Global Application Development Leader

About the job:

At DuPont, our purpose is to empower the world with essential innovations to thrive. We work on things that matter. Whether it’s providing clean water to more than a billion people on the planet, producing materials that are essential in everyday technology devices from smartphones to electric vehicles, or protecting workers around the world. Discover the many reasons the world’s most talented people are choosing to work at DuPont. Why Join Us | DuPont Careers

Location: Flexible within Spectrum Plastics Group manufacturing footprint

We are seeking a highly strategic and execution oriented Global Application Development Leader to lead our Application Development, Quote Development, and Rapid Prototyping organizations across a global Healthcare Solutions Platform. This role will be responsible for driving customer centric innovation, enabling profitable growth, and building a high performing global team aligned with business priorities.

This leader will oversee technical development with customers from opportunity qualification through commercialization, ensuring strong alignment between commercial strategy, technology development, operations and customer needs. This role requires a balance of end-use/therapeutical knowledge of OEM Med Dev customers, technical leadership, commercial acumen, operational discipline and organizational influence.

The ideal candidate is a strong people leader who can build scalable processes, lead through change, prioritize resources effectively, and drive cross-functional execution in a fast-paced global environment.

Key Responsibilities:

Global Application Development Leadership

• Lead and develop a global application development organization supporting strategic customer opportunities and new product/process commercialization.
• Establish clear technical and commercial prioritization aligned with business strategy and growth objectives.
• Drive customer-focused innovation and application solutions across key market segments.
• Partner closely with commercial, product management, operations, R&D, regulatory, and quality teams to accelerate growth opportunities.
• Build a culture of patient first/customer centricity, accountability, collaboration, agility, and execution excellence.

Quoting and Opportunity Management

• Lead the global quoting and opportunity intake process to ensure responsiveness, prioritization, and resource alignment.
• Drive governance processes for opportunity qualification, quote strategy, and investment decisions.
• Improve quote cycle time, win rates, and resource utilization through standardized processes and data-driven decision making.
• Partner with commercial leadership to align technical support with strategic growth priorities.

Rapid Prototyping and Customer Responsiveness

• Lead rapid prototyping capabilities to accelerate customer development cycles and speed-to-market.
• Establish scalable processes and operating models for quick-turn customer support and feasibility assessment.
• Balance speed, technical rigor, and operational scalability in prototype development.
• Drive continuous improvement in prototyping effectiveness, turnaround time, and customer experience.

Innovation Process and Portfolio Governance

• Support stage-gate and innovation governance processes to ensure disciplined project execution and portfolio prioritization.
• Allocate technical resources effectively with differential management
• Ensure effective communication and alignment across global business units and functions.
• Identify capability gaps and build organizational plans to support future growth.

Team Leadership and Organizational Development

• Lead, coach, and develop a global, cross-functional technical organization.
• Build organizational capability in customer engagement, technical problem solving, project leadership, and commercialization.
• Foster a strong culture of patient-first, customer centricity, collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Drive talent development, succession planning, and organizational scalability.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Materials Science, Chemistry, Biomedical Engineering, or related technical field required; advanced degree highly preferred.

• 15+ years of leadership experience in application development, product development, technical service, R&D, or related functions. 10+ years’ experience with advanced degree may be considered.

• Experience leading global and cross-functional teams in a matrix organization.
• Strong commercial orientation with demonstrated ability to support growth initiatives and customer engagement.
• Experience managing complex technical projects from concept through commercialization.
• Proven ability to drive organizational change, process improvement, and operational discipline.
• Strong executive communication, influence, and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience in healthcare, medical devices, polymer processing, specialty materials, or regulated industries highly preferred.

Key Leadership Competencies

• Strategic thinking and prioritization
• Customer-centric innovation
• Cross-functional leadership and influence
• Organizational change leadership
• Operational excellence and process governance
• Talent development and team building
• Strong communication and executive presence
• Bias for action and execution

Success Metrics

• Growth and commercialization pipeline delivery
• Quote responsiveness and conversion effectiveness
• Rapid prototyping turnaround and customer satisfaction
• Innovation portfolio execution and stage-gate discipline
• Team capability development and employee engagement
• Cross-functional collaboration effectiveness
• Resource prioritization and operational efficiency