Senior Director, Engineering

Join Reynolds Consumer Products…and Drive Your Career across a world of opportunities!

We currently have an opportunity for a  Senior Director, Engineering at our Corporate Headquarters in Lake Forest, IL.

The Senior Director, Engineering provides strategic and technical leadership for engineering, product development, cost reduction, product improvement, and commercialization. This role establishes engineering priorities, directs technical resources and investments, and leads complex programs that strengthen the base business and enable future growth. The position is accountable for engineering talent, departmental budgets, project governance, manufacturing support, and external technical partnerships.

You Will Have the Opportunity to Make Great Things Happen!

Engineering Strategy and Innovation

• Defines and leads engineering and next-generation product development opportunities that support the 3-5 year innovation pipeline and business growth priorities.
• Integrates consumer, marketplace, technical, operational, and business insights into engineering strategies, technology roadmaps, and project plans.
• Identifies emerging technologies, concepts, materials, processes, and product features for potential use in existing operations and future products.
• Establishes the scope, cost, timing, resource requirements, development path, and expected business value for engineering and innovation opportunities.
• Advances open innovation and external technology scouting to improve products, processes, speed to market, and business performance.

Portfolio, Project Management, and Governance

• Leads the engineering portfolio, including product development, product improvement, cost reduction, and operational initiatives.
• Refines and implements stage-gate and project governance processes that prioritize opportunities based on strategic fit, technical feasibility, business potential, financial return, risk, and speed to market.
• Develops and communicates project schedules, milestones, resource plans, risks, decisions, and departmental priorities.
• Ensures clear reporting on project status, timelines, financial performance, and resource needs to business and senior leadership.
• Establishes engineering standards and procedures for project management, cost estimating, capital planning, prototyping, technical documentation, and commercialization.

Manufacturing and Continuous Improvement

• Partners with Manufacturing and Operations to improve process capability, product quality, productivity, cost, reliability, and safe operations.
• Confirms project assumptions and production variables, including run rates, scrap levels, material performance, quality parameters, and capital requirements.
• Applies engineering, statistical, Lean, and continuous improvement methods to resolve complex technical challenges and improve business performance.

Financial and Resource Management

• Owns departmental capital and expense budgets and ensures performance within approved financial targets and procedures.
• Develops and manages program economics, including product costs, prototyping costs, project capital, timing, and expected financial returns.
• Allocates engineering resources across priorities and recommends investments based on business need, technical risk, capacity, and expected value.

Leadership and Talent Management

• Leads, develops, and engages engineering and technical professionals responsible for product development, commercialization, and operational support.
• Establishes aligned objectives, provides ongoing coaching and feedback, and completes performance and development reviews.
• Drives workforce planning, selection, onboarding, succession planning, and retention while building a collaborative, accountable, and results-oriented engineering culture.

External Partnerships and Intellectual Property

• Builds and manages relationships with vendors, suppliers, technical experts, research partners, and industry innovators to advance priority engineering initiatives.
• Partners with Legal to develop intellectual property landscapes and strategies and protect confidential technical information.

You Will Love It Here If… 

• You listen, learn, and evolve
• You thrive in a fast-paced environment
• You put safety first, always
• You are passionate about collaboration, teamwork, and achieving shared goals
• You believe in treating all people with respect, operating ethically, and growing a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace
• You are committed to improving our impact on local communities and creating positive experiences 

Education/Experience

     Required

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering or another relevant technical field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant work experience to successfully perform the essential functions of the position.
• 12+ years of progressive engineering, product development, manufacturing, operations, or technical leadership experience, including project management and leadership of technical professionals or cross-functional teams.   
• 30% - 40% travel required

    Preferred

• Master's degree in Engineering, Product Development, Operations, or Business Administration.
• PMP, Six Sigma Black Belt, Lean, or Continuous Improvement certification.
• Experience with plastics processing, film converting, thermoforming, packaging, polymer materials, or related manufacturing technologies.

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities

• Experience leading complex programs from concept through commercialization in a consumer products, packaging, plastics, manufacturing, or similarly technical environment.
• Broad technical knowledge of product development, engineering, manufacturing processes, prototyping, testing, commercialization, and continuous improvement.
• Demonstrated ability to establish technical strategy and translate business priorities into executable engineering plans.
• Strong project and portfolio management capabilities, including stage-gate governance, resource planning, and risk management.
• Ability to diagnose complex technical and business challenges and implement practical solutions.
• Knowledge of statistical and analytical methods, including design of experiments and statistical process control, and of Lean manufacturing principles.
• Familiarity with intellectual property strategy, processes, and terminology.
• Excellent written, verbal, presentation, and influencing skills with the ability to communicate at all organizational levels.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and relevant project management, engineering, statistical, or design software.

Competencies

• Strategic Mindset - Anticipates future technical and market needs and translates insights into engineering strategies and long-term growth opportunities.
• Decision Quality - Evaluates technical feasibility, strategic fit, business potential, risk, and financial return to guide priorities and investments.
• Drives Results - Advances engineering, commercialization, cost reduction, and operational programs to achieve business commitments.
• Plans and Aligns - Translates business priorities into clear objectives and coordinates people and resources to deliver results.
• Collaborates - Builds effective partnerships across functions and with external organizations to solve problems and deliver results.
• Develops Talent - Builds organizational capability through clear expectations, coaching, development, selection, and succession planning.

Want to know more? Check out our website or connect with us on LinkedIn! Apply today to join a fast-growing innovative company!

Not a good fit but know someone who is? Please refer them! No unsolicited recruiter or agency inquiries, please. RCP affords equal employment opportunities to applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, disability status, sex, marital status, protected veteran status, pregnancy, national origin, genetics, genetic information, parental status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. RCP conforms to the spirit as well as to the letter of all applicable laws and regulations.