Program Manager, Product Development

Responsibilities

• Independently manage the master timelines for the NPD portfolio, including new formulas, formula renovations, and NPD-related displays, merch, and kits, from concept through regulatory clearance, packaging, testing, and production handoff across multiple concurrent projects.
• Serve as the day-to-day cross-functional partner to Product Development, keeping Product Marketing, Regulatory, Quality, Packaging, Procurement, and Operations aligned on scope, timing, and open decisions.
• Run the Product Council cadence: set the agenda, bring the timeline and open decisions into the room, and help the group land firm go/no-go and prioritization calls.
• Monitor vendor and lab milestones, including formulation trials, stability and clinical testing, packaging tooling, and production runs, and hold internal teams and external partners accountable to committed dates.
• Track and escalate risks and dependencies before they become launch delays, flagging tradeoffs to leadership with a clear recommendation, not just a red flag.
• Maintain the single source of truth for launch status, including timelines, budgets, sample tracking, and approval sign-offs, so anyone on the team can see where a project stands without a status meeting.
• Manage FDA OTC monograph and compliance checkpoints with Regulatory and Quality, keeping documentation and approvals in lockstep with the development timeline.
• Partner with Product Marketing to keep launch dates, claims, and go-to-market milestones in sync with retailer commit dates and packaging lead times.
• Coordinate with Finance, Planning, and Procurement on inventory and production scheduling as programs move toward launch.
• Run scenario analysis on the master timelines, such as a formula failing stability, a component mold slipping a week, or a lab falling behind, and bring options, not just problems, to the Product Council.
• Continuously improve how the team runs launches, with better templates, tighter stage gates, and clearer handoffs, as the pipeline scales.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a related field.
• 5-7 years project management experience in product development within skincare, cosmetics or consumer packaged goods.
• Real, working understanding of the complexities of OTC product development, including FDA monograph requirements, testing and documentation timelines, and how regulatory milestones shape and constrain the master timeline.
• A track record of project managing complex, multi-workstream launches from concept to shelf, with real ownership of timelines and cross-functional accountability.
• Sharp organizational instincts: you build the system before you need it, and you know the difference between a risk worth escalating and noise.
• Strong stakeholder management: you can hold a formulator, a packaging vendor, and a co-founder accountable to the same date, in the tone each one needs.
• Fluency in Asana (our main project management tool) plus Excel/Sheets and slide decks sharp enough for leadership readouts.
• A bias toward clear, low-drama communication: you'd rather over-communicate a slipping date than surprise anyone with one.
• Assertive in your communication style.
• Excited to grow Vacation® into a household name and have fun in the process.
• You use sunscreen.

Compensation & Benefits

• Comprehensive Medical, Dental, Vision plans with up to 100% coverage for employees
• 401k with Company Match
• WFH stipend and an annual learning stipend
• 15 Days PTO
• Complimentary Vacation® Products

What We Value