Technical Specialist at Mazda North American Operations in Remote

TECHNICAL SPECIALIST Location: United States · Remote JOB DESCRIPTION The MNAO Hotline is an internal Call Center that provides technical automotive support to all Mazda dealers within the US. The Technical Specialist is part of the Hotline call center and serves as the first point of contact between Mazda Dealer Service personnel and the MNAO Technical Services Division, providing technical support for difficult to diagnose and repair Mazda vehicles. This position serves as a key resource for documentation and entering data into a dedicated database that provides information to multiple departments. The data captured by the Technical Specialist is used to report product concerns to Mazda Corporate (MC) for product quality improvements, technical diagnosis, and evaluation to reduce warranty cost on major assemblies, “Fix it Right the First Time” and foster customer brand loyalty and retention. Major Areas of Responsibility (MAR): Call Center / Dealer Support - 60% • Assist Mazda dealers with a variety of inquiries, including exceptionally difficult to diagnose or repair vehicle concerns over the phone. • Provide clear and concise repair instructions/procedures to dealer technicians to quickly resolve issues. • Provide accurate and detailed documentation of all case files, providing a clear understanding of vehicle concerns using specified guidelines. • Aim to close case files within 48 hours. • Analyze on board vehicle data to determine root cause of concern. • Identify critical cases and escalate to the field Technical Specialist or Product Quality teams for support/resolution. • Notify the Mediation Department of critical cases to prevent repurchase or potential customer retention loss. • Co-develop with field Technical Specialist and present technical information on monthly Tech Tips seminar to dealer technicians. • Direct countermeasure repair parts orders through Parts Test Lab (PTL) to dealers to assist in repairing vehicles under investigation. • Review Social Moderation Comments/Photos and provide approval or denial for dealer technicians to reference. Warranty Support - 20% • Diagnose and validate Major Assembly concerns, input/collect necessary documentation to support Major Assembly authorization and approve Major Assembly replacement. • Review and process Major Assembly warranty claims, including cases approved by field Technical Specialists. • Provide the field Technical Specialist team notification of vehicles with potential warranty branding evaluation. • Assist Warranty department with claim/case review. • Provide dealer technician diagnosis and technical evaluation of potential goodwill authorizations as instructed by the Warranty department. • Assist dealers with second or more repair attempt vehicles under warranty to mitigate vehicle repurchase and/or unnecessary warranty cost. Documenting/ Reporting - 15% • Identify and document concerns that require reporting and investigation by MC and/or Product Quality teams per Technical Information (TI). • Submit ODR (onboard data recorder) and CMU (connectivity master unit) data to Product Quality and/or MC team for manufacturer analyzation and instruct dealer with suggested repair. • Provide technical validation and parts order request to Dealer Assistance Group (DAG) to support parts inventory on restricted parts management. • Report workshop manual and Service Bulletin errors through Service Information Change (SIC) process for correction. • Report vehicles that are imported from other countries to appropriate resource to accurately maintain Siebel and Warranty databases. Technical Resource - 5% • Collaborate with New Product Launch (NPL) Team, Product Quality Engineers (PQE) and MC Team to determine the best repair process. • Validate assigned Technical Service Bulletin, on-site or remotely, as necessary. • Participate in product, accessory, and new model familiarization, on-site or remotely, as necessary. Qualifications and Other Requirements: Education: • Associate degree (AA/AS) in related field, or equivalent combination of education, training, and work experience. • Bachelor’s degree in Automotive Technology or Engineering preferred. Experience: • Minimum of three (3) years automotive hands-on diagnostic work experience. • Work experience utilizing dealer/OEM diagnostic tools and service-related systems. Preferred but not required: • Mazda hands-on technician work experience • Experience working in a Call Center, either technical or customer relations based. • Experience with Mazda service-related systems (i.e., MGSS, Siebel, MGWS) and Mazda diagnostic tools. • Dealer experience. Training/Certification: • ASE Master Certified preferred. • ASE Advanced Level Specialist [L1, L3, L4] preferred. • Mazda Master Technician certification a plus. Knowledge/Skills/Abilities: • Ability to work schedule within Call Center hours of operation; currently Mon – Fri 5am to 5pm (PST) with potential changes based on business needs.  • Ability to produce timely deliverables, manage multiple and shifting priorities in a dynamic environment. • Successfully collaborate with multiple departments and in a cross-functional environment. • Advanced vehicle knowledge and diagnostic troubleshooting abilities on Mazda vehicles. • Working knowledge of dealer service operations. • Ability to maintain customer-centric mindset and provide a premium customer experience. • Proficiency with computer applications, including Microsoft Excel, Word, Power BI, PowerPoint, and Outlook as well as the ability to learn and effectively utilize other software applications used within the Company. • Well-balanced interpersonal skills; Must be able to establish and maintain effective working relationships with all levels of management, employees, customers, and outside vendors; Must be able to clearly and effectively communicate both orally and in writing, using good grammatical form, both in general correspondence, as well as on technical issues. • Must be analytical and a problem solver with the ability to identify problems and/or cause-effect relationships; identify key issues; secure relevant information from all appropriate sources; identify possible root causes of problems and develop and implement corrective actions for resolution. • Strong organizational skills and the ability to prioritize tasks in accordance with established standards and deadlines required. • Self-motivated and capable of working with minimal supervision and/or direction. Travel: Required?  Yes [x]; May be required 1 – 2 times per year. 02/01/2024: JD refreshed 3/11/21: Last job profile review date is greater than 18 months We support Remote work in the following states: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin PAY RANGE $69,400.00 - $100,600.00 Salary to be determined by education, experience, knowledge, skills and abilities of the applicant, internal equity, and alignment with market data. Learn more about MNAO’s comprehensive benefits package here