Head of Access R&D

ASSA ABLOY Global Solutions is part of the ASSA ABLOY Group, who are the global leader in access solutions. Every day, we reimagine how people move through a safer, more open world with ease. If you’ve ever walked through an automatic door, stayed in a hotel, or gone through passport control, you’ve probably used one of our products or services. We have operations in over 70 countries, with over 63,000 colleagues around the world. 

Our expertise in customer journey mapping, innovation, and service design leads to the invention of new solutions that create value for our clients and exceptional experiences for their end users. And we have the fantastic opportunity available in Vingcard for a Head of Access R&D 

Your Role in Keeping the Future in Safe Hands… 

The Head of Access R&D is a senior technology leadership role accountable for defining, building, and governing the access solutions portfolio, which is the largest in terms of size and sales within Vingcard. 

A core mandate of the role is to lead and drive product and solution development, ensuring customer demands are met in both the short and long term. This includes supporting the systematic integration of acquired businesses, maintaining legacy systems, and ensuring that new innovations reach customers with high quality. 

The role is deeply technology-led and customer-oriented, anchored in solutions and systems architecture, enabling product teams to move faster, deliver with higher quality, and scale with confidence. 

R&D work is carried out by more than 130 highly skilled engineering resources, covering end-to-end development including mechanical and electronic design, firmware, cloud, on-premise solutions, and mobile applications. The team has a global footprint, with most of the headcount based in Norway and Sweden. 

The role reports to the CTO of Vingcard. 

Responsibilities: 

• Provide leadership guidance and support on technology 

• Drive efforts to increase profitability and growth of the business 

• Work closely with the product management team to ensure R&D is conducted efficiently and with a customer-centric approach, while maintaining high product safety and quality standards. 

• Together with the Executive Management Team, provide strategic leadership in developing, establishing, and executing short- and long-term strategies, plans, goals, and policies. 

• Direct and influence engineering and technology-related activities across global operations, including R&D, innovation processes, and product lifecycle management. 

You will work closely with the Divisional CTO team of the ASSA ABLOY Global Solutions 

Your profile : 

• More than 10 years of senior leadership experience in engineering, technology, or R&D within a global organization.

• A strong technical foundation, typically supported by a Master’s degree in engineering or equivalent experience.  

• Proven experience working with complex technology landscapes spanning systems, electromechanics, software, and preferably cloud-based solutions. 

• The ability to balance strategic thinking with analytical depth and practical execution. 

• Strong business acumen and an understanding of how technology choices translate into customer value and commercial impact. 

• Experience operating in B2B environments and collaborating closely with product management and commercial stakeholders.  

• Exposure to global manufacturing and supply chain challenges in technology-driven organizations. 

• A leadership style that combines hands-on engagement with the ability to lead, motivate, and develop teams across geographies. 

• Strong stakeholder management skills and executive presence, with the ability to represent the company with senior internal and external stakeholders. 

• Proven experience working in decentralized, matrix organizations with geographically dispersed, multidisciplinary teams. 

• Fluency in English.