Senior Specialist: Product

Motus corporation; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 420,000 - 640,000; Full time

Job summary

Motus Corporation seeks a skilled professional to support planning, development and lifecycle management of vehicle product lines, including specifications, pricing and derivative strategies. You will translate market insights into actionable recommendations and coordinate activities from planning to launch and ongoing lifecycle management.

The role requires strong analytical abilities, proficiency in Excel and PowerPoint, and the capacity to work across multiple internal and external

Qualifications

• 2-3 years' relevant experience in product, marketing, commercial planning, market analysis or a similar environment.
• Higher Certificate or equivalent qualification in Commerce, Marketing, Business Management or a related field.
• 3-5 years' relevant experience, preferably within the automotive industry, with exposure to product planning, vehicle specifications, pricing, competitor analysis, volume planning and/or product lifecycle management.
• Bachelor's degree in Commerce, Marketing, Business Management or a related field.
• Strong analytical and numerical capability, with the ability to interpret product, sales, pricing, market and competitor data.
• Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint, including the ability to analyse data and develop clear product and commercial presentations.
• High level of attention to detail and the ability to manage detailed technical product and specification information accurately.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate technical product information into clear commercial and customer-facing language.
• Sound understanding of customer, market and competitor dynamics.
• Ability to work effectively across multiple internal and external stakeholders.
• Automotive product knowledge and an interest in vehicle technology, market trends and competitor products would be advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Adhere to standard operating procedures and guidelines within the area of accountability.
• Support the planning, introduction and ongoing lifecycle management of assigned vehicle product lines, including new model launches, model-year changes, product enhancements and run-in/run-out requirements.
• Develop and maintain accurate product specifications, derivative structures, grade walks, feature content and product information across assigned product lines.
• Support the development of product and derivative strategies based on customer requirements, market opportunities, competitor activity and business objectives.
• Conduct and coordinate ongoing market, customer and competitor research and analysis, including competitor specifications, pricing, positioning, technology, features and value propositions.
• Identify relevant market trends, customer needs, competitor movements and product opportunities, and translate these into actionable product recommendations.
• Support the development of pricing and positioning recommendations, taking into account product specification, competitor positioning, customer value, market conditions and business objectives.
• Plan and develop criteria for new products and derivatives, including product requirements, specifications, features, volumes, derivative mix, pricing positioning and lifecycle strategy.
• Support volume planning and forecasting at model and derivative level, using market trends, sales performance, product lifecycle and commercial requirements as inputs.
• Optimise stock efficiency through effective product planning, including derivative mix, colour mix, specification, lifecycle stage and limited-edition planning.
• Monitor product sales performance, derivative mix, stock levels, market share and competitor movements, identifying areas requiring corrective action or optimisation.
• Maintain product lifecycle plans and recommend product actions where required to maintain competitiveness, relevance and commercial performance.
• Support the development and execution of new model and derivative launch plans in collaboration with Marketing, Sales, Dealer Development, Aftersales and other relevant stakeholders.
• Act as a key source of accurate product information and provide specialist product support to internal departments, dealers and other relevant stakeholders.
• Develop and/or support the development of product presentations, sales tools, specification sheets, brochures, dealer communications, training material and other product-related content.
• Ensure product information communicated internally and externally is accurate, current and consistent with approved specifications and positioning.
• Work closely with OEM and other relevant product stakeholders to communicate local market requirements, product feedback, specification requirements and identified opportunities.
• Coordinate and track product-related actions across relevant internal and external stakeholders to ensure agreed requirements and timelines are met.
• Identify product, specification, supply, pricing or process issues and work with relevant stakeholders to develop appropriate solutions.
• Escalate unresolved issues to management and process owners.
• Prepare regular product, market and competitor reporting to support timely and effective management decision-making.
• Maintain relevant product databases, competitor information, pricing files and other product intelligence to ensure information remains current and readily accessible.

Skills

Analytical skills

Numerical capability

Microsoft Excel

PowerPoint

Written and verbal communication

Stakeholder collaboration

Automotive product knowledge

Education

Higher Certificate / related field

Bachelor's degree in Commerce/Marketing/Business Management

Tools

MS Excel

MS PowerPoint

Job description

Job Purpose

Support the planning, development and lifecycle management of assigned vehicle product lines, including product specifications, derivative strategy, pricing, volume planning, competitive positioning and product performance. Provide accurate product and market information and translate customer, competitor and market insights into product recommendations. Coordinate product-related activities from initial planning and launch through to ongoing lifecycle management, ensuring alignment with market requirements, business objectives and commercial targets.

Experience and Qualifications

Minimum Experience

• 2-3 years' relevant experience in product, marketing, commercial planning, market analysis or a similar environment.

Minimum Qualification

• Higher Certificate or equivalent qualification in Commerce, Marketing, Business Management or a related field.

