Principal Product Lead - DDN Horizon

DataDirect Networks (DDN) is a global leader in AI and multi-cloud data management, renowned for its innovative AI data storage solutions. They are seeking a Principal Product Lead for DDN Horizon, a strategic role focused on driving the product strategy and execution for their AI orchestration control plane, collaborating with various teams to ensure successful delivery and market presence.

Responsibilities:

• Co-own the Horizon product strategy, roadmap, and phased delivery plan (current release through multi-year vision), and represent product direction across executive, board, and partner forums
• Drive the end-to-end go-to-market execution for Horizon in partnership with sales, sales engineering, marketing, and services — including pricing and packaging, segmentation, positioning, enablement, and deal support for strategic opportunities
• Own cross-functional program orchestration across engineering, operations, support, customer success, and finance; anticipate dependencies, surface tradeoffs, and drive decisions on the critical path to each release and revenue milestone
• Define and evolve the operational model for Horizon as a recurring-revenue service, including delivery, support escalation, usage metering, billing integration, true-up processes, and the service-level framework across SaaS and on-premises deployments
• Lead partner and ecosystem engagement at the product level — including ongoing technology partnerships, co-selling relationships, and analyst interactions — and represent DDN in strategic customer conversations up to CxO level
• Shape the requirements and success criteria for each Horizon phase in tight collaboration with engineering architecture; convert ambiguous strategic objectives into crisp PRDs, acceptance criteria, and measurable outcomes
• Bring a structured voice of the customer into the roadmap by synthesizing input from design partners, early-access customers, and field teams, and by directly engaging reference accounts across regulated and sovereign segments
• Partner with marketing on positioning, messaging, and launch moments; serve as an executive-credible spokesperson for Horizon in external-facing settings where appropriate
• Operate as a thought partner to the Product Lead and to cross-functional executives — challenge assumptions, offer independent judgment, and raise the strategic caliber of the broader Horizon program