Product Specialist

Product Specialist – Automotive Solutions & Key Cutting Machines Position Overview

The Product Specialist serves as an extension of the Product Manager, with a primary focus on supporting the Automotive Solutions portfolio through product management activities, market analysis, and hands‑on product validation efforts. As a member of the marketing department, this role works closely with Sales, Purchasing, Technical Support, and Global R&D teams to support new product introductions, software and hardware releases, and ongoing portfolio management activities.

Additional responsibilities include supporting select initiatives related to the Key Cutting Machine (KCM) product portfolio.

• Support new product initiatives, enhancements, and cross‑functional projects within the Automotive Solutions portfolio.
• Provide product expertise to customer service, sales, and field teams, including pricing, availability, and technical guidance.
• Manage product lifecycle activities by processing new code requests and coordinating Jira tickets for product, software, and database updates.
• Analyze sales performance and market trends to inform product strategy, demand forecasting, and inventory planning.
• Partner with Purchasing to drive replenishment strategies and maintain optimal inventory levels.
• Develop competitive benchmarking analyses and monitor industry trends, emerging technologies, and competitive offerings.
• Assist in creating marketing materials, product communications, launch plans, and sales enablement tools.
• Coordinate cross‑functional initiatives by managing timelines, tracking action items, and supporting internal tools and communications.
• Support trade shows, customer engagements, training sessions, and other portfolio‑related activities.
• Lead and support testing and validation efforts for automotive products (hardware, software, keys, and devices), including collaboration with global R&D teams, external partners, and end users to deliver actionable insights and ensure product performance.

• Support project coordination, Jira data requests, and product lifecycle maintenance for the KCM portfolio.
• Manage pricing updates, inventory availability, forecasting, and replenishment planning.
• Assist with marketing material development, product launches, trade shows, and customer training activities.
• Provide cross‑functional teams with accurate product information and elevate technical product issues as needed.

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Supply Chain, Engineering, or related field.
• Experience in product management support, project coordination, or commercial operations.
• Proven experience tracking tasks and managing workflows using Jira, Asana, or equivalent project management software.
• Analytical capabilities to manage inventory forecasting, supply chain replenishment, and complex pricing structures.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel (VLOOKUPs, pivot tables) for maintaining accurate product, pricing, and inventory data.
• Interpersonal skills to effectively share product information cross‑functionally and manage relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Demonstrated experience assisting with product launches, marketing collateral creation, and trade show execution.
• Ability to quickly learn the technical nuances of the KCM portfolio to successfully evaluate and elevate product performance issues.
• Willingness to Travel:
  Approximately 20%–30% of the time.

• Prior background working with automotive, technical, or specialized portfolio products.
• Experience with inventory forecasting, replenishment modeling, and demand planning.

• This position is onsite/hybrid in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.
• Sche…