POSITION SUMMARY

Own, manage, and communicate a portfolio of products within a tire segment category (LTR, PCR, or TBR) from cradle to grave.  Set the long-term vision and strategy for the segment.  Serve as the product champion and subject matter expert, advocating the product offering both internally and externally.  Define the go-to-market launch strategy Communicate the “why” behind the product roadmap to align all levels of the organization. 

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

• Product Management and product roadmap / product lifecycle management to support overall business goals.


• Communicate and align product vision to all levels of organization including other business units (ie SRNA Original Equipment, SRI Advanced Technology, etc.) to create synergies in both new products and new product marketing.


• Lead the creation of new product concepts by anticipation of market trends and through the initiation, management, and support of market research.


• Establish product positioning, market share targets, and develop pricing and profit strategies to support the overall business goals.


• Maintain a deep and comprehensive understanding of the market and competitive landscape by initiating competitor benchmarking and anticipating competitor product plans.


• Understand customer needs, generate product requirements, and negotiate performance targets and product attributes with engineering teams.


• Manage product planning team members and/or manage 3rd party market research and other 3rd party contractors (designers, etc.)


• Support engineering and test teams throughout product development and industrialization.


• Manage exclusive customer specific products (DTC, 4WP, etc.) to support the overall business goals.


• Define and own the go-to-market launch strategy. 


• Define product story and product messaging concepts as well as promotional plan for new products, technologies, and features.


• Drive demand for new products by supporting both the sales team and promotional teams (including corporate training) with customized product-specific marketing.

PRINCIPAL TASKS

• Product Management and product roadmap / product lifecycle management to support overall business goals.


• Communicate and align product vision to all levels of organization including other business units (ie SRNA Original Equipment, SRI Advanced Technology, etc.) to create synergies in both new products and new product marketing.


• Lead the creation of new product concepts by anticipation of market trends and through the initiation, management, and support of market research.


• Establish product positioning, market share targets, and develop pricing and profit strategies for SRNA and customers to support the overall business goals.


• Maintain a deep and comprehensive understanding of the market and competitive landscape by initiating competitor benchmarking and anticipating competitor product plans.


• Understand customer needs, generate product requirements, and negotiate performance targets and product attributes with engineering teams.


• Manage product planning team members and/or manage 3rd party market research and other 3rd party contractors (designers, etc.)


• Support engineering teams and production facilities throughout product development and industrialization.


• Manage exclusive customer specific products (DTC, 4WP, etc.) to support the overall business goals


• Define and own the go-to-market launch strategy. 


• Defines and communicates product story and product messaging concepts as well as promotional plan for new products, technologies, and features.


• Drive demand for new products by supporting both the sales team and promotional teams (including corporate training) with customized product-specific marketing.


• Creates presentation material and provides initial new product presentations to sales teams as well as customers, especially key buyers and wholesalers.  

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

WORK EXPERIENCE: At least five (5+) years of industry experience preferably in the tire/automotive industry, specifically in product planning. Technical background and/or engineering and development experience preferred.

ACADEMIC/TRAINING: A Bachelors degree in Engineering is preferred, MSE is a plus. Bachelors degree in Business and/or Marketing or a related field with a strong technical background considered, MBA is a plus.

SKILLS:
1) Must be self-motivated, able to prioritize projects, and manage time.
2) Must possess excellent communication and presentation skills to collaborate professionally and effectively with all levels of internal personnel as well as external customers.
3) Must be proficient in MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook).
4) Must be detail oriented, extremely organized and;
5) Must have strong analytical and statistical skills and be able to provide and interpret accurate, useable, and efficient data.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS: Must be able to stand, sit, move, and use fingers for extended periods of time. May require walking primarily on a level surface, reaching above shoulder heights and below the waist, as well as lifting up to 25-50 pounds (moving tires).

WORK ENVIRONMENT: Domestic and International travel required up to 25% of working time, to corporate technical centers, production facilities, and proving grounds in Japan and USA, as well as customer visits. Candidate is expected to report to the office environment the majority of the time to effectively collaborate with the product planning team and all levels of the organization. Candidate must be flexible to irregular working hours in the case of telephone and/or video conferences across time zones.

The Physical Demands and Work Environment described herein represent the environment and physical demands that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change, or new ones may be assigned at any time with or without notice.
 

This employer participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S.