Business Manager - FactoryTalk MES
Rockwell Automation · Milwaukee
Rockwell Automation is a global technology leader focused on helping the world’s manufacturers be more productive, sustainable, and agile. With more than 28,000 employees who make the world better every day, we know we have something special. Behind our customers - amazing companies that help feed the world, provide life-saving medicine on a global scale, and focus on clean water and green mobility - our people are energized problem solvers that take pride in how the work we do changes the world for the better.
We welcome all makers, forward thinkers, and problem solvers who are looking for a place to do their best work. And if that’s you we would love to have you join us!
Job Description
We're defined by the growth and transformation we deliver – for our customers, for our business, and for the market. We don't exist to build software. We exist to power manufacturing, the world's most important business sector, to run better: more competitive, more productive, more efficient, safer, and with higher quality. That's why we call ourselves MPX – Manufacturing Performance Excellence.
FactoryTalk MES is a leading industry-focused MES portfolio focused on Life Sciences, Pharmaceuticals, Medical Device and Automotive, Tire, and EV markets.
Rockwell Automation is looking for a Business Manager- FactoryTalk MES in our Manufacturing Performance Excellence group.
You will lead a team of 3-4 direct reports. You will define and accelerate the growth of Rockwell Automation's FactoryTalk MES portfolio through long-term strategy, growth, and transformation. Additionally, you will oversee the realization of Rockwell Automation's Autonomous Operations mission.
Reporting to the VP/GM, Manufacturing Performance Excellence, you will work a hybrid office schedule from either our Milwaukee HQ or Mayfield Heights, OH.
Your Responsibilities:
Portfolio Strategy & Vision
- FactoryTalk MES as a core execution layer for Connected Manufacturing, advanced analytics, AI-enabled operations, and future autonomous manufacturing capabilities.
- Execute the long-term strategy and roadmap for the FactoryTalk MES platform and associated industry solution suites.
- Use customer feedback, market trends, competitive intelligence, industry requirements, and Voice of Customer (VOC) inputs to guide investment decisions and roadmap priorities.
- Evaluate future platform strategies and business cases that balance new growth opportunities, modernization investments, and installed-base protection.
- Partner with Global Sales and Industry Management to understand evolving industry challenges, regulatory trends, customer use cases, competitive dynamics, and emerging market opportunities that may influence portfolio priorities.
- Lead the evolution of the portfolio toward secure, scalable, AI-ready architectures that support analytics, reporting, and autonomous operations.
- Balance investments between platform capabilities, modernization programs, and industry-focused solution opportunities to maximize long-term business value.
Growth, Economics, & Commercial Model
- Oversee portfolio growth, profitability, recurring revenue expansion, investment planning, and market leadership.
- Lead adoption of enterprise MES platforms across leading manufacturers in Life Sciences/Pharmaceutical, Medical Device, Battery, Tire, and other target industries.
- Use industry insights, customer value assessments, business cases, and market opportunities to inform portfolio investments, commercialization strategies, and growth priorities.
- Evolve the software and services business model to increase ARR, improve margins, and expand scalable platform offerings.
- Develop commercialization, pricing, packaging, and go-to-market strategies that maximize customer and shareholder value.
- Ensure portfolio investments align with both strategic goals and evolving industry and customer requirements.
Customer, Market, & Industry Engagement
- Build relationships with key customers, prospects, and industry leaders to understand evolving challenges and digital transformation priorities.
- Establish a disciplined Voice of Customer process that translates market needs into product strategy and investment decisions.
- Partner with Industry Management to gain a deeper visibility into industry-specific requirements, adoption challenges, regulatory considerations, and latest use cases. Also strategic customer engagements, customer advisory boards, industry forums, and market research activities to validate growth opportunities and roadmap direction.
- Collaborate with Sales, Account Management, Customer Success, and Lifecycle Services to accelerate adoption and customer value realization.
- Represent Rockwell Automation with strategic customers, partners, analysts, and industry organizations.
