What are the responsibilities and job description for the Sr Manager Design Development position at Wanzl North America?
Position Overview
The Sr. Manager of Design and Development (D&D) serves as the functional leader for the product design and engineering development team within Wanzl North America. Operating in a matrixed organizational structure, this Sr. Manager ensures that D&D processes, engineering standards, methods, and technical competencies are consistently applied across all business segments and product portfolios.
In accordance with the matrix style of organization, the Sr. Manager of D&D is responsible for team capability, functional excellence, and technical execution, while the Head of each Segment will maintain primary ownership of program priorities, budget decisions, product roadmaps, and final project approvals.
The Sr. Manager of D&D supports multiple concurrent new product and product enhancement initiatives across various business segments. This role collaborates cross-functionally with Sales, Product Management, Operations, Quality, Manufacturing Engineering, Supply Chain, and global Wanzl engineering teams to drive successful project execution. The Design & Development function is tightly integrated into the Sales process, playing a key role in delivering customer-specific solutions, especially for Engineer-to-Order (ETO) offerings and product enhancements within the portfolio. The D&D team regularly engages with customers to understand their needs, ensure requirements are met, and deliver tailored solutions, making them vital to achieving customer fulfillment and satisfaction.
This position will be located at Wanzl’s North American headquarters in Denver, NC and will require infrequent travel to the manufacturing plants in North America including Newton, NC and Queretaro, Mexico, Wanzl’s Group headquarters in Germany (WDE) as well as visits to customers and global manufacturing facilities.
Company And Opportunity Overview
WNA’s vision is to be a leading entrepreneurial player in terms of market share, agility, and game-changing solutions. WNA is a solution provider, creating value along the supply chain of our customers, from online purchase to their customers.
WNA is headquartered in the Charlotte Metro Area, North Carolina. With around 500 employees and ~$200M of sales, WNA focuses on the retail and distribution market segments with marquee customers such as Walmart, Amazon, and the majority of large grocers and retailers.
In addition to being the largest manufacturer of shopping carts in North America, WNA has three additional main product segments as well as a Service business, providing turnkey solutions for customer guidance (Access Systems), Shelving & Fixtures, and Material Handling products.
Access Solutions provides sophisticated customer guidance and loss prevention systems for major retailers. With German-engineered products and a strong installed base, this segment focuses on protecting existing market share while expanding into adjacent opportunities in smart retail, autonomous store technology, and digital integration.
Additionally, WNA offers a range of digital solutions integrated into our products, including advanced shopping cart containment systems, smart exit gate technology, and innovations for autonomous and semi-autonomous retail stores. We are continuously expanding and enhancing our digital offerings to meet evolving customer needs and drive industry advancement.
WNA is part of the Wanzl Group, headquartered in Germany, and has 12 plants in 8 countries, providing comprehensive, solutions-driven service and expert knowledge of local markets for customers across the globe through their 360° service.
Duties And Responsibilities
Fully ownership of the D&D function across segments, establishing and maintaining engineering standards, best practices, design processes, and documentation requirements. Responsible for the development and compliance of the technical capabilities of Design & Development engineers, including training, performance management, mentoring, and career development. Ensure consistent application of design methodologies such as:
The Sr. Manager of Design and Development (D&D) serves as the functional leader for the product design and engineering development team within Wanzl North America. Operating in a matrixed organizational structure, this Sr. Manager ensures that D&D processes, engineering standards, methods, and technical competencies are consistently applied across all business segments and product portfolios.
In accordance with the matrix style of organization, the Sr. Manager of D&D is responsible for team capability, functional excellence, and technical execution, while the Head of each Segment will maintain primary ownership of program priorities, budget decisions, product roadmaps, and final project approvals.
The Sr. Manager of D&D supports multiple concurrent new product and product enhancement initiatives across various business segments. This role collaborates cross-functionally with Sales, Product Management, Operations, Quality, Manufacturing Engineering, Supply Chain, and global Wanzl engineering teams to drive successful project execution. The Design & Development function is tightly integrated into the Sales process, playing a key role in delivering customer-specific solutions, especially for Engineer-to-Order (ETO) offerings and product enhancements within the portfolio. The D&D team regularly engages with customers to understand their needs, ensure requirements are met, and deliver tailored solutions, making them vital to achieving customer fulfillment and satisfaction.
This position will be located at Wanzl’s North American headquarters in Denver, NC and will require infrequent travel to the manufacturing plants in North America including Newton, NC and Queretaro, Mexico, Wanzl’s Group headquarters in Germany (WDE) as well as visits to customers and global manufacturing facilities.
Company And Opportunity Overview
WNA’s vision is to be a leading entrepreneurial player in terms of market share, agility, and game-changing solutions. WNA is a solution provider, creating value along the supply chain of our customers, from online purchase to their customers.
