Vimal F.

Vimal Fernandez

5.0

(1)

Former tech Managing Director of Product, Strategy, Chief of Staff

University of Texas at Austin Logo

Studied at University of Texas at Austin

Charles Schwab Logo

Worked at Charles Schwab

Available tomorrow at 3:00 PM UTC

Questions? Start chatting with this coach before you get started.

Vimal's Offerings

Custom hourly · $79/hr

Get help with AI Agents, AI Automation, and .

View all of Vimal’s categories

Vimal’s Product Management Qualifications

Coaches professionally

Experience level: VP of Product

10+ people coached for Product Management

Welcome to my profile! With a robust background in product management, I bring over a decade of experience from leading roles at Charles Schwab and National Instruments. As a former Chief of Staff, Strategist, and Product Managing Director, I've successfully managed product lines generating millions in revenue and have a proven track record of strategic growth and innovation. I reach financial independence two years ago, and most recently I have been following my passions on product development. I have developed both hardware and software products on my free time, and I recently watched two apps that already have over 100 monthly active users. My coaching journey began at NI, where I honed my skills in guiding individuals to excel in their careers. I've since coached 18 aspiring product managers, helping them navigate the complexities of the field and achieve their professional goals. Let's connect and chart a path to your success in product management!

Vimal can help with:

AI Agents

AI Automation

AI Fundamentals

AI Product Design

AI Roadmap Development

Behavioral Interview Prep

Cover Letters

Execution

Frameworks

Freelancing

General Exploration

Influence & Collaboration

LinkedIn Review

Networking Strategy

Product Case Interview Prep

Promotion Strategy

Prototyping with AI

Resume Review

Salary Negotiation

Skill Building

Strategy & Vision

User Research & Insights Automation

View all of Vimal’s categories

About Vimal

Product Manager with 15+ years across wireless hardware, SaaS, and hi-tech industries, including 5+ years building and leading high-performing product teams. I defined product vision, strategy, and roadmaps, translated them into team objectives, and aligned stakeholders around measurable outcomes (OKRs). Along the way, I released multiple well-performing products that solved real customer problems and delivered measurable business impact. In a Chief of Staff capacity, I ensured priorities turned into action—while also serving as a trusted, objective sounding board for leadership. Proven ability to drive complex, technical initiatives with distributed cross-functional teams spanning hardware/software R&D, data science, analytics, manufacturing, operations, sales, and marketing. Strong technical and business foundation with an MBA from The University of Texas at Austin and a Bachelors in Electrical Engineering from McGill University. After achieving financial independence and retiring early, I now travel the world with my family while sharing our story at www.therebelroadmap.com and my work at vimalbuilds.com.

Why do I coach?

I was fortunate to have retired early before 40. So I want to give back. I’m happy to help others become great Product Managers. Bonus: let’s talk about financial independence!

Work Experience

Career Break Logo

Manager Retirement

Career Break

May 2025 - Present

Retired early to travel the world with my family. Follow along at www.therebelroadmap.com

Charles Schwab Logo

Chief Of Staff/Product

Charles Schwab

April 2023 - May 2025

Charles Schwab Logo

Product Lead, Operations and Servicing

Charles Schwab

February 2020 - April 2023

Hiring Manager

Charles Schwab Logo

Product Manager - Money Management

Charles Schwab

July 2018 - February 2020

Hiring Manager

Mango Rabbit, LLC Logo

Chief Operating Officer

Mango Rabbit, LLC

January 2018 - May 2018

Hiring Manager

Acquired a premium retail store for women, offering the latest clothing styles: www.shopmangorabbit.com. Sold the business for 5x.

Vericast Logo

Coach (Acquired by Sounding Board)

Vericast

October 2016 - June 2018

Hiring Manager

MaxPoint is a marketing technology company which utilizes proprietary intelligence in order to enable retailers and brands to reach and understand the audiences who visit and purchase at their stores. PathPoint, MaxPoint’s in-store IoT sensor, gives marketers comprehensive understanding of consumers’ in-store journeys. https://maxpoint.com/us/pathpoint/

National Instruments Logo

Wireless Strategy

National Instruments

May 2014 - September 2016

• Manage a product line of over 30 products that generates $80M of revenue a year, defining the lifecycle of products, providing forecasts to manufacturing for effective planning, and growing sales by reviewing sales data and bolstering strategic partnerships; grew product line by 17% in 2015 and on track to grow it by 15% in 2016 • Collaborate with customers, R&D and Sales to develop and refine requirements for new products and features; currently proposing and analyzing three new products with over $25M of projected revenue • Explored the Internet of Things market to determine key standards, customer base, and applications that NI should pursue; influenced future product roadmaps and provided recommendations to executives on prioritizing and focusing future spending and budgets • Present to senior leadership on product line performance including ongoing opportunities, win/loss analysis, financials and future growth initiatives, providing senior leadership data to back global financial decision-making • Curated training program by analyzing and showcasing products’ strengths, weaknesses, competitive advantages and target applications; educate a global sales force of ~600 sellers to effectively identify opportunities and position the product portfolio to potential and current customers to build a healthy and qualified opportunity pipeline • Plan and lead over 80 customer visits to obtain product feedback, gather market insight, present product portfolio and build strategic relationships, acting as a liaison to understand the customer’s needs and relaying requirements to R&D to ensure the correct products and features are being developed • Led the launch of three high-visibility products by creating messaging, physical layout, and content including demos, videos and presentations for NI Week; recent product launch generated $2M in revenue (15% higher than forecasted) and a strong opportunity pipeline of $9M (10% higher than forecast) over the next six months

National Instruments Logo

MIT Delta V Participant

National Instruments

June 2012 - May 2014

• Developed test procedures, test code, custom PCBs and test systems for industry leading RF test instrumentation working with cross-functional teams to ensure optimal test coverage and high yields; set the groundwork as the lead test engineer on a product that later scaled to NI’s largest volume and highest grossing product • Deployed test solutions to manufacturing for high-volume production; set timelines and strategy to produce quality products and timely releases that directly impacted and supported marketing activities and customer sales • Received R&D Engineering Excellence award in 2013 for demonstrating a high level of independence and competency through design, development and release of RF products

National Instruments Logo

Hardware Engineer

National Instruments

January 2011 - June 2012

• Supported eight product lines, providing technical support for pre and post-sale customers, fielded a wide variety of technical questions posed by customers daily, earning a 97% average customer satisfaction rating • Designed multiple proof of concepts for sales teams to present to customers to fuel adoption of products and close sales, contributing to a business impact of $500k in new and incremental sales

Vimal was also given offers to work at

  • Apple Logo

    Apple

  • Google Logo

    Google

  • Amazon Logo

    Amazon

Education

University of Texas at Austin Logo

University of Texas at Austin

Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.), MBA

McGill University Logo

McGill University

Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng.), Electrical and Electronics Engineering

1 Review

Overall Rating

5.0

Loading reviews...
Vimal F.

Vimal F.

5.0

Sign in
Reviews
Become an expert
For universities
For teams