VP of Global R&D and Open Innovation

***This is an onsite position located in Chesterfield, Michigan. Relocation assistance is available.***

Why join GroupeSTAHL?

We value work/life balance.
As a family-owned business, we know our work family is just one aspect of life. We offer flexibility in the workplace to accommodate life outside of work. We offer generous PTO packages and opportunity to earn additional time off throughout the year.

We take health and wellness seriously.
We offer comprehensive benefits packages with low premiums and front-end deductibles. Contribute pre-tax dollars to your FSA or HSA accounts. Earn additional PTO by participating in healthy activities!

We don’t believe in just getting a job; we believe in careers.
With ongoing training and opportunities for personal development, we believe in fostering career growth. Looking to take your career to the next step? We offer tuition reimbursement!

We believe in making a difference (and having fun while doing it).
Whether we’re eating hot dogs to celebrate Coney Day, or playing hockey with Detroit Red Wings Alumni to raise money for Michigan Disabled Veterans. We’re a family-owned company who has family-friendly fun year ‘round! We’re all about having fun and making a difference.

Need more reasons to join GroupeSTAHL? Read more about other benefits and perks HERE!

What we do:
GroupeSTAHL is a leading international manufacturer, distributor and direct supplier in the field of custom textile printing.

The VP of Global R&D and Open Innovation leads GroupeSTAHL's global R&D group and acts as the company's technology scout. Searches the world for new inks, adhesives, films, materials, and decoration equipment, then brings the best of it into the business through partnerships, licensing, and joint development. Sets global R&D priorities across the SMP, Korean, Transfer Express, and Chesterfield R&D teams and moves proven technology into products we can sell. The guiding idea for the role: search the world, steal the best, and partner with whoever is best.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Build and maintain a technology radar covering inks, adhesives, films, substrates, coatings, sustainable and bio-based chemistry, digital print, and decoration equipment.
• Use working relationships with R&D and materials teams at Nike, Adidas, and similar global brands to identify where performance apparel and decoration are headed.
• Attend major industry shows and visit universities, startups, chemical suppliers, and equipment makers to find technology worth pursuing.
• Track brand restricted substance lists, PFAS regulations, and sustainability requirements, and alert leadership to risks and opportunities for our product lines.
• Source, negotiate, and manage joint development agreements, licenses, supply agreements, and university projects, partnering with legal on NDAs and IP.
• Prepare a business case for each pilot and partnership covering cost, revenue potential, and timeline.
• Own the global R&D project list and rank it annually with executive leadership.
• Assign projects to the R&D site best suited for the technology and hold site leads accountable for priorities and timelines.
• Run the monthly global project review and quarterly stage-gate sessions to advance, hold, or stop projects.
• Establish common test methods and standards across all R&D and lab sites.
• Identify and close expertise gaps in the R&D organization, starting with adhesive chemistry.
• Hand off proven technology to operations, sales, and commercialization with a clear launch plan.
• Serve as a technical representative for GroupeSTAHL with key brand customers and partners.
• Prepare the annual global R&D plan and budget with site leads.

What success looks like

• Technologies screened and scored: 10+ per year.
• Pilots launched at GroupeSTAHL sites: 3 to 5 per year.
• Partnerships, licenses, or joint development agreements signed: 3 per year.
• New products or processes from scouting launched to customers: 1 in year one.
• Revenue from products launched in the last 3 years as a share of total sales: baseline set in year one, target set in year two.
• Active R&D relationships at 5+ major athletic and apparel brands.
• 90%+ of projects reviewed on schedule at each quarterly stage gate.
• Quarterly technology radar report delivered to executive leadership.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree required in Chemistry, Polymer Science, Materials Science, or Chemical Engineering
• Master's degree or PhD preferred in Chemistry, Polymer Science, Materials Science, or Chemical Engineering
• 12+ years of experience in R&D or innovation in apparel, footwear, textiles, or the chemicals and materials that serve them
• 5+ years leading technical teams, including remote teams across multiple countries
• Demonstrated working relationships with R&D or materials teams at Nike, Adidas, or similar global brands; experience inside one of these teams is a strong plus
• Demonstrated experience sourcing external technology and turning it into a commercial product, including joint development and licensing agreements
• Hands-on expertise in at least one of: adhesives (hot melt, polyurethane, heat-activated), inks (water-based, plastisol, DTF, sublimation), or films and coatings, with working knowledge of the others.
• Polymer and textile chemistry as applied to apparel and footwear.
• Brand testing standards (wash, stretch, adhesion, colorfastness) and restricted substance lists.
• IP, licensing, and joint development agreement basics.
• Stage-gate and portfolio management methods.
• Preferred: heat-applied decoration, print and decoration equipment, and sustainable or PFAS-free chemistry. Italian, German, or Korean language skills a plus.