Class 1 Product Manager - Electric Counterbalance Forklift
Dematic · Summerville
KION North America is looking for a Class 1 Product Manager to help shape our electric forklift portfolio. You’ll connect customer and market needs with Engineering, translating real-world applications into product strategy, requirements, and priorities.Your Class 1 expertise will help influence product strategy, future development, and successful product launches. If you enjoy connecting customer challenges with technical solutions, this is an opportunity to make a meaningful impact on our product portfolio.
We offer:
At KION North America, we want you to feel supported at work and beyond. Our comprehensive benefits package includes:
- Competitive compensation and benefits
- Medical and prescription plan options
- 401(k) with company match
- Paid vacation and company holidays
- Education assistance
- Dental, vision, disability, and life insurance
- Opportunities to learn and grow within the global KION Group
KION North America provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.
This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.
Tasks and Qualifications:
What You’ll Do in this Role
- Shape Class 1 product strategy by combining customer insights, market trends, competitive intelligence, technology developments, and business priorities.
- Serve as a voice of the customer with Engineering, translating customer and dealer feedback into product requirements, specifications, features, and development priorities.
- Build a deep understanding of Class 1 electric counterbalance forklift applications, including customer operating environments, performance requirements, and emerging market expectations.
- Partner with Engineering, Sales, Manufacturing, Marketing, and other teams throughout the product lifecycle, from concept and development through launch and ongoing product improvement.
- Monitor the forklift and material handling equipment market, evaluating competitive products, capabilities, technology, specifications, pricing, positioning, and industry trends.
- Engage with customers, dealers, sales teams, and other stakeholders to uncover unmet needs, gather product feedback, and identify opportunities for differentiation and innovation.
- Help define and prioritize the product roadmap, balancing customer needs, technical capabilities, commercial opportunities, and long-term portfolio strategy.
- Lead go-to-market planning for new products and enhancements in partnership with Sales and Marketing, helping teams clearly communicate product value and competitive advantages.
- Develop product knowledge, tools, and training that enable sales teams, dealers, and other partners to confidently position Class 1 products and solutions.
- Monitor product and market performance, using customer feedback, competitive intelligence, and business data to recommend future product improvements and opportunities.
What We’re Looking For
- Approximately 4–10 years of relevant experience in the forklift, material handling equipment, industrial vehicle, or related industry.
- Familiarity with Class 1 electric forklifts, electric counterbalance trucks, lift trucks, or comparable material handling equipment.
- Experience may come from product management, engineering, applications engineering, technical sales, product training, product support, or another technical/customer-facing role within the industry.
- Ability to understand customer applications and translate customer needs into meaningful product requirements and priorities.
- Comfortable working with engineers and technical teams while also communicating effectively with customers, dealers, sales teams, and business leaders.
- Strong understanding of how product performance, specifications, technology, application requirements, and competitive positioning influence customer buying decisions.
- Ability to analyze market and competitive information and turn those insights into actionable product recommendations.
- Experience contributing to product development, commercialization, product launches, or lifecycle management.
- Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience.
- Willingness to travel domestically and internationally approximately 30%.
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