Sr. Manager, Robotics Engineering & AI Enablement

Newell Brands is a leading consumer products company with a portfolio of iconic brands. The Senior Manager, Robotics Engineering & AI Enablement is responsible for leading the strategy, roadmap, and deployment of robotic solutions across the enterprise, enhancing safety, productivity, and cost efficiency.

Responsibilities:

• Develop and maintain the multi-year roadmap for general-purpose and humanoid robotics solutions across plants, warehouses, and offices
• Translate business objectives into a prioritized portfolio of robotics initiatives, aligned to safety, operational excellence, and financial targets
• Continuously scan the robotics and automation landscape to identify emerging capabilities, platforms, and partners relevant to the enterprise
• Lead cross-functional workshops to identify, assess, and refine robotics use cases, with specific emphasis on humanoid and general-purpose robotic applications
• Define functional requirements, success criteria, and high-level solution architectures for robotics deployments in partnership with engineering, IT, safety, and operations
• Ensure solutions are designed with scalability, reliability, and maintainability in mind, leveraging modular platforms and standard practices where possible
• Own the end-to-end deployment lifecycle for robotics initiatives—from concept and pilot through scale-up and steady-state operations
• Coordinate site readiness, infrastructure, safety reviews, and change management activities required for successful robot deployment
• Establish clear KPIs and benefits tracking for each deployment; monitor performance and drive continuous improvement in collaboration with operations teams
• Serve as the primary owner for relationships with robotics OEMs, system integrators, and automation partners delivering technical solutions
• Oversee partner scopes of work, delivery milestones, and quality standards, ensuring alignment to internal requirements and timelines
• Collaborate with Procurement, Legal, and IT on vendor selection, contracting, performance management, and technology governance
• Work with data, IT, and analytics teams to ensure robotics solutions are integrated into enterprise systems (MES, WMS, ERP, safety systems, etc.)
• Guide how AI-enabled capabilities—such as perception, navigation, and task orchestration—are applied through partner solutions to improve robot performance and autonomy
• Promote standardized data collection, monitoring, and reporting from robotic systems to support diagnostics, optimization, and strategic decision-making
• Engage plant leadership, frontline teams, and functional stakeholders to align on use cases, operating models, and ways of working with humanoid and general-purpose robots
• Develop training, communication, and adoption plans to ensure employees understand and effectively collaborate with robotic systems
• Champion a culture of safety and innovation, proactively addressing concerns and promoting the benefits of robotics to the workforce
• Define and enforce standards for robotics deployments, including safety, cybersecurity, interoperability, and lifecycle management
• Partner with EHS, Security, and IT to ensure humanoid and mobile robots meet all applicable regulatory and internal compliance requirements
• Manage risks associated with robotics deployments, including operational disruption, vendor dependencies, and technology obsolescence
• Lead and develop a small internal team of robotics program managers / engineers focused on requirements, integration, and deployment oversight
• Foster strong collaboration across engineering, IT, operations, and HR to support workforce transformation as robotics adoption scales

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Robotics, Mechatronics, Industrial Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field; advanced degree preferred
• 8+ years of experience in industrial automation, robotics, advanced manufacturing, or related fields, with at least 3–5 years in a leadership or program ownership role
• Demonstrated experience leading deployment of robotics solutions (e.g., industrial robots, AMRs, AGVs, humanoid or general-purpose robots) in production or logistics environments
• Proven track record of managing complex, multi-site technology programs and working with external system integrators and technology partners
• Strong understanding of operational processes in manufacturing and/or distribution and how robotics can be applied to improve safety, quality, and productivity
• Ability to translate business needs into functional and technical requirements and to communicate effectively with both technical and non-technical stakeholders
• Excellent stakeholder management, communication, and change management skills, including experience working with frontline and plant leadership teams
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines simultaneously
• Experience with humanoid robotics platforms, general-purpose robotic systems, or collaborative robots (cobots) in real-world use cases
• Familiarity with AI-enabled capabilities in robotics (e.g., computer vision, SLAM, task planning) delivered via partner solutions
• Experience in large, multi-site industrial or consumer goods environments, or other complex, asset-intensive operations
• Exposure to integration with enterprise systems (e.g., MES, WMS, ERP) and OT/IT environments