Senior Product Manager - AdTech & Operations

Be essential at Cars Commerce

At Cars Commerce, we’re fanatical about simplifying everything about car buying and selling. We do right by our customers and consumers to better connect the industry with simplified and tierless technology to enhance, measure and drive local automotive retail. Whether through our No.1 most recognized marketplace, Cars.com, our industry-leading digital experience, Dealer Inspire, our trade and appraisal technology, AccuTrade, our reputation-based digital wholesale auction marketplace, Dealerclub, or our new Cars Commerce Media Network, Cars Commerce is essential for success in the automotive industry.

No one ever travels alone here: at its core, Cars Commerce is collaboration. In fact, it’s built into the very fabric of our shared values. We like to say we Rise Together – putting people at the center of what we do, from consumer to customer to community. Life at Cars Commerce makes it easy when we share the ethos to be Open to All, encouraging open-minded communication because we know diverse thinking yields better outcomes. But critical to our success is Caring to Challengeand Taking Ownership, fueling a competitive spirit in a respectful environment where we think about tomorrow but act today. At our foundation, we have integrity, Doing the Right Thing, even when it’s hard. It’s our shared commitment to these values that makes Cars Commerce a place where growth becomes not only possible, but downright unavoidable.

But don’t take our word for it. As a U.S. News & World Report Best Company to Work For in 2024, we're obsessive about the employee experience. We are among the top 20% being declared “Best” of our industry based on six critical factors that are important to employee wellbeing, like quality of pay, benefits, work life balance and more.

Senior Product Manager - AdTech & Operations

Scope: As a Senior Product Manager for AdTech & Operations at Cars.com, you will own our media technology operations strategy and products, managing complex integrations across 15+ advertising platforms while ensuring seamless campaign delivery from product selection through execution. You will lead the critical transformation from legacy ad tech platforms to modern marketing technology infrastructure, oversee future order management system (OMS) implementation, create visibility across business lines, and drive operational excellence across our entire media technology ecosystem. You will work with cross-functional teams including Dealer Inspire Media Services and Commerce Media Network to optimize campaign operations across search, display, video, social, and programmatic channels.

As a Senior Product Manager in this role, you are a systems thinker who can manage detailed execution while maintaining strategic vision. You have deep expertise in advertising operations and platform integrations, with a track record of successfully managing complex migrations with zero disruption. You make decisions by optimizing for operational efficiency and platform stability while driving measurable improvements in campaign delivery and performance. You understand the complexities of multi-platform advertising ecosystems and have experience managing campaigns across both self-serve and managed service models. You are a natural collaborator who can work effectively with technical teams, vendors, and internal stakeholders to deliver seamless advertising operations.

Essential Functions:

• Define and execute the AdTech strategy and roadmap, securing stakeholder alignment across executive leadership, engineering, operations, and business teams.

• Lead legacy ad tech platform sunset while implementing modern marketing technology infrastructure with zero campaign disruption.

• Bring parity, visibility, and streamlined operations to teams managing media on the Cars Commerce retail media network (onsite and offsite) and teams activating campaigns using dealer first-party data.

• Drive workflow automation and process optimization to reduce manual effort, increase speed to market, and improve accuracy.

• Serve as the connector across technical and non-technical teams, ensuring product decisions balance user needs, operational efficiency, and revenue impact.

• Define, influence, and guide API integration needs and requirements, ensuring systems communicate seamlessly across internal and external platforms.

• Build and launch new products (0 to 1) and features that expand monetization opportunities and improve customer experience.

• Own integrations between campaign management platforms and downstream reporting systems, ensuring data flows from ad platforms through to Cars.com, third-party sites, and reporting dashboards.

• Manage relationships with advertising technology vendors and platforms, driving accountability through performance metrics and business reviews.

• Support future OMS implementation and integration with existing tech stack including CRM connectivity.

• Ensure compliance with platform-specific requirements, naming conventions, and taxonomy management.

• Maintain 95%+ platform uptime and campaign delivery rates while optimizing vendor costs.

• Establish clear interconnected roadmaps with cross-functional teams to align on integration points.

• Communicate platform migrations, operational updates, and key accomplishments effectively throughout the organization, tying results directly to business growth and outcomes.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in business, computer science, information systems, or related field, or equivalent work experience.

• At least 5-7 years of product management experience with deep focus on advertising operations and platform management.

• Proven experience leading cross-functional teams through platform migrations and system transformations with zero disruption track record.

• Strong technical fluency, with a deep understanding of API integrations, data pipeline management, and system architectures.

• Experience with self-serve and managed service advertising models.

• Understanding of retail media networks, walled gardens, first-party data, and customer data platforms.

Nice to Have Qualifications:

• MBA or other advanced degree.

• Automotive industry experience with OEM and dealer advertising.

• Exposure to regulated industries such as automotive, fintech, or healthtech.

• Experience with order management system implementations.

• Knowledge of marketing automation platforms.

• Experience with both B2B and B2C advertising products.

• Familiarity with programmatic advertising ecosystems including DSPs and SSPs.

• Hands-on knowledge of SQL and large-scale data platforms (RedShift, Snowflake, BigQuery).

• Hands-on experience managing campaigns across Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and programmatic platforms with understanding of campaign trafficking, bulk operations, and ad serving workflows.

• Experience with emerging platforms (TikTok, LinkedIn, native advertising).

• Knowledge of conversion tracking and attribution modeling across platforms.

Our Comprehensive Benefits Package includes:

• Medical, Dental & Vision Healthcare Plans

• New Hire Stipend for Home Office Set-Up

• Generous PTO

• Refuel - a service based recognition program where employees receive additional paid time away to learn grow and reset

• Paid Holidays, Floating Holiday, Volunteer Day, Recharge Day

Learn more about our Benefits, Perks, & Culture on our LinkedIn Life Pages!

For US-based Positions: Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States. Please note that we are unable to sponsor employment visas at this time.
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