Job Description

The Program Manager, Owner Experience serves as a subject matter expert in Mazda's Omotenashi philosophy and is responsible for translating strategic priorities into programs and initiatives that strengthen dealer adoption, enhance the owner experience, and support reail excellence across the dealer network. Working independently and in partnership with dealer leadership, field teams, Retail Operations, Training, and cross-functional stakeholders, this role develops, implements, and sustains programs that drive engagement, capability building, recognition, best-practice sharing, and continuous improvement to foster a customer-centric culture and long-term business results.

Major Responsibilities

• (60%) Omotenashi Program Management & Enablement
  • Drive Owner Experience and Omotenashi initiatives from concept through implementation; inclusive of program design, plans, roadmaps, budgets, timelines, milestones, and success metrics
  • Develop and implement tools, resources, frameworks, and best practices that help dealerships operationalize Mazda’s Omotenashi philosophy and Behavioral Framework
  • Execute communications strategies and engagement plans that drive awareness, participation, and adoption of Omotenashi initiatives throughout the dealer network
  • Create dealer-facing communications related to Omotenashi activations, ambassador engagement, workshops, leadership forums, recognition programs, and new initiatives
  • Deliver dealer recognition initiatives that celebrate achievements, reinforce desired behaviors, and showcase impactful Omotenashi implementation
  • Design and develop executive presentations, facilitation materials, implementation guides, business cases, dealer resources, communication campaigns, and support materials
  • Partner with Retail Operations, Regions, Field Teams, CRM, Training, Marketing, HR, and other business functions to embed Omotenashi principles into existing programs, tools, and processes
  • Support internal MNAO adoption of Omotenashi principles through communications, storytelling, engagement activities, and cross-functional collaboration
  • Champion Omotenashi through presentations and facilitation for dealer, regional, and internal audiences
  • Identify program risks, barriers, and opportunities; implement solutions to support successful outcomes

• (25%) Dealer Engagement
  • Drive initiatives that expand, strengthen, and sustain Mazda’s dealer community
  • Develop engagement strategies for dealership Omotenashi Ambassadors and dealer leadership
  • Coordinate and facilitate dealer activations, ambassador workshops, leadership Forums, networking opportunities, peer-learning events, and community-building activities
  • Build strong relationships with dealer leaders, ambassadors, area experience managers, and regional teams to drive participation and long-term engagement
  • Support dealer onboarding and activation efforts by developing implementation resources, engagement plans, and sustainment strategies
  • Partner with regional teams to identify opportunities to increase dealer participation and elevate dealer performance
  • Identify, document, and share dealership best practices that support broader adoption throughout the Mazda network
  • Capture dealer feedback, challenges, and emerging needs to continuously improve Omotenashi initiatives and engagement strategies

• (15%) Metrics Development & Continuous Improvement
  • Develop measurement strategies evaluating dealer engagement, adoption, effectiveness, and business impact of Omotenashi initiatives
  • Establish and monitor key performance indicators for Ambassador engagement, dealership participation, community growth, activation progress, communications effectiveness, and recognition efforts
  • Analyze qualitative and quantitative feedback from dealers, Ambassadors, field teams, and owners to identify trends, opportunities, and barriers to adoption
  • Develop executive reporting, dashboards, presentations, and strategic recommendations that translate insights into action
  • Measure the effectiveness of workshops, forums, resources, communications, activation efforts, and dealer engagement activities while identifying opportunities for improvement
  • Partner with cross-functional teams to connect Omotenashi initiatives to owner experience, customer satisfaction, dealer performance, retention, and loyalty outcomes
  • Identify emerging trends, innovative approaches, and best practices that strengthen Mazda’s owner experience and retail culture

• Perform other duties as assigned

• Comply with all policies and standards

• The preceding functions have been provided as examples of the types of work performed by employees assigned to this job classification. Management reserves the right to add, modify, change or rescind the work assignments of different positions and to make reasonable accommodations so that qualified employees can perform the essential functions of the job

Work Experience

• 5+ years experience in customer experience, sales operations, sales enablement, or related fields required
• 3+ years experience leading cross-functional initiatives and projects from concept through implementation required
• Experience in automotive retail, dealership operations, customer experience, culture transformation, community-building, or dealer-facing experience preferred

Education

• Bachelor Degree in Arts/Sciences (BA/BS) Marketing Required
• Bachelor Degree in Arts/Sciences (BA/BS) Business Administration/Management Required
• Bachelor Degree in Arts/Sciences (BA/BS) Business Communications Required
• An equivalent mix of education, training, and/or work experience may be considered in place of a degree Required

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities

• Ability to independently facilitate initiatives from concept through execution and sustainment (Intermediate-Advanced)
• Strategic thinking skills with the ability to transform ideas into actionable plans and measurable outcomes (Intermediate-Advanced)
• Ability to work effectively cross-functionally and influence others at all levels through compelling business cases. Confident and effective presentation skills (Intermediate-Advanced)
• Must consistently maintain a professional and respectful demeanor/attitude and set an example for the department; work effectively with team/work group, as well as with other departments and/or outside contractors/clients/vendors to accomplish organizational goals (Intermediate-Advanced)
• Leadership skills are essential. Must be able to utilize appropriate interpersonal styles and methods in guiding individuals, departments, or groups toward task accomplishment. Must consistently adhere to MNAO policies and procedures and be a positive example for others by demonstrating the Company’s core competencies (Intermediate-Advanced)
• 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 root causes of problems and develop and implement corrective actions for resolutions (Intermediate-Advanced)
• Interpersonal skills: ability to clearly and effectively communicate both orally and in writing, using good grammatical form (Intermediate-Advanced)
• Organizational skills and the ability to prioritize tasks are essential. Must be able to establish a course of action for self and others/department to accomplish specific goals; must plan and prioritize proper assignments of personnels and/or appropriate allocation of resources (Intermediate-Advanced)
• Emotional intelligence – the ability to build strong relationships as well as assess character motivations (Intermediate-Advanced)
• Proficiency with computer applications, including Microsoft Office and computer literacy with spreadsheets, word processing and business systems (e.g., Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook), as well as the ability to learn and effectively utilize other software applications used within the Company (Intermediate-Advanced)

Physical Demands

• Communicate/Talking: Frequently
• Communicate/Hearing: Frequently
• Seeing/Observing: Frequently

Travel Requirements

• 30% Flying Domestic: Essential

#LI-Remote

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

$95,500.00 - $145,675.00

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