Jacobia R. Solomon

Dallas- Fort Worth, Texas

Phone: 817-***-****

Email: adi69j@r.postjobfree.com

Vision driven leader with an ability to influence and inspire others; compelling and pulling people towards a common goal or direction while giving certainty and purpose to themselves to be successful. An innovation veteran with deep knowledge of driving engineering and innovation processes and the development of new products, services, systems, and solutions that involve a wide range of technologies. Global engineering experience with successful track record in building and leading winning go-to-market strategy that drives market demand ahead of competition. As a thought leader, I have a rich mix of product strategy development, strategic direction, business development, sales execution, and quality for billion-dollar organizations. Recognize for strategy realization; defines business case and strategy for growing the overall global business by developing the market intelligence, and global business plan to meet aggressive industrial market expansion goals; capture and translate voice of customer into winning scalable solutions, manage enterprise software launches, drive enterprise positioning, market analysis and P&L creation to drive lasting profitable growth. Proven ability to drive customer and supplier engagement, network across industries (Automotive, Retail/ Industrial, Consumer Goods, Software, Ecommerce, Construction, and Automation) at executive-level and develop long-lasting partnerships that drive product and digital transformations. Prioritize market development activities. Identify suitable projects to bid on. Build, drive and follow-up on the right projects in the sales pipeline and pull them through. Drive a good success rate. Experience with corporate governance. Entrepreneurial spirit and works effectively and collaboratively across the organization. Champion in driving organic growth for the company and responsible for activities to ensure that technology productivity, growth and financial improvement objectives are met. Self-starter that embodies strong leadership, organization, and planning skills, with proven capability to motivate professionals and maximize levels of productivity at all levels.

SELECTED HIGHLIGHTS

20+ years in building and growing successful product management and development teams within consumer products or B2B/ B2C product environments.

10 + years of leading continuous technological and operational improvement to drive increases in sales performance, revenue growth, and EBITDA.

Knowledge and experience specializing in the areas of innovative design both hardware and software products and solutions within Fortune 500 companies. Experience in industrial applications product development for materials, including patented technologies.

15+ years of P&L experience with recent experience in a leadership position for a portfolio of significant size ($300M+ in annual revenue).

10+ years of broad operations management experience in a best-in-class global manufacturing environment, specifically in materials, automotive, glass, sheet metal, and thermal modules and automation equipment industries.

Experienced creating technology platforms that enable businesses to scale, with demonstrable knowledge of technology solutions, UI/UX user experience, data architecture and operational implementation across an enterprise.

10 years’ experience SaaS, digital marketing, data-driven analytical tools. Utilizing Amazon Web Services Suite and Microsoft Azure Suite.

10+ years of experience with using Salesforce with a passionate vision for how we can change the industry in the Age of the Customer.

Implemented Digital Twin through development process. Launched proof of concepts for AI and AR automation application; generating new revenue over $30M to support e-commerce business growth.

Increased efficiency, quality, and profitability by implementing process improvements to streamline product commercialization. RESULT: Improve go-to-market by 2-3 months.

Managed key strategic partnerships and developing new activities and product revenue streams. RESULT: Brokered a deal with key Partner that triggered $1.3M in additional revenue.

Developed and organized a 5-member team from scratch to support online retail sales, implementing standardized procedures that supported and contributed to increase in annual revenue $5M of new product line business while achieving predetermined targets for profitability and contribution margin less than year.

Successful directing high-powered development, process, and operational teams that collaborate as focused units to achieve aggressive business goals.

Particularly effective leveraging Board/stakeholder relationships, system/process improvements, and negotiation skills to maximize performance and ROI across operations.

Passionate and proven leader with strong commitment to promote culture of growth, partnership, and seizing business opportunities thought to be impossible.

