Software engineering manager Jobs in Independence, MO

Fuel Ethanol | Process Optimisation | Industrial Software | Product Development | Commercialisation

2009, a small team of physicists working with the UK Space Agency set out to answer an ambitious question: how do you analyze the atmosphere around Mars? Their answer was a ground-breaking FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared) spectrometer, built to withstand the rigors of space travel.

Along the way, they realized the technology had enormous potential much closer to home.

In 2013, KEIT was founded to bring that technology to industry. Today our IRmadillo FTIR process analyzer delivers lab-grade data, 24/7, directly from the process line – removing the need for manual grab samples, lab delays and guesswork. It is trusted by ethanol producers across the Midwest, and by manufacturers in chemicals, pulp & paper, fats & oils and beyond.

We have now added a fermentation intelligence software platform, built and proven inside a working US ethanol plant, which combines IRmadillo data with plant control system data to give operators and managers clear, actionable insight. Well-backed, well-established and highly trusted, we are now growing our US team to bring this combined hardware and software offering to the wider industry.

Where you come in:

Our new fermentation intelligence software is already proving itself in a live US ethanol plant, giving operators and management teams performance monitoring, alarming and operational guidance. Now we need someone to take it to the rest of the industry.

This is not a back-office product role. It’s commercial and customer-facing, suited to someone who knows the ethanol industry inside out. You’ll be out in plants demonstrating the product, being the expert in the room alongside our US sales lead, supporting rollouts and gathering feedback. Then you’ll bring it all back, make the case for what comes next, and help steer the software’s development.

You’ll lead the development of the roadmap collaboratively: ideas come from everyone who talks to customers (which is all of us), and you’ll bring them together, prioritize them and present a clear recommendation to the leadership team – what we should build next, who is asking for it, and the value it will deliver.

Typical backgrounds include Process Engineer, Fermentation Specialist, Technical Sales or Business Development Manager, Applications Engineer, Plant Manager or Product Manager (hardware or software) in fuel ethanol – or with a yeast, enzyme, chemical, equipment or technology supplier to the industry. A formal product management title is not essential – industry knowledge comes first.

The Role at a Glance:

Commercial Product Manager – Fermentation Intelligence Software
US Corn Belt – ideally within reach of Kansas City, Omaha or Des Moines (Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, South Dakota, Minnesota, Illinois)
$140,000 – $170,000 Base Salary (DOE) + Performance Bonus + Stock Options
Plus Benefits Including Health & Dental Insurance, and All Travel Expenses Covered

Travel: Approximately 50%, mainly to ethanol plants across North America

Reporting to: CEO & Leadership Team

Values: Continuous Improvement, Teamwork, Building a Valuable Business, Developing as People, Having Fun!

Your Experience: 5+ Years in Fuel Ethanol, Fermentation & Plant Operations, Process Data & Control Systems, Customer-Facing Commercial Work

Who we are:

We’re a fast-growing, well-backed sci-tech company headquartered at Harwell Campus in Oxfordshire, UK, with significant (and growing) sales in the US – the Midwest in particular. We’re ISO 9001 certified, and our customers include fuel ethanol producers, chemical manufacturers (bulk, specialty & fine), pulp & paper mills, fats & oils processors, biofuels producers and more.

We remain a small, agile team with big ambitions. There is little red tape: everyone talks to customers, everyone contributes beyond their job title, and you will have a genuine hand in shaping how we build our US operation.

The Commercial Product Manager Opportunity:

From now on, we’ll be selling the IRmadillo and our software into the ethanol industry as one combined package – the software can’t do its job without the hardware, and the hardware delivers the most value when paired with the software. You’ll own the commercial rollout of that package and help shape where it goes next.

What success looks like in your first 9–12 months: our software up and running at five or six ethanol producers, a customer-led roadmap for the year ahead, and an efficient, repeatable US process for installing, onboarding and training customers so they get consistent value – a process you’ll help build alongside our US field team.

Examples of the type of teamwork you may be involved in:

• Supporting the sales process with demos and presentations for operators, lab teams, plant managers and executives
• Helping customers understand the operational and financial value they can expect
• Supporting software installation, configuration, onboarding and training
• Working with plant teams to bring in data from control systems, historians and other sensors
• Gathering structured customer feedback and turning it into clear product requirements
• Collaborating with our developers, data scientists and application specialists to prioritize enhancements
• Joining in with testing, validation and release activities
• Writing your own product and marketing materials – as a small team, we don’t have a dedicated marketing department
• Representing KEIT at customer sites, industry events and conferences

About you:

• At least 5 years’ experience in the North American fuel ethanol industry, at a plant or as a supplier to one
• A strong understanding of ethanol fermentation, yield, contamination control and plant economics
• Familiar with process data and plant systems – SCADA, DCS, PLCs, historians (hands-on integration skills are a nice-to-have, not a must-have)
• Product management experience on software or industrial hardware is valuable – but if you’re an industry expert ready to develop product management skills, we’d like to hear from you
• Commercially minded and confident presenting to anyone, from the control room to the boardroom
• A collaborator rather than a gatekeeper – you lead the conversation and welcome others’ input
• A self-starter – perhaps you’ve had big-company training and are ready for the freedom of a smaller business
• Willing to roll up your sleeves – in a small team, everyone contributes beyond their core role
• Comfortable with approximately 50% travel across a large territory
• An existing network in the US ethanol industry is a real plus

Why join us now?

We’re known across the ethanol industry as innovative and forward-thinking, and the industry is moving firmly towards smarter, data-driven production. This is an opportunity to help modernize the industry, advance your career, and grow with our US business as it scales.

Ready to shape the future of fermentation intelligence?

This is a rare opportunity to lead the commercial rollout of a proven software platform across the US ethanol industry – with stock options and a real say in where the product goes next. Apply today for a fast-track conversation with our leadership team. We’re reviewing applications now, and all conversations are handled in confidence.

Apply now?

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