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In this position...

The ambition of the Global Licensing & Merchandising Team is to strengthen Ford’s position as a lifestyle brand by delivering engaging, quality, and relevant products & experiences our customers love. As our business grows, we are seeking talented, passionate individuals who wish to accelerate brand impact through licensed products. The Licensed Product Development Manager plays an instrumental role in maintaining the integrity, quality, and consistency of Ford-branded merchandise globally across categories. With thousands of product submissions annually from best-in-class licensed partners, this position will manage the ever-growing volume and complexity of product reviews to ensure Ford’s sustained growth in consumer goods is maintained. The role will manage two Product Development Specialists, focusing on optimizing product development workflows, ensuring stringent compliance with Ford's Trademark usage, design execution, and quality standards, and coordinating efforts to strategically apply Ford IP across our vast array of consumer product categories. This position is key to continuing to elevate Ford’s position as a leading lifestyle brand and a preferred licensor partner, while expanding our scope and scale of authentic licensed products in market.

You may not meet every requirement, but if you are a highly motivated, positive leader with a passion for Ford IP and its power to surprise and delight people through awesome brand moments, we’d love to talk to you.

What you'll do...

+ **Product Approval & Compliance Management:** Oversee the comprehensive review and approval process for all global licensed product submissions, ensuring strict adherence to Ford’s brand guidelines, trademark usage, design execution, and quality standards across diverse categories (e.g., die-cast, apparel, interactive & gaming, experiential).

+ **Process Optimization & Digital Tool Management:** Drive the strategic optimization of product development workflows, systems, and tools to enhance efficiency, maintain low turnaround times, and effectively manage the high volume of annual submissions, thereby scaling our operations for future growth. This includes managing relationships with software vendors (e.g., BrandComply), overseeing partner access to collaboration tools, and improving asset library organization and licensee compliance.

+ **Internal Stakeholder Collaboration:** Collaborate extensively with internal Ford teams, including Enthusiast Brands, Ford Racing, Truck, Global Brand, Legal, and Design, to ensure seamless integration of brand and design elements into licensed products. Support proactive management of key stakeholder relationships.

+ **External Partner Management:** Lead the coordination of business reviews with external licensee partners to ensure impactful brand representation and product quality. Assess new potential partners for strategic alignment, cultivate strong working relationships, and manage regular review processes with agencies and Product Development Specialists, including preparing briefs for trade conferences and conventions.

+ **Brand Integrity & Risk Mitigation:** Develop and implement proactive strategies to address potential brand integrity risks, ensuring all licensed products consistently meet Ford’s high standards for consumer appeal, safety, and brand reputation.

+ **Category Strategy & Guidelines:** Define, develop, and maintain strategic category guidelines, product roadmaps, and a comprehensive list of Ford IP to guide licensees in product innovation and execution for high-impact categories such as gaming and outdoor.

+ **Data & Trend Analysis:** Conduct thorough review and monitoring of category trends, competitive landscapes, and directional business performance of key licensees to inform product/category strategy, identify growth opportunities, and ensure market relevance.

+ **Future Planning & Content Support:** Maintain an easily accessible visual calendar of key product drops across "Build, Thrill, Adventure" brand pillars (e.g., 6 quarters rolling). Support content development for internal forums when socializing licensed product plans to brand, marketing, and communications teams.

+ **Asset Development Coordination:** Coordinate and ensure the timely delivery of core updates to style guides and asset packs to support product development initiatives, working with agencies, product specialists, and internal partners for key brand assets.

The Licensing Product Development Manager will be responsible for bringing to life high-quality, impactful products globally across all Ford IP, combining meticulous attention to detail with a comprehensive technical knowledge of licensing and product development across numerous categories.

You'll have...

+ Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience in a relevant field.

+ Minimum of 5 years of progressive experience in brand licensing, product development, or category management within the consumer goods industry.

+ Proven ability to present effectively to executive management, articulate business needs proactively, and engage with partner leadership teams.

+ Robust knowledge of Ford IP, including specific vehicles and their technical details (both current and historical), to ensure accurate representation in niche categories or expressions where technical details are critically important.

+ Extensive experience within consumer goods, with a strong understanding of product development management and quality control.

+ Proven ability to manage high volumes of product submissions and approvals while maintaining meticulous attention to detail and adherence to brand standards.

+ Strong working knowledge of intellectual property rights, trademark usage, and design aesthetics in a commercial licensing context.

+ Demonstrated history of strong project management skills and the ability to deliver against tight timelines in a fast-paced environment.

+ Global experience in product development or licensing is strongly preferred.

+ Experience working effectively with external partners, including both agencies and licensee networks.

Core competencies and skills critical to the role include:

+ **People Leadership & Mentorship** - Strong leadership, team management, and coaching abilities, with a focus on fostering a collaborative and high-performing environment.

+ **Quality & Brand Integrity Focus** - Meticulous attention to detail and unwavering commitment to product quality, ensuring strict adherence to Ford's brand standards and safeguarding brand integrity.

+ **Communication & Stakeholder Management** - Excellent written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills, adept at managing complex relationships and influencing diverse internal and external stakeholders.

+ **Time Management & Prioritization** - Ability to manage multiple priorities, organize complex tasks, and effectively allocate time to meet deadlines in a fast-paced, high-volume environment.

+ **Decisive & Analytical Thinking** - Decisive and analytical, with the ability to make sound judgments under pressure, interpret data to inform decisions, and effectively manage high-volume workloads.

+ **Risk Management** - Proactive ability to assess and navigate gray areas of intellectual property usage, balancing the need for impactful product innovation with robust trademark and IP protection.

+ **Continuous Improvement Mindset** - A dedication to ongoing learning and process enhancement, constantly seeking opportunities to refine strategies, tools, and workflows for optimal efficiency and effectiveness. Not satisfied with we’ve always done it this way so always should.

+ **Licensee Partner Management** - Proven capability in managing and nurturing relationships with external licensee partners, driving performance, ensuring compliance, and fostering mutually beneficial collaborations.

+ **Storytelling & Executive Presentation** – Strong storytelling and presentation techniques, with the ability to effectively communicate complex strategies and outcomes to executive-level management within Ford and interface/present confidently with leaders in other brands, adept at articulating value and building consensus across diverse stakeholders.

You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!

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 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 childcare 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 leadership level 6.

For more information on salary and benefits, click here: New Hire Benefits (https://fordcareers.co/LL6SP1)

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. Candidates who are in commuting distance to a Ford hub location may be required to be onsite four or more days per week.

\#LI-Hybrid \#LI-LP3

**Requisition ID** : 54370