Serve as a catalyst in change management, aligning and leveraging cross-functional disciplines to deliver efficiencies and bottom-line results.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Billion-dollar global company specializing in products for the material handling industries

HEAD OF PRODUCT & SOLUTIONS DEVELOPMENT: Reporting and helping to drive the CEO's vision, responsible for providing strategic and tactical leadership aimed at driving high engineering performance and effectiveness while reducing engineering costs. Managed strategies financial data within the associated P&L to drive strong growth. Formulate and provide strategic direction that guides the product business. Lead the next generation of systems through innovation that will enable business growth. Engage with top customers and prospects to provide direct deal support, industry expertise and strategy in key sales opportunities globally. Drive social media presence with content for product marketing. Deliver C-suite presentation to gain innovation investment. Board level presentations of digital transformation projects and large-scale change management efforts. Manage and develop resource capabilities to support product and solutions design. Recently inherited Quality and EH&S departments and deliverables of driving a zero harm culture, making product quality a catalyst of sales growth, and securing and maintaining ISO certifications. Recruit and manage overall team output of 60+ engineers and support staff.

Key Accomplishments:

Generated over $60M of revenue from new innovative product market releases. Introduced performance software the led to additional $25M in residual sales on existing automated equipment.

Drove the win rate up and ensured productive and profitable new projects.

Established a new R&D team focused on innovation 5-15 years out with a focus on developing product and solution concepts using consumer insight, market-driven technologies (i.e. IIOT, AI, AR) and innovation for commercialization. This is done simultaneously while working directly with the product groups for each business segments.

Improved project budget, schedule, and quality performance year over year.

Introduced Agile methodology and JIRA to improve project visibility/ accountability and address development issues immediately.

Billion-dollar global company specializing in products for the food service and construction industries

VP ENGINEERING: Led the North American Engineering Department (Mechanical, Structural, and Civil - PE) with complete P/L responsibility in charge of technology management, product evolution and new product design of products and solutions. Defined and created collateral and thought leadership pieces including white papers, and datasheets. Act as a company spokesperson and domain expert with analyst firms, industry trade press, trade shows, industry influencers and deliver high profile presentations to large scale audiences. Led M&A activities for Operations, Engineering, and Customer Service. Raise capital from strategic partners and others if accretive to value creation. Board level presentations of digital transformation projects and large-scale change management efforts. Managed and recruited teams and financial capital in accordance with agreed business priorities (330+ Engineers / Designers and about 35M annual operating budget).

Key Accomplishments:

Reduced time to market from 14 months to 6 months for new product offerings.

RESULT: Introduced 6 new products that generated over $3M in revenue.

Introduced exciting new products that differentiate against the competition.

RESULT: Two patents acquired.

Million-dollar global innovator of online, on-demand digital printing and distribution

VP, ENGINEERING: Global Leader of multi-disciplinary teams including Engineering, Quality, Shipping, Maintenance, Program Management Office, and Sales team. Managed a $120M e-commerce product portfolio meet and exceed growth and profitability objectives, manage strategic client relationships; oversee all aspects of engineering (design and manufacturing), product management/ development, manufacturing process designs, and quality for all product lines. Managed financial data within the associated P&L. Proven experience with API-First development strategies and delivering platform as a service. Developed a consistent message and product marketing approach across portfolio to maximize sales channel effectiveness. Develop and help execute brand and go-to-market strategies including sales, sales enablement, marketing, alliances, and our internal and external communities. Raise capital from strategic partners and others if accretive to value creation. Board level presentations of digital transformation projects and large-scale change management efforts. Supervised the development and maintenance of World Class engineering a staff of over 100 engineers, professional associates, technicians, and directors/ senior managers.

Key Accomplishments:

Demonstrated breadth and depth of functional expertise across S&OP, operations strategy, and lean six-sigma manufacturing.

Managed pricing as an integral part of product life cycle. Drove for continuous improvement of pricing methodology in order to maximize realized GM.

Implemented a New Product Development Process (With Toll Gates) to increase time to market while ensuring compliance and quality standards. Led the delivery of innovative product offerings that fulfilled or created market demand. RESULT: increased profitability by over 27%; improved new product growth by 3% year over year and reduced development cycle time by more than 40%.

Managed the worldwide e-commerce product line optimization with automation and performance standardization within three manufacturing facilities worldwide, which reduced operating and overhead costs by $485K annually while improving efficiency by 20% and quality level by 2s.

