Sr. Product Specialist

With the ultimate purpose of supporting our Independent Beauty Consultants potential in both personal and business growth, this role leads product development projects under the guidance of the Product Manager (Global Product Management). Participates in the development and implementation of global portfolio/ product development plans by independently gathering information and providing key reviews at various points in the planning process, develops analyses of pricing, cost, and competitor information, develops options for products and packaging, and ensures the accurate, consistent communication of information to the manager and to key partners.

Generates and evaluates solutions to address timeline issues as they arise and provides recommendations to the Manager and project team.

• Under the direction of the Manager, supports the commercialization of global and regional new product development projects (including but not limited to new product innovation, formula updates, and packaging changes); and commercial innovation projects (including but not limited to value engineering) to support the product lifecycle management of the assigned product portfolio, delivering on profitable growth for the company. Collaborates and communicates with R&D, program management, product research, creative, legal/regulatory, and region/local marketing teams to manage/advance said projects' timelines.
  • Develops new product concepts and strategies in collaboration with the Manager. Lead the execution of assigned portfolio projects:
    • Executes on the strategy for commercial innovation, product innovation, Go to Market plans, and product activation for both new and existing product categories.
    • Has a deep understanding and awareness of both internal/external categories.
    • Independently completes market, competitive, and internal sales performance reviews to understand business/ product opportunities.
    • Actively monitors trends in the competitive landscape and provides insights into the product portfolio.
    • Leads the creation of New Product Development project requests to the product leadership team and regional marketing teams.
    • Provides formula and package direction to internal partners for product development. Evaluates and provides preliminary approvals on product and package aesthetics.
    • Works with brand positioning team to create product positioning documents for new products as well as updating current product positioning documents for commercial innovation opportunities.
    • Prepares pricing recommendations based on competitive analysis, secondary research, and internal cost parameters.
    • Partners with a product research organization to develop and recommend the scope and methodology of consumer and product research including qualitative consumer research, consumer claims tests, and, when required, clinical testing.
    • Provides post-product launch analysis to senior leadership to evaluate the success of recent launches and to help design potential improvements for the future. Reviews independent sales force and industry feedback in the form of blogs, editor reviews, etc. Makes recommendations that affect future product launches.
    • Communicates effectively and builds key partnerships with key stakeholders across the business.
    • Identifies roadblocks and elevates issues to leadership to be able to work effectively and meet business objectives.
    • Researches and provides insights, and recommendations into forecasting, and implementation of re-promotional recommendations to achieve company objectives for sales and profitability.
• Maintains activities in Agile on supporting projects. Uses other systems such as Tableau and Qualtrics to provide insights into the work.
• Provides training and onboarding to new Product Specialists when required.
• This job requires on-site work at our Mary Kay facilities in Addison, TX and Lewisville, TX.

Experience: 3+ years in portfolio planning/product management in consumer product preferred. Experience in consumer goods is beneficial. Beauty industry experience preferred.

Education: Bachelor/University Degree in business, marketing, strategy, technical field or related field

• Demonstrated ability to lead multiple and complex projects with multiple timelines.
• The ability to influence and exchange information on multiple projects with various levels of leadership with a broad and global cross-section of key partners is a must.
• Ability to build strong relationships and collaborate across a multitude of functions and levels.
• Solid business and financial acumen with analytical skills including understanding of financial principles and how to demonstrate this knowledge to make sound business recommendations to achieve business goals in a complex environment with multiple layers of partners.
• Must have the ability to demonstrate critical thinking skills, problem‑solve, assess risks, and coordinate plans across multiple cross‑functional teams.
• Excellent interpersonal skills,…