying market opportunities through competitive analysis, customer insights, and industry research
• Help manage existing product portfolios including product enhancements, additions, discontinuations, and cost reduction initiatives
• Monitor market trends, customer requirements, and competitive activity to support business growth initiatives

New Product Development

• Support all phases of new product development from concept through commercialization
• Assist in developing data driven business cases focused on customer pain points, ROI, and market opportunities
• Coordinate with cross functional teams to support launch timelines and commercialization activities
• Communicate product expectations including features, functionality, performance requirements, and launch timing

Cross Functional Collaboration

• Partner closely with Sales teams through customer visits, trade shows, and market engagement activities
• Collaborate with Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Marketing teams to ensure alignment across projects and initiatives
• Support product inquiries, product documentation, and marketing collateral development
• Build strong working relationships across departments to drive initiatives forward and improve execution

Operational & Analytical Support

• Utilize ERP systems and internal tools to support reporting, product updates, and product lifecycle activities
• Analyze product and market data to support strategic and operational decision making
• Help identify opportunities for process improvements and operational efficiencies
• Manage multiple projects and priorities simultaneously while maintaining strong attention to detail

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Business, Engineering, or related field required
• MBA is a plus
• 3 to 5 years of experience in Product Analysis, Business Analysis, Product Support, Marketing, Sales Support, or related functions
• Experience supporting product launches, product lifecycle management, or portfolio management preferred
• Strong analytical, problem solving, and communication skills
• Ability to work independently with a high sense of urgency
• Comfortable operating within a fast-paced manufacturing or industrial environment
• Strong collaboration and relationship building skills across cross functional teams
• ERP system experience required; Workday experience is a plus
• Ability to travel up to 25%