Product Manager, Inbound

Socket.dev; Dearborn (MI); Hybrid; USD 115,000 - 193,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision

Hybrid work schedule

Paid time off

Tuition assistance

Employee discounts

Job summary

Ford Motor Company seeks a Product Manager for North America Inbound Logistics to lead strategic product roadmaps, integrations, and digital tooling across plant operations. You will align enterprise platforms with logistics priorities and guide cross-functional teams to deliver value.

You will establish architectures, manage end-to-end deployments, and drive measurable improvements in dock turn times and inventory visibility, while collaborating with MP&L, vendors, and global teams.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Industrial Engineering, or a related field.
• 5+ years of progressive experience in software management, supply chain, materials management, or logistics within automotive or manufacturing environments.
• Demonstrated leadership managing vendor support teams in a plant or distribution environment.

Responsibilities

• Lead cross-functional software delivery teams through all phases of the product development lifecycle using Agile/Scrum practices.
• Own, prioritize, and groom the product backlog; write epics, user stories, and acceptance criteria.
• Manage end-to-end product rollout plans, including SIT, cutover, pilot deployments and hypercare across North American facilities.
• Oversee vendor management, SLAs, and platform upgrade planning to minimize technical debt.

Skills

Agile/Scrum

Vendor management

Lean manufacturing

JIT principles

Inventory control

Education

Bachelor's in Computer Science

Bachelor's in Supply Chain

Tools

YMS

TMS

EWM

ISDP

Rite-Hite dock management

Control Tower

Job description

We made history and now we work to transform the future – for our customers, our communities and our families. You'll see your work on the road every day, helping people move freely and pursue their dreams. At Ford, you can build more than vehicles. Come build what matters.

Enterprise Technology plays a critical part in shaping the future of mobility. If you’re looking for the chance to leverage advanced technology to redefine the transportation landscape, enhance the customer experience and improve people’s lives, this is the opportunity for you. Join us and challenge your IT expertise and analytical skills to help create vehicles that are as smart as you are.

In this position...

The Product Manager – North America Inbound Logistics will leverage a robust background in operational leadership and supply chain technologies to guarantee uninterrupted material flow supporting high-volume manufacturing. Operating within the Enterprise Technology – Supply Chain & Compliance organization, you will lead continuous performance improvements across logistics, inventory management, and plant reception through advanced digital automation.

In this role, you will direct high-impact initiatives, including the deployment and enterprise integration of Yard Management Systems (YMS), centralized Material Management Platforms, and predictive inbound shipment tracking. You will define the scoping and technical integration strategies connecting enterprise platforms—including TMS, YMS, EWM, ISDP, Rite-Hite dock management, and Control Tower / Bid Board ecosystems—while systematically rationalizing and modernizing fragmented legacy application portfolios.

Additionally, you will shape the future state of in-plant automation by establishing architectural standards and adoption roadmaps for Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) and legacy infrastructure modernization. By cultivating collaborative partnerships across plant operations, MP& L, carrier networks, and global technology teams, you will deliver resilient, intelligent IT solutions that set a new benchmark for manufacturing logistics.

What you'll do...

Product Vision, Strategy & Roadmapping

• Establish, communicate, and maintain a multi-year “Now, Near, Far” strategic product roadmap for North America Inbound Logistics technology, aligning application evolution with plant operational priorities and enterprise supply chain objectives.
• Define target-state architectures to systematically rationalize, modernize, and decommission fragmented legacy logistics applications across the regional portfolio.
• Spearhead the evaluation, pilot deployment, and scaling of emerging capabilities, including Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) and Agentic AI, to drive intelligent plant-floor decisioning and automated material movement.
• Establish quantifiable business KPIs and Objectives & Key Results (OKRs)—such as dock turn times, yard dwell time, inventory visibility accuracy, and demurrage reduction—to measure product value and return on investment.

