Chief Product Officer search for an industrial software company; Driving product transformation and AI-led growth.
Client Overview
A global industrial software company engaged Crexia Search to appoint a Chief Product Officer to lead the next phase of product innovation and market expansion.
The business had built a strong customer base across manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, and industrial operations, with a portfolio spanning operational software, analytics, and workflow automation. As customer expectations evolved, the company sought to accelerate its cloud transition, modernise its product strategy, and embed AI capabilities across its platform.
The board wanted a product leader who could balance long-term innovation with near-term commercial outcomes while aligning Product, Engineering, Sales, and Customer Success around a common vision.
The Challenge
The company had grown through a combination of organic development and acquisitions, resulting in a fragmented product portfolio and differing approaches to roadmap prioritisation.
Customers valued the platform’s domain expertise but increasingly expected faster innovation, improved user experience, deeper analytics, and AI-enabled capabilities. Product investments were spread across multiple initiatives, making it difficult to prioritise resources and communicate a clear market vision.
The organisation needed a Chief Product Officer capable of simplifying complexity, aligning stakeholders, and creating a scalable product operating model.
Our Search Strategy
We partnered closely with the CEO and board to define the leadership profile required to support the company’s transformation agenda.
Together, we identified four critical success factors:
Experience leading large-scale industrial or enterprise software product organisations
A proven track record of product portfolio rationalisation and platform strategy
Strong commercial acumen with the ability to translate customer needs into growth opportunities
Experience introducing AI, automation, and data-driven capabilities into established software products
Our search focused on senior product leaders from industrial software, enterprise SaaS, manufacturing technology, IoT, digital twins, and operational technology environments.
Rather than limiting the search to direct competitors, we mapped adjacent sectors where product leaders had successfully transformed complex software portfolios and driven measurable business growth.
Candidate Assessment
Candidates were assessed against a structured framework covering product strategy, commercial impact, organisational leadership, and transformation capability.
Finalists presented a strategic review of the company’s product portfolio, outlining how they would balance product investment, customer demand, platform modernisation, and AI innovation over a three-year horizon.
Executive panels explored examples of product transformation, organisational change, pricing strategy, customer engagement, and cross-functional leadership.
References focused on product outcomes, leadership effectiveness, innovation capability, and the candidate’s ability to drive alignment across large organisations.
Search Outcome
The successful Chief Product Officer brought extensive experience leading global product organisations within enterprise and industrial software businesses.
They had previously guided multiple product transformations, accelerated cloud adoption, and launched AI-enabled capabilities that delivered measurable customer value.
The search was completed in ten weeks from launch to offer acceptance.
Search Snapshot
Time to hire: 10 weeks
First shortlist: 8 candidates
Final panel: 3 candidates
Board assessment: Product transformation and AI growth strategy
Diversity representation at first round: 40%
Results
Within twelve months of joining, the new Chief Product Officer had established a clear product vision, streamlined portfolio investments, and accelerated innovation across the organisation.
Key outcomes included:
25% increase in annual recurring revenue from strategic products
Product portfolio reduced by 20%, improving focus and investment efficiency
Three AI-enabled product capabilities launched within the first year
Customer adoption of cloud products increased by 40%
Product roadmap aligned across Product, Engineering, and Commercial teams
Net Revenue Retention improved by 12 percentage points
The appointment provided more than product leadership. It created a clear strategic direction for the business, strengthened cross-functional alignment, and positioned the company to capture the next generation of growth in industrial software and AI-enabled operations.