Preferred Experience

• 3-5 years' relevant experience, preferably within the automotive industry, with exposure to product planning, vehicle specifications, pricing, competitor analysis, volume planning and/or product lifecycle management.

Preferred Qualification

• Bachelor's degree in Commerce, Marketing, Business Management or a related field.

Minimum Requirements

• Strong analytical and numerical capability, with the ability to interpret product, sales, pricing, market and competitor data.
• Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint, including the ability to analyse data and develop clear product and commercial presentations.
• High level of attention to detail and the ability to manage detailed technical product and specification information accurately.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate technical product information into clear commercial and customer-facing language.
• Sound understanding of customer, market and competitor dynamics.
• Ability to work effectively across multiple internal and external stakeholders.
• Automotive product knowledge and an interest in vehicle technology, market trends and competitor products would be advantageous.

Generic Job Outputs

Process

• Adhere to standard operating procedures and guidelines within the area of accountability.
• Support the planning, introduction and ongoing lifecycle management of assigned vehicle product lines, including new model launches, model-year changes, product enhancements and run-in/run-out requirements.
• Develop and maintain accurate product specifications, derivative structures, grade walks, feature content and product information across assigned product lines.
• Support the development of product and derivative strategies based on customer requirements, market opportunities, competitor activity and business objectives.
• Conduct and coordinate ongoing market, customer and competitor research and analysis, including competitor specifications, pricing, positioning, technology, features and value propositions.
• Identify relevant market trends, customer needs, competitor movements and product opportunities, and translate these into actionable product recommendations.
• Support the development of pricing and positioning recommendations, taking into account product specification, competitor positioning, customer value, market conditions and business objectives.
• Plan and develop criteria for new products and derivatives, including product requirements, specifications, features, volumes, derivative mix, pricing positioning and lifecycle strategy.
• Support volume planning and forecasting at model and derivative level, using market trends, sales performance, product lifecycle and commercial requirements as inputs.
• Optimise stock efficiency through effective product planning, including derivative mix, colour mix, specification, lifecycle stage and limited-edition planning.
• Monitor product sales performance, derivative mix, stock levels, market share and competitor movements, identifying areas requiring corrective action or optimisation.
• Maintain product lifecycle plans and recommend product actions where required to maintain competitiveness, relevance and commercial performance.
• Support the development and execution of new model and derivative launch plans in collaboration with Marketing, Sales, Dealer Development, Aftersales and other relevant stakeholders.
• Act as a key source of accurate product information and provide specialist product support to internal departments, dealers and other relevant stakeholders.
• Develop and/or support the development of product presentations, sales tools, specification sheets, brochures, dealer communications, training material and other product-related content.
• Ensure product information communicated internally and externally is accurate, current and consistent with approved specifications and positioning.
• Work closely with OEM and other relevant product stakeholders to communicate local market requirements, product feedback, specification requirements and identified opportunities.
• Coordinate and track product-related actions across relevant internal and external stakeholders to ensure agreed requirements and timelines are met.
• Identify product, specification, supply, pricing or process issues and work with relevant stakeholders to develop appropriate solutions.
• Escalate unresolved issues to management and process owners.
• Prepare regular product, market and competitor reporting to support timely and effective management decision-making.
• Maintain relevant product databases, competitor information, pricing files and other product intelligence to ensure information remains current and readily accessible.

Finance/Commercial

• Support achievement of product and business profitability objectives through effective product specification, pricing, derivative mix, volume and lifecycle planning.
• Consider the commercial impact of product recommendations and balance customer value, product competitiveness, volume opportunity and business objectives.
• Identify opportunities to improve product competitiveness, sales performance, stock efficiency and commercial performance.
• Monitor relevant product and market performance indicators and highlight material risks or opportunities to management.

Client/Customer

• Develop a strong understanding of customer needs, purchase drivers, usage requirements and market expectations and incorporate these insights into product planning recommendations.
• Ensure assigned products and product propositions remain relevant and competitive within their respective market segments.
• Provide accurate, responsive and specialist product support to internal stakeholders, dealers and other relevant business partners.
• Translate complex product and technical information into clear, relevant and customer-focused communication.
• Seek and evaluate stakeholder, dealer and customer feedback to identify opportunities to improve the product proposition and customer experience.

People

• Attend learning and training initiatives to improve work quality and enhance own skills.
• Own and live up to company values.
• Participate in forums/discussions that positively contribute to knowledge improvement.
• Continuously develop technical, automotive, market and competitor product knowledge.
• Proactively share relevant product knowledge and market insights with internal teams and key stakeholders.
• Build effective working relationships across Marketing, Sales, Aftersales, Dealer Development, Finance and other relevant functions.
• Collaborate effectively with OEM and external stakeholders to achieve agreed product objectives.