Billion-dollar global marketer of consumer and commercial products

SENIOR MANAGER (Program Management Office): Promoted from Manager within a year. Directed, developed, managed several enterprise software transformational and multi-million-dollar projects in the areas of Shared Services, Finance, Human Resources, Supply Chain, and SAP. Developed strategy and training that streamlined shared services operations, established processes to support hyper growth, and ensured high levels of customer satisfaction. Led organizational change across a broad spectrum of individuals and functions globally. Board level presentations of digital transformation projects and large-scale change management efforts. Realized high-value gains on $400M spend. Managed director level and above in executing high-impact projects.

Key Accomplishments:

Demonstrated breadth and depth of functional expertise across S&OP, procurement, supply chain, operations strategy, and lean manufacturing.

Managed the PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) launch of Windchill; a process- centric technology used to vault, link, share and control the maturation of product data from inception to end of life.

Managed the Financial Supply Chain Management (SAP FSCM) implementation. Re- engineered the US based Share Service Center Dispute Resolution & Collection processes. Project came in at budget and on-time. Result: Reduce US DSO by 1-to-2 days and accelerate overall cash by $12M.

Managed SAP Human Capital Management (HCM) $20M implementation. Directed daily operations, planned and managed resources for implementation and transition of client/server Human Resources Systems. Executed project plan and methodology, which form cohesive team environment comprised of programmers, internal technologists and third-party consultants. Result: Implemented SAP HCM two months earlier than anticipated; estimated annual savings are $7M.

Realigned Catapult’s (SAP ERP Implementation) business case with business processes and related value drivers. Presented regularly at Board of Director’s meetings to illustrate quarterly business results. Result: Ability to track significant improvement in inventory metrics: annual avg. Inventory 35%, Days-on-hand 31%, and Turns with a 41%.

Fortune 500 company that holds the position of largest manufacturer of glass containers in North America, South America, Asia-Pacific and Europe

LEAN SIX-SIGMA MANAGER: Implemented Lean Six-Sigma transforming North American operations. Developed and implemented quality systems, GMP and ISO standards, metrics, and tracking capabilities to improve productivity and customer satisfaction. Provided strategic and tactical support to ensure sustained improvements in productivity, customer satisfaction and profitability. Led and managed 16 Managers (Quality and Production) as direct reports.

Key Accomplishments:

Drove the reorganization of operations, quality management and lean transformation of ten sites realizing an average 2% month-over-month productivity gain.

Redesigned Owens-Illinois Quality Management Systems on TPS philosophy for standardized implementation of lean manufacturing principles at all sites.

Managed performance of direct reports for optimization projects resulting in cost savings and productivity gains. Result: Boasted a 20% productivity gain in within 1 year with the highest customer satisfaction in quality.

Implemented Lean using text book TPS (Toyota Production System) philosophy that promotes 5-S, standardized work, JIT, and Kaizen within 10 months.

An American company that manufactures and sells automobiles worldwide

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT MANAGER: Led Product Management Teams in the development of new products. Delivered profit-driven revenue models. Developed business and functional requirements for products. Successfully lead business development efforts. Performed business and cost analysis. Analyzed market segments and created effective business and marketing plans. Developed marketing and sales communication strategies. Liaised with 25 factories from China to EMEA to oversee cost saving product adjustments, product specifications, quality control and order fulfillment. Improve employee training – to transition Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) from a repair function to a reliability function. Managed the development and tracking of team Performance Management Development Plans (PMDP) of 14 direct reports. Recruited an electrical engineering supervisor, three mechanical engineers, two project engineers and one CAD/CAE staff and motivate action by autonomy with accountability.

Key Accomplishments:

Created a responsive market-driven department increasing market share from 15% to 30% in 18 months.

Led the challenge of leading products that required an integration of multiple first leading-edge technologies on the market. Generated over $2B in revenue.

Developed a process to address material handling during “special cause” inventory handling. Result: An annual savings of $3.9M, which includes scrap, expedited shipping, off-standard repair, and a potential customer defect if not contained in zone. This process improvement was replicated at each Ford Plant, with global annual savings of $52M once complete.

Improved rework by 60% and reduce fixed costs by 30% at an Atlanta car manufacturing facility through enhance productive maintenance (TPM); standardize work, and employee training.