Platform Innovation & Sustainability
- Lead next-generation technology programs that improve scalability, upgradeability, maintainability, cybersecurity, compliance readiness, and customer experience.
- Define lifecycle, support, and versioning strategies that reduce portfolio complexity, increase adoption of current releases, and lower support costs.
- Partner with Industry Management to understand the impact of modernization strategies on customer adoption, validation requirements, compliance considerations, and industry-specific deployment models.
- Partner with Engineering, Security, LCS, and Customer Success to accelerate customer modernization through migration programs, upgrade services, and tooling that simplify platform transitions.
- Establish a modern software foundation that enables secure data management, AI services, advanced analytics, reporting, and future autonomous manufacturing capabilities.
Organizational Leadership
- Lead a Product Management organization with clear accountability for strategy, execution, and results.
- Foster collaboration and agreement across Product Management, Industry Management, Engineering, LCS, Sales, Customer Success, and Security teams.
- Lead growth, modernization, customer success, and long-term portfolio evolution.
- Create operating mechanisms that connect portfolio strategy with industry expertise, engineering execution, sales priorities, customer success, and lifecycle services.
- Develop the next generation of business and product leadership while promoting a culture of accountability, innovation, and customer focus.
Success Measures
- Accelerated profitable growth, recurring revenue expansion, and improved portfolio economics.
- Improved innovation agenda and release rhythm, including increased adoption of new capabilities.
- Sync portfolio investments and evolving customer, market, and industry needs.
- Lead customer adoption of current releases through innovation strategies, migration tooling, and lifecycle policies.
- Balance investment between innovation, new-market growth opportunities, and the long-term success of the installed base.
- Increase customer value realization through scalable platform capabilities and distinct industry solutions.
- An organization and culture recognized for strategic clarity, commercial discipline, execution quality, multifunctional leadership, and customer engagement.
- Establish FactoryTalk MES as a cornerstone of Connected Manufacturing and future autonomous operations.
The Essentials - You Will Have:
- Bachelor's Degree or equivalent years of relevant work experience.
- Legal authorization to work in the U.S. We will not sponsor individuals for employment visas, now or in the future, for this job opening.
- The ability to travel up to 25% of the time, both domestic and international.
The Preferred - You Might Also Have:
- Bachelor's degree in engineering, business or other relevant program discipline.
- 8+ years of leadership experience in enterprise software, industrial software, SaaS, MES, manufacturing technology, or related software businesses.
- Experience executing long-term product, platform, and portfolio strategies.
- Experience growing and transforming software portfolios, including recurring revenue and business model evolution.
- Experience modernizing legacy on-premises software into cloud-enabled or SaaS-oriented solutions.
- Experience with P&L ownership, investment planning, commercialization, pricing, and go-to-market experience.
- Experience developing business cases, evaluating strategic alternatives, and leading portfolio investment decisions.
- Experience leading customer-focused product strategy through Voice of Customer (VOC) programs, advisory boards, and direct engagement with strategic accounts.
- Knowledge of manufacturing operations, MES, quality management, industrial automation, cybersecurity, and regulated industry requirements.
- Experience in Life Sciences/Pharmaceutical, Medical Device, Consumer Products, Automotive, Tire, Battery, or related manufacturing industries.
What We Offer:
- Health Insurance including Medical, Dental and Vision
- 401k
- Paid Time off
- Parental and Caregiver Leave
- Flexible Work Schedule where you will work with your manager to enjoy a work schedule that can be flexible with your personal life.
- To learn more about our benefits package, please visit at www.raquickfind.com.
At Rockwell Automation we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace, so if you're excited about this role but your experience doesn't align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right person for this or other roles.
This position is part of a job family. Experience will be the determining factor for position level and compensation.
#LI-Hybrid #LI-MR2
We are an Equal Opportunity Employer including disability and veterans.
If you are an individual with a disability and you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation during the application process, please contact our services team at +1 (844) 404-7247.
Rockwell Automation’s hybrid policy aligns that employees are expected to work at a Rockwell location at least Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays unless they have a business obligation out of the office.