Sustaining and Value Engineering Lead

OverviewHayward Holdings Inc. (NYSE "HAYW") is the largest manufacturer of residential swimming pool equipment in the world, with a significant presence in the commercial pool market that is continuously growing. Hayward designs, manufactures, and markets a full line of residential and commercial pool and spa equipment including pumps, filters, heating, cleaners, salt chlorinators, automation, lighting, safety, flow control, and energy solutions at our company-owned facilities. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Hayward also has facilities in Tennessee, Arizona, and Rhode Island as well as Canada, Spain, France, Australia, and China.Based in our North Kingstown, RI facility and Reporting to the Director of Global Hardware Engineering, the Sustaining & Value Engineering Lead will be responsible for VAVE, obsolescence, and new feature development for Hayward's vast portfolio of pool products.This role owns prioritization, execution strategy, and delivery of sustaining initiatives, ensuring results are achieved through a combination of cross-functional collaboration, and external partners. In addition, this role is responsible for deploying AI-enabled engineering capabilities to enhance VAVE analysis, cost optimization, and engineering decision-making.ResponsibilitiesSustaining Execution, Delivery & Quality:Own and prioritize sustaining activities across PCBA, controls, and system-level productsLead execution of VAVE, obsolescence mitigation, quality improvements, and feature enhancementsDefine execution approach, including internal vs. external resource allocation, to meet timelines and VAVE targetsEnsure successful implementation and integration of sustaining changes into productionSupport and lead sustaining efforts related to quality issues and field failuresIdentify systemic issues and drive design or process improvements to prevent recurrenceTrack and report status, risks, progress metrics for all sustaining engineering.Team Management:Lead and develop sustaining engineering team; define required skillsets, methods and resource needsProvide technical guidance and support to team membersEnsure timely execution, communication, and alignment across all sustaining effortsManage workload, priorities, and execution tracking for sustaining initiativesCross-Functional Collaboration:Collaborate with Hardware, Software, Operations, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, Regulatory, and Quality teamsIncorporate cross-functional input into prioritization while maintaining ownership of execution and outcomesSupport resolution of production, field, and supply chain issuesTechnical Oversight:Drive and participate in VAVE design reviews and provide guidance based on board-level electronics and systems experienceIdentify cost, reliability, and obsolescence risks and define mitigation strategiesParticipate in failure analysis and ensure sustaining solutions address root cause with robust fixesEnsure sustaining changes meet quality, reliability, and compliance standards (UL, CE, IEC)Vendor & Resource Strategy:Identify capability gaps and utilize external engineering partners to accelerate execution and VAVE business assessments.Define scope of work and ensure quality and timeliness of external deliverablesPropose new component strategies and circuit modernizations and drive new vendor integration.AI-Enabled Engineering & Analytics Deployment:Define and deploy AI-enabled VAVE analysis capabilities to identify cost reduction opportunities across schematics, BOMs, and designsEstablish scalable workflows and pipelines for engineering data analysis and cost optimizationIntegrate AI-driven insights, automation into sustaining prioritization and decision-making processesPartner with internal teams and external providers to implement practical, production-ready solutionsEnsure AI initiatives deliver measurable impact on cost, speed, and engineering efficiencyProcess & Continuous Improvement:Drive improvements in sustaining workflows, tools, and best practicesStandardize engineering documentation and PLM structures to support efficient outsourcing and bid package developmentEstablish repeatable, scalable execution models across sustaining activitiesQualificationsBachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or related field10-15 years of experience in electronics product developmentExperience in sustaining engineering, VAVE, quality resolution, and product lifecycle managementDemonstrated ability to lead engineering efforts and deliver results in cross-functional, resource-constrained environmentsExperience working with external engineering vendors and manufacturing partnersKnowledge of Altium, PLM or similar EDA tools and engineering documentation practicesExperience or strong familiarity with data-driven or AI-assisted engineering analysis methodsUnderstanding of regulatory and compliance standards (UL, CE, IEC)Strong interpersonal, communication, and analytical skillsPreferred Qualifications:Experience in high-volume electro-mechanical product development (consumer or industrial)Experience implementing engineering analytics, cost modeling, or data pipelines in product development environmentsUnderstanding of gated product development processesBroad system-level understanding across hardware, firmware, and mechanical domains#LI-LS1