Core Platform Ownership & Systems Integration

• Serve as the dedicated Product Manager overseeing mission-critical logistics applications, including Yard Management Systems (YMS), Inbound Logistics Service Layer (ILSL), Premium Portal, Disputed Excess Transportation Cost (DETC), Transportation Management System (TMS)
• Define scope, data flows, and technical integration requirements connecting plant, vendor and enterprise platforms, and C-I-A ratings
• Ensure tight alignment with Enterprise Architecture to guarantee secure, scalable, and resilient data exchanges (APIs, event streams, EDI) between shop-floor hardware, warehouse platforms, and enterprise ERPs.

Product Delivery & Agile Execution

• Lead cross-functional software delivery teams (engineers, solution architects, UX designers, data analysts) through all phases of the product development lifecycle using Agile/Scrum best practices.
• Own, prioritize, and groom the product backlog; author precise epics, user stories, and acceptance criteria; and lead sprint planning, backlog refinement, and sprint reviews.
• Manage end-to-end product rollout plans, including System Integration Testing, cutover execution, pilot deployments, and hypercare support across North American manufacturing facilities.
• Oversee planned operational deployments and cutover windows, providing technical leadership during critical weekend go-lives or plant shutdown windows as required.

Vendor Management & Operational Governance

• Collaborate with software vendors, third-party system integrators, and equipment partners (e.g., dock automation and AMR hardware vendors).
• Establish, monitor, and enforce Service Level Agreements (SLAs), software performance metrics, contract deliverables, and platform release cycles.
• Evaluate vendor feature release notes, plan platform upgrades/enhancements, and champion necessary architectural improvements to minimize technical debt.Complete SIT, Dynatrace alerting capabilities, and ServiceNow MTTA/MTTR requirements to reduce risk of near miss or production impact

Plant Operations Partnership & Change Management

• Spend time on the plant floor (gemba walks) to deeply understand physical material flows, Just-in-Time (JIT) / Just-in-Sequence (JIS) constraints, and dock bottlenecks.
• Cultivate trusted, high-impact partnerships with key stakeholders, including Material Planning & Logistics (MP& L), Plant Operations Managers, Industrial Engineering, carrier logistics providers, and compliance teams.
• Develop operational readiness and change management frameworks—including standard operating procedures (SOPs), user training materials, and continuous feedback loops—to drive high adoption of newly deployed digital tools across plant floors and logistics yards.

You’ll have...

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Industrial Engineering, or a related field
• 5+ years of progressive experience in software management, supply chain, materials management, or logistics within automotive or manufacturing environments
• Demonstrated leadership managing vendor support teams in a plant or distribution environment
• Strong knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Just-in-Time (JIT) principles, and inventory control systems (CMMS/MMP)
• 5+ years experience managing vendors, SLAs, enhancements/upgrades
• Excellent problem-solving, negotiation, and communication skills
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment, with flexibility to support weekend activities when needed

As an established global company, we offer the benefit of choice. You can choose what your Ford future will look like: will your story span the globe, or keep you close to home? Will your career be a deep dive into what you love, or a series of new teams and new skills? Will you be a leader, a changemaker, a technical expert, a culture builder…or all of the above? No matter what you choose, we offer a work life that works for you, including:

• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage
• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more
• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases
• Tuition assistance
• Established and active employee resource groups
• Paid time off for individual and team community service
• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

This position is a salary grade 8 and ranges from $115,000-$192,900.

Final determination of salary grade will be based on candidate's skills and experience, and base salary will be set within the applicable range according to job scope, responsibility and competitive market value.

Internal applicants: moving into this role may result in an adjustment to your current compensation based on the posted pay range for this role, taking into consideration your qualifications and other relevant factors.

For more information on salary and benefits, click here: New Hire Benefits

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Candidates for positions with Ford Motor Company must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status. In the United States, if you need a reasonable accommodation for the online application process due to a disability, please call 1-888-336-0660.

This position is hybrid with a requirement to be onsite four or more days per week. #LI-Hybrid #LI-MG1