Joe Blake Email & Phone Number

Sheboygan, Wi, Us

Houston, Texas, Us

As the Group Manager for Residential Products, I lead a high-performing team of Product Engineers and Product Line Managers dedicated to innovating residential energy solutions. Our focus encompasses emerging products and technologies in solar energy, energy storage, secondary generation, load management, and EV charging. My role involves not only managing these innovations but also fostering a dynamic team environment where ideas and creativity thrive. By regularly analyzing market data and trends, I identify opportunities for new product development and enhancements, ensuring our solutions meet evolving customer needs and industry standards.In addition to developing and implementing product and channel strategies that align with company goals, I successfully lead and manage a talented, remote team, cultivating collaboration, innovation, and high performance across diverse geographical locations. I foster strong partnerships with technology providers to identify, specify, design, develop, and test integrated systems that meet the highest standards of quality and performance. My initiatives drive unparalleled solutions to enhance customer energy independence and efficiency, contributing to our Adaptive Home vision. Additionally, I spearhead the identification and implementation of business processes to capture lessons learned, retain tribal knowledge, and drive operational efficiency across the team and projects.

Houston, Texas, Us

In my role as Product Line Manager for Residential Energy Storage Systems, I was responsible for overseeing all existing and emerging products and technologies in the North American residential ESS market. My focus was on maintaining Sunnova's Approved Vendors List, ensuring all products met our stringent criteria. I managed market oversight for the ESS market, tracking industry trends, new technology developments, OEM entries, tariff structures, and regulatory changes. Conducting extensive Technology Evaluations, I ensured vendors and products met Sunnova's high standards for performance, market fit, installation, serviceability, and software integration, collaborating with vendors to make necessary improvements before approval.Additionally, I developed a deep understanding of residential solar customers' needs and the strengths and weaknesses of Sunnova's approved vendors and their products. This insight enabled me to identify market strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, and develop strategies accordingly. I worked closely with technology partners to ensure products met all of Sunnova's product, operations & maintenance (O&M), and software integration requirements. By collaborating with internal teams and external partners, I helped bring new product ideas to market effectively, ensuring Sunnova's product portfolio remained competitive and aligned with customer needs.

Kohler, Wisconsin, Us

As part of the leadership team for Kohler's newly created Home Energy Management Systems division, I played a pivotal role in identifying, establishing, and developing relationships with key industry partners. My responsibilities encompassed a broad spectrum of strategic initiatives, including collaborating with financing entities, system design, quoting, and permitting platforms. Additionally, I worked closely with federal, state, and local incentive programs and providers to ensure comprehensive support for our projects. My efforts were instrumental in building a robust network of partnerships that enhanced the division's capabilities and market reach.In this role, I leveraged my analytical skills and extensive experience in energy management, product management, and program management to drive the success of Kohler's strategic partnerships. My focus on renewable and solar energy, combined with my expertise in project management, allowed me to effectively manage complex initiatives and deliver impactful results. Through these efforts, I contributed to the growth and development of Kohler's Home Energy Management Systems division, ensuring it was well-positioned to meet the evolving needs of the energy market.

Kohler, Wisconsin, Us

In my role as Program Manager for Kohler's Residential Power division, I led the successful transition from a distribution to a dealer-direct model. This strategic shift involved the identification and opening of four regional 3PL (3rd Party Logistics) centers to ensure high-quality products were delivered on time to meet dealer needs. I coordinated the IT infrastructure setup, including cellular connectivity, secure network access to Kohler's intranet, and the acquisition and installation of workstations. Additionally, I oversaw the rollout of new plant locations and bin setups within an SAP environment. I also led cross-functional efforts in transitioning over 2,000 indirect accounts into new accounts, coinciding with the launch of a new Salesforce account management platform, ensuring a smooth transition and enhanced account management capabilities.Furthermore, I project managed the launch of Kohler Power Reserve, Kohler Company's first entry into the Residential Energy Storage market. This role allowed me to leverage my analytical skills and extensive experience in energy management, program management, and project delivery. By successfully executing these initiatives, I contributed to the growth and innovation within Kohler's Power division, ensuring the company remained at the forefront of the residential energy market.

