Chief Product Officer — Aftermarket Franchise

The mandate

An aftermarket franchise sells parts, repair kits, remanufactured components, diagnostic tools and service propositions across a broad installed fleet. Category teams optimise revenue, while no executive owns the complete customer problem or lifecycle economics. Warranty cost has risen in products with strong volume but inconsistent fitment, installation and support. The investment committee has paused expansion until a CPO can establish true product accountability.

The CPO will lead an approximately US$14,100 million revenue and programme perimeter and 1,500 employees and material partners. Scope includes portfolio, customer discovery, product management, requirements, proposition, pricing architecture, roadmap, launch and lifecycle decisions. Engineering owns design integrity, quality owns defect closure and operations owns fulfilment. The CPO owns which problems the franchise solves, for whom and with what enduring economic and customer result.

Aftermarket products are systems. A repair kit includes component compatibility, instructions, tools, technician skill and post-repair verification. A diagnostic subscription depends on vehicle access, data quality and continuing software support. The CPO will define products around a completed customer job rather than an item number, then assign one owner for adoption, quality, support and end-of-life.

Warranty will be analysed by product and use cohort. Fitment, supplier lot, workshop type, operating environment and repair history can distinguish design defect from misapplication. Product leaders will work with quality to set operating envelopes, improve instructions, change packaging or withdraw an offer. Strong sales will not justify a product whose repeat repair and goodwill destroy lifecycle contribution.

Why this seat is open

The previous CPO is leaving after an accelerated leadership transition. Interim category leaders protect current decisions but cannot reset the portfolio. The firm seeks a permanent replacement within six to eight weeks. The departure is unrelated to an undisclosed product-safety or conduct matter.

What you will own

• Segment the portfolio by customer problem, vehicle cohort and lifecycle contribution.
• Establish product ownership across requirements, launch, support and retirement.
• Integrate warranty, fitment and repair evidence into roadmap choices.
• Decide scale, redesign, reprice, partner, harvest and withdrawal.
• Align channel, engineering and supply leaders around product outcomes.
• Build successors across product lines and portfolio management.

The portfolio will carry explicit admission and exit rules. New products require customer evidence, technical feasibility, support cost and a defined measure of adoption. Existing products with weak value will enter redesign or retirement even if they contribute catalogue breadth. Transition plans will protect repair continuity and legal support obligations for vehicles already operating.

Product governance will control variation. Customer-specific or channel-specific versions need incremental value, validation and lifecycle budgets. The CPO will group variants by technical and customer similarity, reducing unnecessary branches without breaking fitment. Supplier-owned designs must provide sufficient diagnostic and change access for the franchise to support customers.

Research will reach workshops and fleet users, including those who return or abandon products. Product managers will observe installation and diagnosis rather than rely on sales feedback. Insights must change requirements, packaging, service or price; research volume is not an outcome.

Pricing will distinguish customer value from failure recovery. Premium offers must earn their position through fit, durability, availability or labour savings, while concessions for a defective or incomplete product will not be recorded as promotion. Channel incentives should reward correct application and durable repair. The CPO will establish a customer-remedy route when catalogue or configuration errors make the franchise responsible, even where the supplying manufacturer disputes fault.

The first 12 months

During the first 90 days, the CPO will map contribution and warranty across the 25 largest product families, assess leadership and contain high-risk expansion. The sponsor will receive a portfolio architecture and immediate scale, redesign or stop choices.

By month eight, three priority families should use end-to-end ownership, two high-cost variants should enter consolidation or withdrawal, and revised repair or fitment evidence should operate in selected channels. Product reviews will reconcile finance, quality and customer data.

At year-end, warranty cost in selected cohorts should fall by 15%, active low-value variants reduce by 12% and portfolio contribution improve by 200 basis points. Ninety per cent of new launches must have traceable customer evidence and lifecycle support plans, with no critical service breach caused by retirement.

What the board will measure

• Clear owners for complete customer and repair outcomes.
• Warranty learning changing product choices.
• Portfolio focus without abandoned installed-fleet obligations.
• Better contribution, adoption and repair durability.
• Strong product leaders and succession.

The person

You are a CPO, aftermarket portfolio leader or product-line general manager with 22–28 years in automotive, industrial services or connected repair products. You have owned at least US$8,200 million and 1,050 employees. Evidence must include a product withdrawal, a warranty-led redesign and a portfolio accountability model sustained after launch.

This onsite Detroit role requires workshop, distribution, supplier and customer travel. You combine commercial judgement with technical curiosity and respect for service continuity.

Compensation and terms

Base compensation is US$430,000–575,000 plus annual incentive and equity. Measures include portfolio contribution, warranty, adoption, focus, service continuity and succession. Individual terms will recognise relevant product scale, with the selection schedule able to absorb up to six months of contractual notice.

Confidentiality

The franchise, products, suppliers, warranty cohorts and roadmap choices are confidential. Controlled details follow qualification and an undertaking. Detroit and the rounded perimeter do not identify the employer.