Job Title: Lead Product Owner Company: Cox Automotive - USA Job Family Group: Engineering / Product Development Management Level: Manager - Non People Leader Flexible Work Option: Hybrid - Ability to work remotely part of the week Travel %: Yes, 5% of the time Work Shift: Day Compensation: Compensation includes a base salary of $111,500.00 - $185,900.00. The base salary may vary within the anticipated base pay range based on factors such as the ultimate location of the position and the selected candidate's knowledge, skills, and abilities. Position may be eligible for additional compensation that may include an incentive program.
Job Description:
What Youll Do:
Product Ownership:
Maintain the roadmap for financial data products and AI solutions serving internal finance stakeholders
Partner with Product Owners for A/R and Billing to ensure aligned roadmaps
Identify high-impact opportunities where AI and automation can eliminate manual work, improve accuracy, and accelerate financial processes
Balance competing priorities across multiple finance functions while maintaining a cohesive product roadmap
Partner with finance leadership to understand evolving business needs and translate them into actionable product requirements
Stakeholder Partnership & Discovery:
Build deep relationships with Finance, Accounting, AP, and FP&A teams to understand their workflows, pain points, and opportunities
Facilitate workshops and discovery sessions to uncover unarticulated needs and validate solution approaches
Translate financial domain expertise into clear requirements that engineering teams can execute against
Serve as the voice of internal customers throughout the product development lifecycle
AI Solution Development:
Define use cases for AI/ML applications in financial processes such as invoice processing, expense categorization, anomaly detection, forecasting, and financial analysis
Work with data science and engineering teams to scope, prioritize, and deliver AI-powered features that drive measurable business value
Ensure AI solutions are explainable, auditable, and meet financial compliance requirements
Monitor model performance and iterate based on user feedback and business outcomes
Product Execution & Delivery:
Maintain and prioritize product backlogs across multiple workstreams, ensuring clear acceptance criteria and definition of done
Lead agile ceremonies including sprint planning, backlog refinement, and stakeholder demos
Make data-driven decisions about feature tradeoffs, technical debt, and release timing
Define and track KPIs that demonstrate product value and ROI to finance stakeholders
What You Bring:
Required Experience:
Bachelor's degree and 6 years' experience in a related field
The right candidate could also have a different combination, such as a master's degree and 4 years' experience; a Ph.D. and 1 year of experience; or 18 years' experience in a related field
7+ years in product management or product ownership, with at least 3 years focused on financial systems, data products, or AI/ML solutions
Deep understanding of finance and accounting processes including general ledger, accounts payable/receivable, billing, financial close, forecasting, and financial reporting
Proven track record of delivering complex B2B or internal enterprise products from concept to adoption
Experience working with cross-functional teams including engineering, data science, design, and business stakeholders
Strong technical acumen with ability to discuss data architectures, APIs, ML models, and integration patterns
Preferred Qualifications:
Background in finance, accounting, or FP&A (CPA, CMA, or MBA a plus)
Hands-on experience implementing AI/ML solutions in financial operations
Familiarity with modern financial systems (ERP, billing platforms, financial data warehouses)
Experience with data governance, financial controls, and SOX compliance requirements
Knowledge of generative AI applications for financial analysis and reporting
Skills & Attributes:
Why This Role Matters:
Financial operations are the backbone of our business, yet too often rely on manual, repetitive processes that are error-prone and limit our ability to scale. By combining deep financial domain expertise with modern AI capabilities, youll create solutions that allow our finance teams to focus on strategic analysis and decision-making rather than data entry and reconciliation. Your work will directly impact our ability to close faster, forecast more accurately, and make better business decisions.
Drug Testing:
To be employed in this role, you'll need to clear a pre-employment drug test. Cox Automotive does not currently administer a pre-employment drug test for marijuana for this position. However, we are a drug-free workplace, so the possession, use or being under the influence of drugs illegal under federal or state law during work hours, on company property and/or in company vehicles is prohibited.
Benefits:
The Company offers eligible employees the flexibility to take as much vacation with pay as they deem consistent with their duties, the company's needs, and its obligations; seven paid holidays throughout the calendar year; and up to 160 hours of paid wellness annually for their own wellness or that of family members. Employees are also eligible for additional paid time off in the form of bereavement leave, time off to vote, jury duty leave, volunteer time off, military leave, and parental leave.
About Us:
Through groundbreaking technology and a commitment to stellar experiences for drivers and dealers alike, Cox Automotive employees are transforming the way the world buys, owns, sells - or simply uses - cars. Cox Automotive employees get to work on iconic consumer brands like Autotrader and Kelley Blue Book and industry-leading dealer-facing companies like vAuto and Manheim, all while enjoying the people-centered atmosphere that is central to our life at Cox.
Benefits of working at Cox may include health care insurance (medical, dental, vision), retirement planning (401(k)), and paid days off (sick leave, parental leave, flexible vacation/wellness days, and/or PTO). For more details on what benefits you may be offered, visit our benefits page. Cox is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer - All qualified applicants/employees will receive consideration for employment without regard to that individual's age, race, color, religion or creed, national origin or ancestry, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, physical or mental disability, veteran status, genetic information, ethnicity, citizenship, or any other characteristic protected by law. Cox provides reasonable accommodations when requested by a qualified applicant or employee with disability, unless such accommodations would cause an undue hardship.