Director of Product Development

Location: Remote
Reports To: COO
Department: Product Development

Position Summary

The Director of Product Development will lead the technical development, validation, and scale-up of Carbon Upcycling’s product portfolio. This role oversees three critical teams:

• Product Performance
• Materials Testing & Quality Control (QC)
• Medium-Scale Treatment

The Director will ensure product performance meets commercial requirements, testing and QC systems are rigorous and scalable, and medium-scale treatment operations effectively bridge R&D and full commercial deployment. This role sits at the intersection of R&D, Operations, Commercial, and Engineering and is responsible for translating technical innovation into reliable, market-ready products.

Key Responsibilities

Product Strategy & Technical Leadership

• Define and execute the product development roadmap aligned with commercial priorities and deployment timelines.
• Lead cross-functional alignment between Technology, Business Development, Engineering, and Operations.
• Establish performance benchmarks and product specifications based on customer and industry requirements.
• Drive stage-gate development processes from lab validation through pilot and early commercial scale.

Product Performance Team Oversight

• Direct product validation programs across cementitious materials and other carbon-utilized products.
• Ensure development of robust technical data packages for customers, partners, and regulatory bodies.
• Oversee performance optimization including strength, durability, workability, and environmental impact metrics.
• Guide experimental design, statistical validation, and performance modeling efforts.

Materials Testing & Quality Control Leadership

• Develop and implement standardized testing protocols aligned with ASTM, CSA, EN, or other relevant standards.
• Build scalable QC systems to support pilot and commercial production.
• Establish documentation, traceability, and quality reporting systems.
• Ensure laboratory infrastructure, equipment calibration, and compliance standards are maintained.

Medium-Scale Treatment Operations

• Oversee medium-scale treatment activities bridging R&D and commercial plants.
• Optimize process parameters for performance consistency and operational efficiency.
• Collaborate with Process Engineering to inform scale-up design and commissioning.
• Ensure operational readiness, safety compliance, and production reliability at intermediate scale.

Commercial & Customer Interface

• Support technical discussions with customers and strategic partners.
• Translate customer requirements into measurable technical specifications.
• Provide technical leadership during product qualification trials.
• Contribute to technical marketing materials and regulatory submissions.

Team Leadership & Development

• Build, mentor, and scale multidisciplinary teams.
• Establish KPIs and performance management systems across teams.
• Foster a culture of data integrity, technical rigor, accountability, and innovation.
• Support talent recruitment and succession planning.

Governance, Safety & Compliance

• Ensure all development and testing activities meet safety, environmental, and regulatory requirements.
• Implement best practices in laboratory and pilot plant safety.
• Maintain data governance and documentation standards suitable for commercial diligence.

Qualifications

Education

• PhD or Master’s degree in Materials Science, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, or related field preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree with significant industry leadership experience considered.

Experience

• 15+ years of experience in materials development, cementitious systems, industrial minerals, or related sectors.
• 5+ years of leadership experience managing multidisciplinary technical teams.
• Experience scaling products from R&D through pilot to early commercial deployment.
• Strong familiarity with materials testing standards (ASTM/CSA/EN).
• Experience in quality systems development and implementation.
• Exposure to industrial process scale-up and pilot plant operations.

Preferred Experience

• Experience in cement, SCMs, concrete admixtures, or low-carbon building materials.
• Experience in carbon utilization or decarbonization technologies.
• Familiarity with LCA and environmental performance validation.

Core Competencies

• Strategic technical leadership
• Systems thinking across R&D to operations
• Strong analytical and data-driven decision making
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Execution discipline and milestone ownership
• Change management in scaling organizations