Director, Product Innovation

The Role 

At Green Thumb, continuous innovation is a key focus area as we seek to create the best product experiences for our consumers. As a Director, Product Innovation, you will play a critical role in shaping and executing our end-to-end innovation strategy across select product categories (flower, pre-rolls, vape, concentrates, or edibles). You will drive both the expansion of existing product lines and the connecting and commercialization of new-to-world products. This role requires a unique blend of strategic vision, disciplined project management, and people leadership to deliver a portfolio that both delights our consumers and strengthens our market position.  

This is a hybrid role, requiring 2 days per week in our Chicago office; you will also be asked to travel to our production facilities on a periodic basis (~1x/quarter). 

Responsibilities   

• Lead the development of a multi-year innovation pipeline (select categories), grounded in category and consumer insights, industry trends, and local market needs. 
• Lead the continued optimization of our overall innovation processes and systems, in collaboration with the broader Innovation Leadership Team. 
• Own the life cycle of your defined product portfolio, evaluating and recommending cost savings opportunities, formulation/packaging optimizations, and/or SKU rationalizations.  
• Drive project management excellence across innovation initiatives, establishing frameworks for tracking progress, managing risk, and delivering results. 
• Identify and implement process improvements to optimize speed-to-market, increase efficiency, and strengthen team collaboration. 
• Maintain intelligence on market dynamics, including competitive landscape, market share, packaging trends, and environmental factors impacting GTI’s optimal product portfolio. 
• Support Managers, Product Innovation and/or Product Developers on the cross-functional development of new products, inclusive of business cases, new formulations, new packaging concepts, and overall product launch process 
• Lead cross-functional communications to ensure product development and market expansion priorities are clear, aligned to, and disseminated across teams. 
• Manage relationships with commercial leadership to ensure clarity and optimized processes surrounding market expansions 
• Partner with Consumer Insights to identify research opportunities and/or custom data resources and reporting to inform portfolio and category strategy. 
• Coach, develop, and manage a team of Product Innovation Managers, Associates and/or Product Developers. 

Qualifications  

• 5-10+ years of experience in innovation, product management, or project management. 
• Proven track record of leading complex, cross-functional initiatives from strategy to execution. 
• Strong understanding of project management methodologies (formal certification like PMP a plus). 
• Demonstrated ability to optimize processes and improve efficiency in a fast-paced environment. 
• Able to navigate ambiguity and remain focused and effective amidst shifting priorities. 
• Exceptional stakeholder management and communication skills, with the ability to influence across all levels of the organization, including our executive team. 
• Strong product acumen and cannabis knowledge. 

Additional Requirements 

• Must pass any and all required background checks  
• Must be and remain compliant with all legal or company regulations for working in the industry  
• Must possess valid driver’s license 
• Must be a minimum of 21 years of age 
• Must be approved by state badging agency to work in cannabis industry