Senior Manager - NPI

Castrol is one of the world’s leading lubricant brands, serving customers and consumers in the automotive, marine, industrial and energy sectors. Castrol brands are recognised globally for their premium quality and high performance, shaped by the company’s commitment to innovation and cutting-edge technology. With products sold in more than 150 countries, Castrol has helped keep things moving on roads and racetracks, air, sea, and space for over 125 years.
Whether you're just starting out or ready for your next big move, you're in the right place to explore an exciting career with Castrol.
Job Description
About the team
Own the end-to-end New Product Introduction (NPI) process, from design transfer to stable commercial production. Lead cross-functional stage-gate reviews, ensuring products progress only when readiness criteria for cost, quality, supply, and operational execution are met, delivering successful launches on time and in full.
This role provides leadership and governance for the NPI portfolio, owning launch outcomes, stakeholder alignment, and stage-gate decisions. While the NPI Planner manages operational execution across materials, capacity, builds, and inventory, this role is accountable for overall NPI success and commercialization readiness.
Key Tasks
NPI process ownership
Define, run and continuously improve the stage-gate NPI process (concept, design, prototype, pilot, ramp, release to mass production), including gate criteria, templates and governance.
Run the NPI portfolio: intake, prioritization and resource allocation across concurrent projects.
Own the handover from Technology to Operations and the transition to steady-state manufacturing.
Cross-functional evaluation and gate decisions
Chair NPI gate reviews with R&D, Quality, Regulatory, Manufacturing Engineering, Sourcing, Supply Chain, Finance and Commercial.
Assess each product for manufacturability, test and quality readiness, supplier readiness, compliance, cost and launch risk.
Make or escalate go / no-go / conditional-go recommendations with documented risks and mitigations.
NPI delivery
Own schedule, budget, scope and risk for each project; maintain the master NPI plan and critical path.
Drive risk management and resolve cross-functional conflicts quickly.
Manage contract manufacturers and key suppliers for pilot builds and ramp, where applicable.
Cost, quality and supply readiness
Agree target cost, yield and first-pass quality with Finance, Quality and Manufacturing; track the gap to target at every gate.
Ensure the NPI Planner’s material, capacity and build plans support each gate date and launch volume.
Ensure change control, BOM and documentation are complete and released before production.
Lead NPI Portfolio & Performance Management
Maintain the consolidated NPI roadmap and publish dashboards covering project health, milestone adherence, launch readiness, action closure, and post-launch performance.
Lead Export Readiness for NPI PLanning
Lead cross-functional alignment and close coordination with Export teams to establish inventory strategies, distribution networks, capacity plans, and market-specific supply requirements for successful export launches.
Govern the transition of NPI projects into business-as-usual export operations, ensuring seamless handover, supply continuity, and service reliability across all destination markets.
Leadership and stakeholder management
Lead, coach and develop the NPI team; set objectives and manage performance.
Report on project status, risks and decisions to senior leadership and the executive team.
Capture lessons learned after each launch and feed them back into the process.
Experience Required
Graduate degree in Engineering, Supply Chain, Operations, Business Administration, or a related discipline.
Post Graduate Degree or MBA in Supply Chain, Operations Management, or Business Management will be an added advantage
10-12 years of Supply Chain experience with strong exposure to NPI, Planning, Product Lifecycle Management, Project Management, or Supply Chain Transformation.
Proven experience in leading cross-functional NPI, commercialization, innovation, or product-transition programs.
Strong understanding of Demand Planning, Supply Planning, Inventory Management, Capacity Planning, S&OP, and phase-in/phase-out processes.
Demonstrated ability to influence stakeholders and drive accountability across Marketing, Sales, Procurement, Manufacturing, Logistics, Finance, Quality, and Regulatory teams.
Strong project management, risk management, analytical, and problem-solving capabilities, with the ability to manage multiple concurrent launches.
Privacy
The Castrol entity recruiting for this role is the data controller for the personal information you provide. We use it to assess your application and to manage the recruitment and onboarding process. We may share it with service providers who support our recruitment, and it may be transferred to other Castrol entities internationally under appropriate safeguards. We keep it only for as long as necessary. For details of how we use your information and your data protection rights, contact privacy.response@castrol.com.
We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, socioeconomic status, neurodiversity/neurocognitive functioning, veteran status or disability status. Individuals with an accessibility need may request an adjustment/accommodation related to Castrol recruiting process (e.g., accessing the job application, completing required assessments, participating in telephone screenings or interviews, etc.).
If you are selected for a position and depending upon your role, your employment may be contingent upon adherence to local policy. This may include pre-placement drug screening, medical review of physical fitness for the role, and background checks.

Work arrangement
No