WNA is headquartered in the Charlotte Metro Area, North Carolina. With around 500 employees and ~$200M of sales, WNA focuses on the retail and distribution market segments with marquee customers such as Walmart, Amazon, and the majority of large grocers and retailers.
In addition to being the largest manufacturer of shopping carts in North America, WNA has three additional main product segments as well as a Service business, providing turnkey solutions for customer guidance (Access Systems), Shelving & Fixtures, and Material Handling products.
Access Solutions provides sophisticated customer guidance and loss prevention systems for major retailers. With German-engineered products and a strong installed base, this segment focuses on protecting existing market share while expanding into adjacent opportunities in smart retail, autonomous store technology, and digital integration.
Additionally, WNA offers a range of digital solutions integrated into our products, including advanced shopping cart containment systems, smart exit gate technology, and innovations for autonomous and semi-autonomous retail stores. We are continuously expanding and enhancing our digital offerings to meet evolving customer needs and drive industry advancement.
WNA is part of the Wanzl Group, headquartered in Germany, and has 12 plants in 8 countries, providing comprehensive, solutions-driven service and expert knowledge of local markets for customers across the globe through their 360° service.
Duties And Responsibilities
- Requirements definition
- CAD modeling and drafting (SolidWorks/AutoCAD)
- Design for manufacture (DFM)
- Design-to-cost (DTC)
- Prototyping and testing
- Version and change control
- Lead functional resource and capacity planning for the D&D team by recommending and coordinating resource allocation to ensure flexible and effective support for Segment needs during periods of high demand, collaborating closely with Segment Leaders for final resourcing decisions.
- Own the engineering change management processes relating to product design release, revisions, and configuration management.
- Participation and/or leadership in recurring D&D meetings with colleagues in WNA and WDE, to include global leadership and project specific discussions.
- Oversight/support for initiatives including SAP/ECR module, Vault updates, CapEx and DTC initiatives.
- Support of legal processes including product claims review, depositions, field evidence inspections and patent management.
- Lead and coordinate cross ‑ functional D&D engineering efforts to ensure all D&D deliverables supporting sales ‑ driven ETO projects are completed accurately, within scope, and on schedule. Partner with Sales, Product Management, and Operations to translate customer requirements into executable technical solutions, proactively identify risks, remove barriers, and maintain delivery timelines that meet customer and commercial commitments
- Initiate, monitor, and defend Wanzl IP, including interfacing with external legal teams, which may require giving expert testimony during depositions.
- Support the segment leaders by providing engineering expertise, manpower planning, and technical execution aligned with segment specific priorities and budgets.
- Provide engineering timelines, risk assessments, and deliverables to segment leadership to support cross functional program reviews.
- Ensure technical support during design reviews, pilot runs, and initial production phases in partnership with Operations and Engineering.
- Coordinate closely with Segment Product Managers to translate customer needs and market requirements into clear technical specifications.
- Provide input on make/buy decisions, manufacturability, material selection, and product cost implications.
- Encourage an innovation-oriented culture within the D&D team and support global knowledge transfer from Wanzl HQ and other subsidiaries.
- Maintain awareness of emerging technologies, materials, manufacturing methods, and relevant industry trends.
- Lead continuous improvement efforts within the D&D function to increase quality, reduce engineering cycle time, and improve efficiency.
- Promote collaboration across teams, ensuring alignment between functional engineering expectations and segment level program objectives.
- Bachelor’s degree in engineering or industry related field required, advanced degree in any of the following areas are a plus: electrical engineering or mechanical engineering
- 7 years of progressively responsible job-related experience, including 5 years in supervision, team leadership, or functional management with responsibility for engineering, development, or manufacturing operations
- 3 years' experience with electronics and computer networking systems preferred
- 5 years’ industry related experience (retail products, wire/tube/plastic injection molding)
- Knowledge of development processes as well as 5 years’ experience leading development teams utilizing AutoCad, and/or SolidWorks.
- Knowledge of mechanical disciplines, as well as mechatronics and digital systems, including hardware/electronic/networks and integration of electronic devices/components, with the demonstrated ability to lead a cross-discipline team.
- Demonstrated understanding of D&D processes including state-gate product development.
- Excellent business computer skills (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
- Ability to interpret and perform financial analysis as it relates to project justifications.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including listening and presentation skills.
- Experience in design-to-cost and cost engineering
- Experience with project management software
- Extensive knowledge of the principles, procedures, and best practices in the industry (shelving & merchandising products, material handling, motorized products, cloud-based wifi products).
- Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail .
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
- Proven change management skills including people, process, systems, technologies, and performance measurements.
- Proficient in reviewing intellectual property, compliance, regulatory, and government requirements.
- Ability to travel 10-15% domestically and internationally.