Developed Statistical Quality Assurance Metrics Plan to measure and track major defects (variability) and root causes. Result: Aggregated measures provide insight to the “Vital Few” causes that accounted for approximately 80% of the defects and serve as targets for initial Continuous Process Improvement initiatives.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT (CERTIFIED SIX-SIGMA BLACK BELT):

Strategically led million-dollar high impact, sustainable process improvements using Lean and Six-Sigma methodology. Devised and implemented strategies to optimize profitability, finished products, parts, and quality; leveraged emerging technologies to minimize costs and enhance company products. Supervised 8 cross functional team members as direct reports.

Key Accomplishments:

Developed a Technical Design Review Process using DFSS for early detection of design & process-related defects; established management reporting; and measured and tracked supplier process efficiencies. Result: A savings of $7.5M per program per annum.

Reduced incorrect calculations by 70% and reduce cost by $5.3M by developing a process to streamline the Service Contracts cancellations on repossessed accounts; reducing complexity and rework (Service center project).

Managed an in-line door system project with a seven-person team to improve the warranty of four-major assemblies (door, glass, seal system, body) and adding automation to ensure effectiveness and efficiency. Result: An annualized savings of $1.4M.

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT ENGINEER – SUPERVISOR: Directed product development operations (including customized offerings) from initial concept until delivery to BOMs for procurement and manufacturing. Developed and managed design and release activities for sheet metal (closures) and exterior ornamentation sub-systems (plastics and electronics); tooling design and fabrication, and finite element analysis studies to optimize and validate designs. Researched and analyzed potential markets, financial affairs, competitive bidding, and entire project management. Managed new business development and strategic planning to maximize growth and profitability. Coordinated production operations per APQP and PPAP standards with manufacturers in Taiwan and China. Directed corrective actions and process standardization for all stamping plant operations. Managed 10 team members (6 employees and 4 software development contractors) - product engineers, test engineers, CAD/CAE developers, and office staff as direct reports.

Key Accomplishments:

Performed business and cost analysis. Analyzed market segments and created effective business and marketing plans. Developed marketing and sales communication strategies. Liaise with 25 factories from China to EMEA

Established 5 new SKU's with the after-market vendors triggering $1.2M in additional sales revenues. Introducing LED and HID Lighting packages.

Developed the “Night Vision” system, transforming defense technology into an implementation ready technology for automobiles. Worked extensively with supplier and scientists on product verification. Presented working prototype to marketing and product vehicle teams. Result: a successfully launch of the “Night Vision” system for Volvo.

Developed a new design for the “rain hat” (a plastic component of the AC system) to help facilitate better air flow and moisture ventilation. Result: Eliminated water leak warranty issues, one-time savings $186K.

Designed new deck lid brackets for upcoming model. Previous model incurred substantial warranty issues with deck lid not opening or closing properly. Result: Eliminated opening and closing warranty issues, one-time savings of $60k.

Assisted in the development of tailor-welded blank (TWB) doors. Improved reliability and reduce weight; a cost saving $2-3M per vehicle program (Patent obtained).

Streamlined the marketing presentation process through the creation of a "product development database" providing marketing managers with immediate access to product progress, features and pricing information.

OTHER NOTABLE SKILLS

Leadership

Strategic (Hoshin) Planning

Program & Change Management

Team Development

New Product Development

Six-Sigma (Certified Black Belt)

P&L Management

Product Portfolio Mgmt.

Design for Six Sigma (DFSS)

Customer Engagement

Training & Development

ISO / SPC Certified

Multi-Site Global Operations & Vendor Management

Margin/ Profit Improvement & ROI

Lean (Certified Kaizen Leader)

Shanin and TPS

EDUCATION/PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Graduate

Starting EMBA, University of Texas (Arlington), Expected Graduation Dec. 2021

Graduate

Master of Science, Engineering Management, University of Michigan, Dearborn, MI

Undergraduate

Bachelor of Science, Mechanical Engineering, Florida A&M University, Tallahassee, FL

Technical Certifications

Lean – Kaizen Leader

Six-Sigma Black Belt

Design for Six Sigma (DFSS)

ISO 9000/14000

Statistical Process Control (SPC)

PMP

Certified Scrum Master

Agile trained/ application

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