Kohler, Wisconsin, Us

As the NPD Program Manager for Diesel Engines, Americas, I served as the key contact and bridge between the OEM's Technical Product Development team and Kohler Power's Diesel Engine Development center in Italy. My role was to ensure Kohler had full visibility and understanding of product performance requirements, as well as the essential milestones that needed to be met throughout the OEM's product development cycle. I acted as an in-country, boots-on-the-ground resource for the OEM, spending significant time with them to deeply understand their needs and facilitate seamless communication and collaboration.My responsibilities also involved frequent visits to the Development Center in Italy to gain in-depth knowledge about Kohler's value proposition for commercial and industrial diesel engines, including their design and manufacturing processes. In addition to these strategic functions, I managed standard program management activities such as issue tracking, leading weekly team meetings, facilitating problem-solving sessions, and implementing corrective actions. By effectively bridging the gap between the OEM and Kohler, I ensured that our diesel engine products met stringent quality standards and performance expectations. This comprehensive approach enabled me to autonomously manage the development process, anticipate and manage risks, and drive continuous improvements in problem-solving and project delivery.

Kohler, Wisconsin, Us

As the Associate Global Marketing Product Manager for Performance Showering, I coordinated with regional product managers from North America, Europe, China, and India to identify global trends and customer needs. My role involved developing global strategies and product lines to meet the requirements of global hospitality brands that desired consistent corporate brand standards and customer experiences across all their properties, regardless of the continent. I managed the global product roadmap and schedule, prepared and drove global scopes for key projects, and facilitated the adoption of these projects into regional portfolios. My responsibilities included preparing global forecasts, projected market penetration, budget estimates, and ROI projections based on manufacturing capacity and market potential.In this global role, I maintained continuous contact with design groups, regional teams, global engineering, and other internal and external sources to develop new product ideas that satisfied market needs and drove business growth. I collected, consolidated, and analyzed global industry and competitive intelligence to drive sound product and market strategies, supporting Kohler Co.'s growth objectives and leadership position. Collaborating with regional marketing and global channel teams, I supported global product introductions and launches, determining advertising and promotional priorities. My analytical skills were crucial in evaluating product performance, recommending product revisions or discontinuations, and ensuring our product lines met the evolving demands of the global market.

Kohler, Wisconsin, Us

As a Project Manager for New Product Development, I successfully coordinated and managed multiple NPD projects across various product categories. I led cross-functional teams through defined and gated NPD processes, ensuring the timely and cost-effective delivery of innovative products. My responsibilities included developing and maintaining project timelines, facilitating project activities, managing budgets, and presenting project statuses to management. I also ensured accurate cost estimates and final costing of products, assigned tasks, and connected team members with relevant departments such as manufacturing and legal. My project management skills were crucial in driving teams toward the on-time completion of pilot builds and inventory builds, ultimately delivering new and innovative products to the market.

Kohler, Wisconsin, Us

As a Senior Electromechanical Project Engineer, I led the development of the Numi toilet, a groundbreaking innovation that introduced unprecedented features and technology to the bathroom experience. Facilitating collaboration between global project teams in China and the United States, I coordinated co-development efforts to bring this state-of-the-art product to market. I also identified new technologies and potential opportunities for advanced development projects, ensuring the Numi toilet set new standards in luxury and functionality. This project exemplified my ability to drive innovation and manage complex, high-impact projects.

Wiesbaden, Hessen, De

As a Product Engineer at EDAG, I honed my skills in the automotive industry by designing and releasing overall vehicle sealing systems, NVH barriers, and fender sheet metal for DaimlerChrysler's minivan program. I utilized detailed CAD modeling in Catia v4, including BIWASM for bulk sealants and vehicle applications, and performed packaging studies to evaluate alternative design solutions. I interfaced with suppliers to ensure components met DaimlerChrysler best practices, were cost-effective, and could be produced and validated within program timelines. This role solidified my roots in automotive engineering and provided valuable experience in detailed CAD modeling and supplier collaboration.

Venray, Nl

As a Product Engineer at Inalfa Roof Systems, I played a key role in evaluating studio surfaces and packaging sunroof modules, panels, drainage systems, and vehicle interfaces for mid-size SUV replacements (Envoy, Trailblazer) at General Motors Warren Technical Center. Leading the sunroof system Program Development Team (PDT), I facilitated issue identification and resolution among GM and integrated supplier team members. Additionally, as the Sustaining Product Engineer, I significantly improved product performance by reducing Incidents per Thousand Vehicles (IPTV) and Cost per Vehicle (CPV) by 67% and 72% respectively for sunroof systems across various mid-size GM cars (CTS, STS, HHR, Lucerne, Ion). This role underscored my ability to drive project delivery and foster effective cross-functional collaboration.

Master Of Science, Engineering Management

Bachelor Of Science, Electrical Engineering