Senior Product Development Specialist

About the role

As a Senior Product Development Specialist in Continental’s Automotive segment, you will act as the regional technical product owner for assigned OEM and Tier customers from our Pune plant. The role drives customer‑focused product development, leads projects through to series production and supports the growth plan for India.

Key responsibilities

• Develop new interior‑trim products based on market and customer demands, including PVC and PUR solutions.
• Lead complex technical development projects, ensuring quality, schedule and cost targets are met.
• Provide technical consulting to customers in collaboration with sales and design teams.
• Select and qualify raw‑material suppliers together with the purchasing department.
• Conduct lab trials, production trials and customer processing investigations to create improved formulations.
• Coordinate closely with the product development team in Germany and with cross‑functional departments such as design, production, SCM, quality and testing.

Required profile

• Master’s degree in Chemistry, polymer science, process engineering or a related field.
• Minimum 6 years of R&D experience in chemistry, polymer production or formulation, with specific expertise in PVC chemistry.
• At least 3 years of experience in an international, automotive‑interior‑trim environment.
• Proven project‑management experience on complex, matrix‑organized projects.
• Strong interpersonal and intercultural communication skills for collaboration with teams in Germany, North America and China.

Required skills

• Chemistry
• Polymer science
• Process engineering
• PVC chemistry
• PUR formulation
• Polymer formulation
• Project management