Michael Julius
Seattle,WA
Summary
Results-oriented leader with a knack for synthesizing customer pain points into actionable product visions and roadmaps. Skilled in driving profit and loss (P&L) growth, product management, business development, and operational excellence. Demonstrated capacity to navigate dynamic business landscapes, earning buy-in from senior leadership and driving impactful change. Adept at fostering team collaboration and achieving organizational objectives through strategic planning and data-driven insights. Track record of delivering large-scale projects and leading teams through complex problems with P&L responsibilities of over $250M.
Overview
13
13
years of professional experience
Work History
Director of Product Management
C. R. Laurence Co. Inc.
- Current
- Leading CRL’s Commercial Hardware, Hand Rail, Transaction Windows, and Architectural Metals business with P&L responsibility of over $250M
- Drove a 7% increase in annual revenue for the Commercial Hardware category by understanding the market trend, and customer needs, and launching Matte Black, a new finish, for the business
- Spearheaded the successful commercial launch of DRX, an innovative Door Rail System, addressing value chain requirements and significantly reducing lead time and installation time for end consumers
- Launched 690/695 Sliding Door System to gain market share in the interior office space segment
- Saved over $250K in product cost by skillfully negotiating complex funding and cost deals with partners across Asia and Europe
- Used Excel, SQL, and Tableau to analyze and drive decisions
- Boosted the Hand Rail category revenue by over 12% by driving product assortment strategy, and targeted product promotion across North America
- Coordinating cross-functional teams to ensure adherence to key business processes including New Product Introductions (NPI) and Program Development Process (PDP).
Innovation Platform Manager
International Paper
02.2019 - 03.2022
- Led a team of 15 professionals consisting of first-level Managers, Project Managers (PM), Scientists, and Engineers to strategize, develop and launch new products globally
- Generated over $2M in new product revenue by spearheading multiple marketing & New Product Development initiatives based on the Voice of the Customer (VOC) in the textile and global Hygiene market
- Collaborated cross-functionally with various departments, including marketing, sales, innovation, operations, and manufacturing to develop and launch a new Specialty product targeting the Textile market
- The product increased new product sales revenue by over 40% YoY
- Improved product Gross Margins (GM) by up to 8% by building pricing models for multiple categories using Market-Based Value Creation (MBVC) tools and validating the model with customer trials
- Developed eco-friendly wipes based on data-driven analysis of trends in the Non-woven segment.
Product Manager
International Paper
02.2018 - 02.2019
- Led growth of the Construction Composite category across Asia, Brazil, and North America
- Increased construction composite revenue by over 5% by tripling the product offering in the fiber cement portfolio after analyzing the global market’s needs
- Improved new customer adoption by over 10% by engaging with C-Suite level customers to understand their needs, reducing defects, and develop products that created value for both parties
- Expanded penetration in the concrete market segment by over 10% by planning and implementing unique product strategies based on customers’ market expansion plans
- Drove Board of Directors engagement and organization-wide communications on all Global Cellulose Fiber division’s (GCF) new products.
Sr. Operations Manager
James Hardie Building Products
04.2017 - 01.2018
- Led $5M+ capital investment for the ColorPlus paint line
- Saved over $300K of paint cost and increased labor efficiency by over 400% in less than 3 months by implementing a novel method to recycle paint and reducing the reject rate by up to 50%
- Market deep dives with sales teams helped identify gaps in the product offering
- Used data to support developing and implementing new color profiles to meet market needs
- Increased paint yield by 20% by designing & implementing efficient processes following DMAIC.
Sr. Product Manager
James Hardie Building Products
10.2013 - 03.2017
- Led brand management efforts for the Top of Market (ToM) siding category in the New Construction Custom Builder segment
- Efforts resulted in a 300% growth in revenue within the first year
- Spearheaded partnership with the American Institute of Architects (AIA) to grow ToM’s presence in the Architectural community of over 100k Architects
- Used market feedback to improve product features and cost by collaborating with product development, sales, marketing, and manufacturing during the Stage-Gate process
- Managed Exterior Trim Category for the Northern markets P&L responsibility of over $200M
- Developed and launched a new portfolio of products (HardieTrim NT3TM Board Products) with key partners resulting in a 5% increase in revenue
- Increased annual revenue by over $4M by working with the sales team and negotiating a market expansion contract with a large national builder.
