The Director of Product - is responsible for the strategy, development, performance, and lifecycle management of vehicle protection products administered through the organization's third-party administration platform.
This leader owns the intersection of product strategy, underwriting economics, dealer and partner needs, regulatory requirements, claims performance, technology, and operational execution. The Director works cross-functionally to develop competitive products that create value for dealers, agents, OEMs and other distribution partners while delivering sustainable profitability and a strong customer experience.
The role requires deep knowledge of the automotive F&I industry, particularly Vehicle Service Agreements/Contracts (VSA/VSC), TPA operations, product pricing, claims, compliance, and distribution.
Key ResponsibilitiesProduct Strategy & Ownership
- Own the product strategy and roadmap for assigned VSA/VSC and related vehicle protection products.
- Focus on forms consolidation
- Identify opportunities for new products, coverage enhancements, eligibility changes, pricing structures, and program improvements.
- Translate market, dealer, agent, OEM, lender, and consumer needs into actionable product requirements.
- Develop product business cases, including market opportunity, competitive positioning, economics, operational requirements, and implementation plans.
- Manage products throughout their lifecycle, from concept and design through launch, optimization, and retirement.
- Establish clear product positioning and value propositions for different distribution channels.
Product Development & Launch
- Lead cross-functional development and implementation of new products and major product enhancements.
- Define coverage, exclusions, eligibility, terms, deductibles, limits, cancellation provisions, and other product parameters.
- Establish launch plans, milestones, ownership, dependencies, and success measures.
- Ensure Product, Sales, Claims, Operations, Legal/Compliance, Finance, Actuarial, IT, Marketing, and Training are aligned before launch.
- Conduct post-launch reviews and make adjustments based on actual performance.
Product Economics & Performance
- Review the overall financial performance of assigned products in partnership with Finance, Actuarial, Claims, and senior leadership.
- Monitor key performance indicators including:
- Written volume and revenue
- Claims frequency and severity
- Underwriting profitability
- Partner and dealer performance
- Identify adverse trends and lead corrective actions involving, coverage, eligibility, claims or distribution.
- Balance market competitiveness with appropriate risk-adjusted returns.
Market & Competitive Intelligence
- Maintain a strong understanding of the automotive F&I and vehicle protection marketplace.
- Monitor competitor products, coverage structures, pricing, technology, dealer programs, OEM offerings, and emerging industry trends.
- Maintain awareness of changes in vehicle technology, repair costs, EV/hybrid adoption, ADAS systems, connected vehicles, and other developments affecting product risk.
- Gather structured feedback from dealers, agents, OEMs, sales teams, claims personnel, and other stakeholders.
- Recommend product changes based on market intelligence and performance data.
TPA & Operational Leadership
- Ensure products can be efficiently administered within the TPA operating environment.
- Partner with Claims and Operations to establish scalable administration and adjudication processes.
- Ensure product rules are accurately translated into administration and claims systems.
- Identify opportunities to simplify products, automate processes, improve adjudication consistency, and reduce administrative expense.
- Evaluate the operational impact of new coverage and product changes before implementation.
Claims & Risk Management
- Work closely with Claims leadership to understand emerging loss trends and root causes.
- Analyze claim frequency, severity, repair-cost inflation, component failures, and other product performance indicators.
- Recommend changes to coverage, pricing, eligibility, inspection requirements, or claims procedures when appropriate.
- Ensure product design provides clear and administrable coverage language while supporting the intended customer value proposition.
Compliance & Regulatory
- Partner with Legal and Compliance to ensure products meet applicable federal and state requirements.
- Maintain awareness of regulatory developments affecting service contracts, ancillary products, dealer F&I practices, cancellations, consumer disclosures, and TPA administration.
- Ensure approved product structures and contract language are accurately implemented across systems and distribution channels.
Distribution & Partner Support
- Partner with Sales and Account Management to support dealers, agents, OEMs, lenders, and other strategic accounts.
- Participate in important partner presentations, product reviews, and program-development discussions.
- Evaluate requests for customized products and determine their strategic, operational, regulatory, and financial feasibility.
- Develop solutions that balance partner requirements with scalability and profitability.
- Provide product expertise and training to internal sales teams and external partners.
Technology & Product Administration
- Partner with Technology teams to translate product requirements into system functionality.
- Define business requirements, product rules, rating requirements, eligibility logic, contract generation, claims functionality, and reporting needs.
- Participate in prioritization of technology initiatives affecting product capabilities.
- Support user acceptance testing and product validation before releases.
- Champion automation and data capabilities that improve speed to market and product management.
Leadership Responsibilities
- Serve as the organization's subject-matter expert for assigned vehicle protection products.
- Lead cross-functional teams without relying solely on direct reporting relationships.
- Work with Product Managers and Product Analysts, where applicable.
- Establish disciplined product-management processes, documentation, governance, and performance reporting.
- Present product strategies, business cases, performance results, and recommendations to executive leadership.
- Create accountability for product launches and subsequent financial performance.
QualificationsRequired
- 7+ years of experience in automotive F&I, vehicle protection products, service contracts, warranty administration, insurance, or a related field.
- Significant experience with Vehicle Service Agreements/Contracts and/or TPA administration.
- Strong understanding of product development, pricing, claims, underwriting economics, and distribution.
- Demonstrated ability to manage products based on both growth and profitability.
- Experience leading complex, cross-functional initiatives.
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret financial, claims, sales, and operational data.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to communicate effectively with dealers, agents, strategic partners, technical teams, and executive leadership.
Preferred
- Experience working with automotive dealers, dealer groups, agents, OEMs, lenders, or other automotive distribution partners.
- Experience developing or managing ancillary F&I products in addition to VSC/VSA.
- Knowledge of state regulatory requirements governing vehicle service contracts and related products.
- Experience with actuarial pricing, underwriting, reserve analysis, or claims analytics.
- Experience implementing products within contract administration and claims technology platforms.
Measures of Success
Success in this role should be measured by a balanced scorecard that includes:
- Growth: contract volume, revenue, penetration, new program launches
- Profitability: loss ratio, contribution margin, underwriting performance
- Product: speed to market, competitiveness, adoption, product mix
- Partners: dealer/agent/OEM satisfaction and retention
- Customer: claims experience, complaints, cancellations and retention
- Operations: administration efficiency, accuracy and automation
- Execution: on-time launches and achievement of approved business cases
Organizational Impact
The Director of Product should ultimately function as the business owner of the product, rather than simply the person responsible for product documentation.
The Director is accountable for answering four fundamental questions:
Are we building the right product?
Can we sell it competitively?
Can we administer and adjudicate it effectively?
Does it produce an acceptable long-term economic return?
