Whisker is the maker of Litter-Robot, Feeder-Robot, and Litterbox.com. At Whisker, we believe pet parenthood can always get better. As leading innovators in pet tech and refined pet accessories, we work tirelessly to solve problems and deliver smarter insights for pet parents while enriching the lives of pets. Whether it's a self-cleaning litter box that automates scooping, an automatic feeder that helps pets develop healthier eating habits, or a modern cat tree that delights both humans and felines, we strive to deliver better solutions for consumers while transforming pet care along the way. To us, having a pet is the best thing ever. At Whisker, life together just keeps getting better. Whisker is based in Auburn Hills, Michigan and Juneau, Wisconsin with 600+ passionate team members. What You'll Do: Whisker seeks to build a full category strategy and business model around an existing successful product, evolving a current single product into a multi-tier category addressing various segments and customer groups. We are seeking an experienced and strategic Product Category Manager to lead and shape this part of our vision. As the Product Category Manager, you are empowered to define the overarching category strategy, set the strategic direction for each product within the category, and develop detailed product definitions for each product in the category as they move through the development process. With a strong focus on new product development, this role requires a blend of strategic vision and hands-on product definition to drive innovation and category growth. In this role, you will collaborate closely with hardware, software, digital teams, and external business partners to bring a holistic product vision to life, ensuring an integrated experience that meets the needs of cat owners. Working across these disciplines, you'll ensure that all aspects of the product-digital and physical-align to deliver a seamless, consumer-centric experience. You'll be supported in executing your vision by a fantastic team of engineers, program managers, technical program managers, and digital product managers who are all passionate about delivering an exceptional customer experience to all our connected cat parents.
- Success in this role will be measured by:
- Achieving commercial success in product outcomes.
- Defining and executing a compelling strategy for both the category and individual products.
- Achieving high (4.5-star and greater) consumer satisfaction ratings.
- Strength and quality of new product ideas within the innovation pipeline.
- Ability to lead through influence.
Summary: The Hardware Product Manager drives innovation and defines product strategies to create engaging, consumer-centered experiences for pet owners, particularly cat parents. Key duties include overseeing product lifecycle management, guiding cross-functional teams through development, and making strategic, risk-adjusted decisions that align with consumer needs and business goals.
- Drives Innovation: Solves the problems that customers never realized they had, and leverages the connected nature of your hardware products to create engaging digital experiences for pet parents.
- Category & Product Strategy: Defines and drives the category strategy and individual product strategies, aligning each with business objectives and consumer needs.
- Product Definition & Development: Develops clear, detailed product definitions and specifications that guides cross-functional teams through the product development process, from ideation to launch. Works intimately with product development teams throughout the product development process, guiding tradeoff decisions and ensuring our process doesn't lose sight of your vision for the product.
- Lifecycle Management: Oversees the entire lifecycle of products within the category, including planning for updates, enhancements, and eventual discontinuation.
- Consumer-Centric Solutions: Leverages deep consumer empathy to create features and experiences that resonate with cat owners and enhance the usability of each product.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partners with both hardware and software teams to ensure the seamless integration of digital and physical components, bringing a unified product experience to life.
- Smart, Risk-Adjusted Decision-Making: Leverages your personal experience with cat ownership to make fast, intuitive product tradeoff decisions whenever possible, seeking data to drive your decision-making when risk levels demand it.
- Will perform additional responsibilities when required
Requirements What You'll Bring:
- Bachelor's Degree in engineering or similar technical, scientific or mathematical
- Must be a cat parent and plan to continue being a cat parent while in this role. A deep understanding of the needs of cat parents is critical to the role!
- 6+ years cumulative experience across roles like product management, program management, product marketing, business development, or technology leadership; 3+ years of product management experience with B2C products
- Proven ability to define and execute category and product strategies that align with business goals.
- Strong cross-functional collaboration skills, ensuring alignment across hardware and software teams.
- Ability to provide clear direction, make strategic pivots, and manage trade-offs effectively.
- High degree of consumer empathy and understanding of the needs of cat owners.
- Exceptional communication skills to interface effectively with consumers, management, and technical teams.
- Ability to size the risk of decisions where there is incomplete information, making smart, intuitive decisions when tradeoff risks are low, and driving swift information gathering to de-risk decisions when tradeoff risks are high.
- Maintains confidentiality of proprietary information
- Ability to maintain a professional atmosphere in a fast-paced environment with numerous interactions and interruptions
- A high degree of initiative, self-motivation, and ability to motivate others
- Ability to establish and maintain cooperative working relationships with Team Members and colleagues
- Comfortable with office pets (cats, dogs)
Not Required but Nice to Have!
Benefits & Purrks: Join a tenacious, inventive company that empowers team members to chart their own path, lead by grounding decisions in the why , and has a strong sense of empathy and openness to new perspectives. Be a part of exciting growth, work with incredible people, and create tomorrow's pet products-plus a whole lot of extras. You will also be provided with:
- Premium Medical/Dental/Vision insurance
- Paid parental leave
- Whisker Parents Program
- 1 day pawternity leave for new pet adoption
- Pet Insurance Discount
- 401K match
- Flexible spending accounts
- Company-paid short-term disability and life insurance
- Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
- Generous paid time off
- 14 Paid Holidays
- Top of the line equipment
- Pet-friendly office
- Whisker products and swag
- Continuing education Support
- On-site gym with Peloton
- Referral program
Statement of Inclusivity: We believe different perspectives make Whisker better and strive to create a place where everyone has equal opportunities to thrive. Please ensure to regularly check your email spam folder for any communication from Whisker to avoid missing important updates regarding your application status. #onsite1