The Company

Our client is a very fast growing, highly regarded and trusted supplier to the automotive industry. With a commitment to excellence and a focus on cutting-edge research and development, the company has established itself as a trusted name in the industry to OEMs, Tier I’s, and the Aftermarket. Their core business specializes in automotive, though it also serves various sectors including the commercial vehicle, agricultural and off-road industries.

Position Summary

In this newly created role reporting directly to The Director of Product Management, the Product Manager is a key member of a cross-functional “product team,” that as a whole, has responsibility for the companies product lines in the automotive aftermarket. These responsibilities will include product line development for existing and new product lines, extensive Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)and market research, analyzing product data, and new product introductions. In addition, this role will partner with other teams to help support sales, operations, quality, and validation testing as it relates to the product lines.

The Senior Product Manager will function as the subject matter expert on their assigned category/categories including competitors, technical requirements, market activity, etc.

The role is based at the Company’s headquarters in a highly desirable location in Southern California.

Key Responsibilities

Develop and drive the companies brands and private label product line strategies.
Define and develop product line roadmaps.
Recommend specific and measurable marketing objectives for product lines in terms of sales, gross profits, and market share.
Assess new category and channel opportunities with existing and future customers.
Acquire, updating, and comparison of company product performance vs. competitive performance, and competitive landscaping (pricing, features, applications, and innovation)
Monitors, analyzes, and evaluates product performance, domestic and international market trends, customer feedback, consumer behavior and competitor activity to generate new product ideas or current product enhancements.
Conduct and represent the “voice of customer" for product line developments.
Evaluate ideas and suggestions for new products, investigate market opportunities.
Propose new product initiatives and optimize the existing product line for maximum profitability.
Prepare Market Requirements documents.
Manage and execute the introduction of new products on time and within budget, to achieve planned market position and gross revenue/gross margin targets.
Work within a cross-functional team through all phases of the product line development process including operations process planning to product launch.
Establishes product launch activities, project schedules and ensures timely attainment of targets, advises stakeholders of any product delays or concerns.
Function as a category expert in your product categories.
Preparing accurate up-to-date reports and reviews on project schedules and cost analysis
Partner with operations (forecasting & supply chain) and sales planning to ensure fill rate targets are achieved.
Answers product knowledge and technical questions posed by customers.
Performs other duties as assigned.

Candidate Profile

BA / BS degree or equivalent experience
5+ years’ experience in a similar role, automotive aftermarket experience, OEM, or equivalent industry strongly desired.
Take ultimate pride in the ownership and accuracy of your work.
Commit to understanding and delivering results.
Make decisions based on data and analytics.
Take decisive action, including learning from productive failures.
Trust and respect the roles and responsibilities of the team.
Foster open and transparent communication within the organization.
Experienced with ‘Voice of the Customer’ research.
Ability to address customer issues and partner on resolutions.
Ability to evaluate and develop solutions to complex situations, applying knowledge of specialty areas with use of sound judgement.
Highly organized.
Proficient at Strategic and Project Planning.
Excellent communication and relationship skills to work effectively with sales team, channel partners and other internal department personnel.
Analysis of market demand, market share and value propositions of products managed as they relate to primary competitors.
Strong proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (excel, access, etc.)

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