Product Development Process Intern (Graduate Level) (Summer 2027)

Location: Westerville, OH, United States Department: Interns

Overview

The Global Product Development Office (GPDO) is responsible for improving and accelerating Vertiv's Product Development processes, including New Product Development & Introduction (NPDI), Engineer-to-Order (ETO), Special Feature Additions (SFA), Design Transfers, and Sustaining Engineering. GPDO drives operational excellence by reducing cycle time, improving quality, increasing process visibility, and enabling the successful delivery of products across the enterprise.

The Product Development Process Intern will support initiatives focused on process improvement, operational excellence, and the application of AI-enabled tools to improve efficiency and accelerate product development activities across the organization.

Responsibilities

– Support process improvement initiatives driven by Operating Model KPIs, leadership priorities, lessons learned, lean workshops, Kaizens, and continuous improvement activities.

– Analyze product development processes to identify bottlenecks, inefficiencies, and opportunities to improve quality and reduce cycle time.

– Apply Lean and Operational Excellence principles to identify waste and recommend improvements across NPDI, ETO, SFA, Design Transfer, and Sustaining Engineering processes.

– Leverage AI tools to accelerate process analysis, workflow documentation, knowledge management, reporting, and insight generation.

– Research, evaluate, and pilot emerging AI technologies that can improve engineering productivity, process compliance, lessons learned management, and organizational knowledge capture.

– Support process mapping activities and development of current-state and future-state workflows.

– Assist in documenting process improvements in Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), training materials, and communications.

– Collect, analyze, and visualize process performance data to support data-driven decision making.

– Collaborate with GPDO, Engineering, Procurement, Operations, Quality, and Program Management teams to implement and sustain process improvements.

– Present findings, recommendations, and project outcomes to leadership and key stakeholders.

Qualifications

– Currently pursuing a Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering, Systems Engineering, Operations Management, Engineering Management, Business Analytics, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.

– Demonstrated interest in process improvement, Lean, Operational Excellence, digital transformation, analytics, or product development.

– Experience using AI tools, analytics platforms, or automation technologies to solve problems, improve workflows, or generate insights. Formal expertise is not required; curiosity, experimentation, and a willingness to learn are highly valued.

– Strong analytical, problem-solving, communication, and collaboration skills.

– Self-motivated, proactive, and passionate about continuous improvement and innovation.

– Comfortable working in a global, cross-functional environment.

What You'll Gain

– Hands-on experience applying Lean and AI-driven methodologies to real product development challenges at a global scale.

– Exposure to cross-functional teams including Engineering, Procurement, Operations, Quality, and Program Management.

– Experience supporting enterprise-wide process improvement and digital transformation initiatives.

– Opportunity to research, pilot, and showcase AI-enabled process innovations.

– Mentorship from experienced product development and process improvement leaders.

– Experience presenting recommendations and improvement opportunities to senior leadership.

– Practical skills in process improvement, analytics, change management, and AI adoption.

Travel Requirements

Minimal; potential for occasional domestic travel (<5%) based on project needs.