Product Manager
James Hardie Building Products
10.2012 - 10.2013
- As a Business Manager, was responsible for market development, manufacturing, and sales of propriety Polymer Composite Mouldings
- Achieved desired market penetration by the timely development and launch of four new products with the right value proposition and price
- Collaborated with the marketing department to create and manage its P&L by pricing, reducing costs, and increasing operational efficiencies
- This resulted in an increase in revenue by over 500% and an increased net contribution margin by 50%
- Negotiated new raw material pricing with vendors with an eye on quality, cost, and service
- Used Six Sigma principles to improve quality, manufacturing cost, and throughput.
Supply Chain Distribution Manager
James Hardie Building Products
12.2010 - 10.2012
- Led a team of 15 to manage 50+ Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) distribution sites that resulted in positive channel relationships, speed to market for new products, and increased SKU offering, enabling market penetration by 5-10%
- Increased accessories sales by >10% YoY by increasing vendor support, re-pricing based on value to customers, and updating product assortment
- Achieved over $5M in savings in freight costs by restructuring reloads (SKU rationalization, optimizing inventory, etc.) and optimizing freight for the lowest landed cost
- Championed the introduction of new products into the US markets by influencing project timelines, inventory ramp-up/ ramp-down, capacity, landed cost, and service goals, resulting in $70MM incremental revenue from 5 new product launches.
Product Development Manager
James Hardie Building Products
- 12.2010
- Led a team of senior Scientists and Engineers to improve and implement three key product lines that resulted in >$5M incremental revenue for the business in the first year of launch
- Increased growth of trim product line (5%), by modifying and launching a Fastening System from R&D Australia, to better suit installation practices in the US.
R&D Scientist
James Hardie Building Products
06.2003
- Developed, tested, patented, and launched a new cementitious formulation
- Extensively analyzed and tested various raw materials that can be used for fiber cement formulation using different Design of Experiments (DoE) methods.
Education
Master of Business Administration -
UCLA Anderson School of Management
Los Angeles, CA06.2010
M.S. in Mechanical Engineering -
West Virginia University
Morgantown, WV05.2003
B.S. in Mechanical Engineering -
Bharathiar University
05.1999
Skills
- Go To Market Strategies
- Data-driven Insights
- Customer Experience
- Profit & Loss Management
- End to End product delivery
- Root Cause Analysis
- Revenue Growth
- Feature delivery and tradeoffs
- New Market Development
- Cross-functional collaboration
- Product Roadmap Strategy
- Competitive Product Analysis
- Strategic Pricing
- Action-Oriented
- Value Proposition
- Merchandising Operations
- Highly Analytical
- Market-Based Value Creation
- Lifecycle Management
- Finance
- Hiring and leading teams
Timeline
Innovation Platform Manager
International Paper
02.2019 - 03.2022
Product Manager
International Paper
02.2018 - 02.2019
Sr. Operations Manager
James Hardie Building Products
04.2017 - 01.2018
Sr. Product Manager
James Hardie Building Products
10.2013 - 03.2017
Product Manager
James Hardie Building Products
10.2012 - 10.2013
Supply Chain Distribution Manager
James Hardie Building Products
12.2010 - 10.2012
R&D Scientist
James Hardie Building Products
06.2003
Director of Product Management
C. R. Laurence Co. Inc.
- Current
Product Development Manager
James Hardie Building Products
- 12.2010
Master of Business Administration -
UCLA Anderson School of Management
M.S. in Mechanical Engineering -
West Virginia University
B.S. in Mechanical Engineering -
Bharathiar University