The Director, Product Management role is responsible for leading Product Management for the Auction Marketplace Release Train within the Wholesale Marketplace Delivery Stream (CAPTG I5). The release train builds the digital experiences that connect buyers and sellers in Manheim's wholesale marketplace, including Timed Sales, Simulcast, OVE, search, the Vehicle Detail Page, and DealShield Assurance. Owns product strategy, roadmap, and outcomes for the Manheim Marketplace investment. Leads the Auction Marketplace product team. Partners with engineering, architecture, product design, data and analytics, auction operations, and commercial teams to increase buyer engagement and transaction conversion and to extend assurance coverage. Works with adjacent release trains to connect the marketplace with other Cox Automotive products. Uses AI to strengthen how the product team works under AI Transformation (AIT) and to improve how buyers and sellers find, price, and transact on vehicles.
Primary Responsibilities
- Leads, coaches, and develops the Auction Marketplace product team. Attracts and retains strong product talent, shapes team structure and capacity across the release train, and builds skills through focused development. Sets clear expectations, holds the team accountable for results, and creates a culture of empowerment and ownership.
- Owns product strategy and roadmap for the Manheim Marketplace investment, tying roadmap items to investment outcomes and aligning each product area's direction to the release train strategy. Contributes to the development of annual investment cases that support business outcomes and key measures.
- Works with business leaders to identify business and organizational requirements and assess current and anticipated levels of support.
- Leads the product lifecycle from discovery through launch. Ensures problems and solutions are validated with customers, and that work is shaped so each increment delivers customer value, before teams commit capacity. Drives planning and prioritization with engineering and architecture leaders, coordinates dependencies with other investments on the release train, and balances new capability with reliability, security, and platform modernization. Oversees product and go-to-market readiness, messaging, and change management with marketing, sales, client solutions, and auction operations.
- Identifies, prioritizes, and delivers AI-enabled marketplace capabilities, including agent-ready data and API access, that improve how buyers and sellers find, price, and transact on vehicles, with clear measures of adoption and business impact. Leads the team’s AI Transformation (AIT) ways of working. Models AI-native product building and ensures the specifications the team develops with engineering and design partners are clear enough for engineers and AI agents to act on.
- Defines and tracks key performance indicators for the release train, using customer-journey instrumentation, baselines, and experimentation, and drives action to improve them.
- Gives leadership end-to-end visibility into current areas of focus, issues, budget and costs, near- and longer-term priorities, and business impact.
Minimum Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in a related discipline and 10 years’ experience in a related field; or a different combination, such as a master's degree and 8 years’ experience; or PhD and 5 years’ experience or 18 years' experience in a related field
- At least 5 years’ experience in a Management or Lead role
- Skilled in analytical thinking, business acumen, project administration and management, requirements analysis and technology savvy
- Skilled in building partnerships, engaging others, guiding team success, leading change and leading with vision
- Other duties as needed or required
Preferred Qualifications
- Demonstrated proficiency at the Director level in the Product Creator Practices and Skills framework, including Team Leadership & Development
- Experience leading product teams through AI Transformation (AIT)
- Proven ability to align diverse stakeholders and gain buy-in from leaders across organizational boundaries
- Ability to make sound decisions quickly with incomplete information and to say no to lower-value work
Drug Testing:
To be employed in this role, you'll need to clear a pre-employment drug test. Cox Automotive does not currently administer a pre-employment drug test for marijuana for this position. However, we are a drug-free workplace, so the possession, use or being under the influence of drugs illegal under federal or state law during work hours, on company property and/or in company vehicles is prohibited.
Compensation:
Compensation includes a base salary in the range of $148,500.00 - $247,500.00. The base salary may vary within the anticipated base pay range based on factors such as the ultimate location of the position and the selected candidate’s knowledge, skills, and abilities. Position may be eligible for additional compensation that may include an incentive program.
Benefits:
The Company offers eligible employees the flexibility to take as much vacation with pay as they deem consistent with their duties, the company’s needs, and its obligations; seven paid holidays throughout the calendar year; and up to 160 hours of paid wellness annually for their own wellness or that of family members. Employees are also eligible for additional paid time off in the form of bereavement leave, time off to vote, jury duty leave, volunteer time off, military leave, and parental leave.
Applicants must currently be authorized to work in the United States for any employer without current or future sponsorship.
EOE, including disability/vets
