Product Manager, Industrial AI

At Weyerhaeuser, we sustainably manage forests and manufacture products that make the world a better place. With over a century of leadership in sustainable forestry, we manage more than 12 million acres of timberlands in North America and operate 35 manufacturing facilities producing structural lumber, engineered wood products, and other building products. We’re dedicated to innovation, operational excellence, and delivering exceptional value to our customers and communities. As a Product Manager, Industrial AI, you'll lead the development and implementation of AI-driven solutions to optimize operations across our Wood Products manufacturing and Timberlands businesses. You'll leverage your experience in industrial manufacturing environments to enhance safety, reliability, efficiency, and sustainability in manufacturing and timberlands operations. You will align AI initiatives with strategic business priorities and manage the lifecycle of AI-driven solutions, from ideation to retirement, through our AI Factory framework. Product Management is crucial to AI initiatives at Weyerhaeuser as it ensures that AI projects align with the company's strategic vision and deliver tangible business value. By owning the definition of the 'what' and 'why,' product management provides clarity and direction, ensuring that every AI project is purposeful and aligned with organizational goals. They drive the design of AI solutions with a customer-centric approach, developing use cases, user stories, and product designs that directly address customer needs and pain points. Additionally, product managers develop detailed business cases, ROI analyses, and benefit realization plans, ensuring that AI initiatives are not only launched successfully but also deliver the expected value over time. This role also takes ownership of validating that the planned benefits of AI projects are realized, ensuring long-term success and alignment with Weyerhaeuser’s strategic goals.

Primary Responsibilities

• Strategic AI Roadmaps: Refine and execute a robust AI strategy tailored to optimize operational excellence across manufacturing and timberland operations. Clearly articulate milestones, KPIs, and alignment with company objectives.

• Lifecycle Management: Lead the full AI lifecycle—from ideation, business case validation, and prioritization to implementation, scaling, ongoing measurement, and continuous improvement—leveraging Weyerhaeuser’s standardized AI Factory framework.

• IT/OT Innovator: Demonstrated skills in industrial automation, equally adept at bridging Operational Technology (OT) and Information Technology (IT) environments to deliver reliable, secure, and innovative solutions.

• Predictive Maintenance and Asset Optimization: Implement predictive maintenance and IoT solutions, such as sensor-based monitoring and edge analytics, to significantly reduce downtime and improve asset longevity.

• Quality and Yield Enhancement: Drive the adoption of advanced computer vision systems (using Azure Cognitive Services) to automate inspections, optimize grading processes, detect defects, and consistently improve product quality and yield.

• Autonomous and Robotic Solutions: Champion initiatives involving autonomous systems such as cobots, autonomous harvest and haul machinery, and intelligent robotic systems to enhance productivity, reduce labor costs, and significantly improve safety in manufacturing and forestry operations.

• Stakeholder Collaboration: Engage cross-functionally with business leaders, plant managers, operational staff, data scientists, and external technology partners to define and deliver targeted AI solutions.

• Business Impact Measurement: Create comprehensive business cases, perform ROI and financial analyses, and meticulously track outcomes to verify the strategic and economic value delivered by AI initiatives.

• AI Governance: Ensure AI deployments adhere strictly to ethical standards, data privacy regulations, and internal governance frameworks, maintaining compliance and mitigating risk.

• Change Leadership: Effectively manage organizational change, promoting AI literacy and fostering a proactive culture around AI through targeted training programs, clear communication, and stakeholder engagement initiatives.

• Education: Bachelor’s degree required (Electrical and Computer Engineering or Industrial Engineering, Computer Science, Industrial Technology or related); MBA or other advanced degree highly preferred.
• Industry Experience: 3+ years in product management or related roles, focused on managing AI, automation, reliability and/or industrial data systems in manufacturing, forestry, wood products, or other industrial sectors.
• Technical Skills: Proficiency in Industrial AI and related technologies including IoT (Azure IoT Hub/Edge), Azure Machine Learning, Azure Cognitive Services, predictive analytics, robotics, autonomous systems, and AI frameworks (TensorFlow, PyTorch).
• Leadership Skills: Demonstrated experience leading complex projects, managing cross-functional teams, and effectively communicating technical concepts to diverse audiences.
• Analytical Expertise: Extensive experience with business case development, ROI assessment, and performance measurement for technology-driven projects.

About Weyerhaeuser

We sustainably manage forests and manufacture products that make the world a better place. We’re serious about safety, driven to achieve excellence, and proud of what we do. With multiple business lines in locations across North America, we offer a range of exciting career opportunities for smart, talented people who are passionate about making a difference. We know you have a choice in your career. We want you to choose us.

What We Offer:

Compensation: This role is eligible for our annual merit-increase program, and we are targeting a salary range of $108,500-$162,700 based on your level of skills, qualifications and experience. You will also be eligible for our Annual Incentive Program, which offers a cash bonus targeting 15%25 of base pay. Potential plan funding may range from zero to two times that target.

Benefits: When you join our team, you and your dependents will be offered coverage under our comprehensive employee benefits plan, which includes medical, dental, vision, short and long-term disability, and life insurance. We offer a pre-tax Health Savings Account option which includes a company contribution. Other benefit options are also available such as voluntary Long-Term Care and Employee Assistance Programs. We also support personal volunteerism, sponsor a host of diversity networks, promote mentoring, and provide training and development opportunities to help you chart your path to a fulfilling career.

Retirement: Employees are able to enroll in our company’s 401k plan, which includes a paid company match in addition to our annual contribution equal to 5%25 of your base salary.

Paid Time Off or Vacation: We provide eligible employees who are scheduled to work 25 hours or more per week with 3-weeks of paid vacation to use during your first year of employment. In addition, after being employed for six months, eligible employees begin to accrue vacation for future use. We also recognize eleven paid holidays per year, providing a total of 88 holiday hours and paid parental leave for all full-time employees.

Weyerhaeuser is an equal opportunity employer. Inclusion is one of our five core values and we strive to maintain a culture where all our people feel a sense of belonging, opportunity and shared purpose. We are committed to recruiting a diverse workforce and supporting an equitable and inclusive environment that inspires people of all backgrounds to join, stay and thrive with our team.