John Helgesen

Background

About John Helgesen

Highly motivated, customer centric driven New Product Development Leader with a track record of successfully leading projects from ideation to production, driving growth and profitability. Developed innovative product solutions for outdoor power equipment, medical devices, consumer retail, and heavy-duty automotive industries. Skilled in leading teams, resources, and processes required for successful product lifecycle management, with a deep understanding of industry manufacturing process. Revenue generated from recent projects has exceeded $500M. Leads with deep knowledge and experience in: • Innovation Leader: Led industrialization of manufacture programs, exceeding $4M, specializing in diesel fuel injection systems and precision fluid handling (for Freightliner, CNH, and SRC). Innovated core business processes, ensuring compliance with MIL standards, ISO 9001 certifications, and ANSI requirements for process control. • Global Market Development: Directed domestic and international teams, developing innovative products in diverse sectors in outdoor power equipment, medical devices, consumer retail, and heavy-duty transportation. Achieved significant market penetration and global success. Created a new product segment for outdoor power equipment with over $250M annual sales. • Manufacturing Prowess: Spearheaded remanufacture programs in diesel fuel injection systems and precision fluid handling, valued at over $100M. Successfully retrofitting robust fuel pump systems into existing powerplants, eliminating failure points, and enhancing performance. • Customer Relationship Leader: Achieved significant revenue and client accomplishments in roles, including Sales, Operations, Business Development, and Contract Management. Negotiated new business contracts with John Deere representing +$6M in top line sales revenue. Continuous improvement efforts to evaluate performance and implement corrective actions on all customer relationships. • Automation Expert: Automated critical manufacturing processes using collaborative robots, seamlessly integrated with existing assembly equipment. Increased production efficiency, reduced errors, and enhanced overall operational performance. • Program Management: Provides leadership, support, and resources necessary to achieve global program management excellence through the development, implementation, and execution of the product development process from birth to supply chain. Completed launch of Duramax 6.6L gasoline aftermarket pump in 2023 contributing +$2M in incremental sales @ 15% EBITDA in first year.