Product Manager- Customer Engineering (Automotive)

Location: United States (CA / TX preferred) Employment Type: Full-Time Department: Product Management / Customer Engineering Reports To: Director of Sales / Head of North America Travel Requirements: Up to 20-30% domestic and international travel

Role Overview

We are seeking a strategic and highly technical Product Manager Customer Engineering to serve as the critical bridge between our OEM customers product definition teams and engineering this pivotal role you will connect customer needs product vision and technical execution to translate ambiguous customer intent into concrete product reality and production readiness. You will be the primary technical interface for our automotive clients ensuring that our solutions in glass optics and exterior systems not only meet but exceed their stringent requirements. By combining strong business acumen with deep engineering knowledge you will drive early engagement shape product architecture and guide cross-functional teams from initial concept through to Start of Production (SOP).

Key Responsibilities

Customer Engagement & Opportunity Development

You will build and nurture strong trust-based relationships with OEM Engineering Purchasing and Design Studio teams. By identifying key decision-makers and driving early technical engagement you will position our company as a preferred partner. Your primary objective in this area is to deeply understand customer pain points and future vehicle architectures converting these insights and customer needs into formal RFQs and securing design win opportunities.

Product Definition & Technical Interface

As the technical authority for your product lines you will lead comprehensive product definition encompassing optical performance mechanical integration and overall system architecture. You will drive complex technical discussions with customers acting as the definitive voice of the product. A crucial part of this responsibility involves translating ambiguous or high-level customer inputs into clear actionable engineering requirements that our internal development teams can execute against.

New Product Introduction (NPI) & Program Execution

You will take ownership of the product lifecycle from concept through execution. This includes managing prototype builds tracking development milestones and ensuring on-time delivery of critical project phases. You will coordinate and lead cross-functional teamsspanning R&D manufacturing quality and salesto ensure alignment and mitigate risks throughout the development process.

Supply Chain & Industrialization

Ensuring that a product can be manufactured at scale is as important as its design. You will support the sourcing of critical materials and components required for your product lines. Furthermore you will partner closely with factory teams to validating feasibility from the initial concept phase all the way through to SOP ensuring quality and cost targets are met.

Strategic & Competitive Intelligence

Beyond immediate customer needs you will monitor the automotive landscape to identify emerging trends in exterior systems optics and EV architectures. You will analyze competitor offerings and market shifts to inform our long-term product roadmap ensuring our solutions remain innovative and highly competitive in the North American market.

Qualifications

Education & Experience

Education: Bachelors degree in Design Engineering Mechanical Engineering Electrical Engineering or a related technical field.

Experience: Minimum of 5-7 years of experience in product management customer engineering or technical program management within the automotive industry.

Industry Background

Extensive experience working with Automotive OEMs Tier 1 suppliers or EV manufacturers.

Demonstrated expertise with automotive glass optics lighting or exterior systems is highly preferred.

Proven track record of collaborating with OEM Design Studio teams and navigating the complex approval processes of automotive design.

Deep understanding of the full automotive product lifecycle including Proof of Concept (POC) New Product Introduction (NPI) and Start of Production (SOP).

Familiarity with North American OEM development processes quality standards (e.g. APQP PPAP) and business practices.

Core Capabilities & Skills

Customer-Facing Excellence: Exceptional ability to present complex technical information clearly to diverse audiences from engineering teams to executive leadership.

Technical Translation: Proven ability to translate high-level customer needs and market trends into detailed actionable product definitions and engineering specifications.

Program Management: Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple complex projects simultaneously ensuring milestones and deliverables are met.

Business Acumen: Solid understanding of product costing margin analysis and the commercial implications of engineering decisions.

Cross-Cultural Collaboration: Comfortable and effective working in a global cross-cultural environment bridging communication gaps between international teams and local customers.

Language: Fluent in English (both written and spoken); proficiency in additional languages relevant to global automotive manufacturing is a plus.