Sr Product Mgr - Returnship at CDK Global in Portland, OR

About Us: 

CDK Global is a leading provider of cloud-based software to dealerships and Original Equipment Manufacturers (“OEMs”) across automotive and related industries. The Company’s cloud-based, software as a service (“SaaS”) platform enables dealerships to manage their end-to-end business operations, including the acquisition, sale, financing, insuring, repair, and maintenance of vehicles. By automating and streamlining critical workflows, the integrated platform of modern solutions enables dealers to sell and service more vehicles by creating simple and convenient experiences for customers and improving their financial and operational performance. 

About the CDK Global Returnship Program: 

The CDK Global Returnship Program is a 16‑week, full‑time, paid fixed-term temporary opportunity designed to help professionals successfully re‑engage with the workforce after an extended career break of 2+ years for caregiving purposes. Participants receive meaningful project work, hands‑on experience, mentorship, and learning support to help refresh skills and rebuild confidence. Our goal is to convert returnship participants into long‑term full‑time roles at the end of the 16-week program term, based on performance and business needs.  

Learn more:  

Path Forward CDK Returnship Program: https://pathforward.org/your-path-forward-at-cdk-global/  

CDK Global Careers – Returnship Program: https://careers.cdkglobal.com/returnship/  

What to Expect:  

• 16‑week full‑time fixed-term temporary position (40 hours/week)  

• Paid position with benefits eligibility upon conversion to a full-time (FTE) role 

• Structured onboarding, mentorship, and role-specific training  

• Real, meaningful work aligned to business needs  

• Coaching and support from CDK and Path Forward throughout the program  

• Opportunity for conversion to a regular full-time (FTE) role at the end of the returnship  

Position Summary: 

Assists in shaping individual product strategy & in the creation of relevant business cases. Accountable for the full product lifecycle from ideation to end-of-life.  Responsible for determining interdependencies in the broader CDK product lines & ecosystem. Voice of the customer & market for the product organization. Ensures that user personas & product requirements are defined and reflected in user stories. May also own and/or assist in Epic development. Working with Scrum Master and agile team on backlog grooming and ensures that timely decision making on product requirement trade-offs. 

Supervision and Autonomy 

• Conducts complex & important work. 

• Operates with moderate supervision, little instruction on day-to-day work & general instruction on new projects. 

• Analyzes solutions using standard procedures.  

Product Knowledge  

• Maintains awareness of competition & product differentiators. Continuously builds product management skills. 

• Leverages industry, org, customer knowledge to interpret & drive internal/ customer requirements.  

Leadership 

• Leads product requirements & works daily with agile team(s) defining users stories/Features (Epics). 

• Acts as a resource for junior staff (peer-to-peer) 

Impact Results 

• Successful execution has impact on overall product deliverables & may also impact cross-connected uses cases & related customer & business outcomes. 

• Has moderate impact on commitments & issues are likely to cause moderate disruption to the business. 

• Successful execution has impact on overall product deliverables & may also impact cross-connected uses cases & related customer & business outcomes.  

• Has moderate impact on commitments & issues are likely to cause moderate disruption to the business. 

Position Responsibilities & Essential function: 

• Translate product vision into prioritized & deliverable Features (Epics) and user stories (based on feedback from dealers/customers & analysis of user & buyer personas) to deliver differentiated customer outcomes. 

• Manage the backlog for sprint teams, partnering with R&D/scrum master in prioritization, supporting full lifecycle from definition, beta, showcase & retrospectives. 

• Participate in AI Native development practices  

• Work with product marketing to develop product’s value proposition, features/benefits. 

• Monitor & adapt to key product success metrics (e.g. adoption, profitability, NPS, market share growth) 

• Invest in gaining expertise of the market, user personas, functional & domain knowledge. 

• Develop & prioritize the Features (Epics) & user stories based on user/market requirements, strategy & business plan. Support business case development. 

• Collaborate with other Product Managers to ensure the product remains aligned with overall CDK product strategy & deliverables.  

Qualifications: 

Preferred: 

• Deep knowledge in creating Features (Epics) & user stories, driving end-to-end execution of product releases.  

• Strong written & verbal communication skills. Ability to facilitate customer communications.  

• Ability to listen & consider the points of view of others, collaborate & build consensus within cross-functional areas. 

• Participated in business case creation & aligning requirements to business outcomes. 

• Experience in defining and bringing to market valuable AI enhancements. 

• Knowledgeable in API specification and use cases 

• Strong track record of product execution in a dynamic environment. 

• Ability to work hybrid to our Portland, OR office or our Austin, TX headquarters. 

• Travel up to 25% of time. 

Education/Experience: 

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Business, Engineering, or equivalent industry experience   

• 3-5+ years of Product Owner or Product Management and/or equivalent experience in Enterprise SaaS, full lifecycle management. 

• Experience in Agile software/DevOps methodologies & working with globally distributed teams. 

Base Compensation: $110,000 - $135,000