Automotive Executive Search - Client Story

A top five global automotive original equipment manufacturer (OEM), engaged N2Growth’s Automotive Executive Search practice to find the company’s Vice President of Product Planning and Mobility Strategy.

The client engaged N2Growth to confidentially recruit an automotive executive with responsibility for guiding the strategic direction of the OEM’s U.S. vehicle lineup, to include leading long-and short-range planning and overseeing market research, business analytics, and pricing.  

Our client required the confidential replacement of the Vice President of Product Planning and Mobility Strategy to lead the company in all product development activities with a focus on current product lineup as well as future mobility leadership for the client’s product portfolio in the future.  The client needed an automotive industry executive who would not only be able to direct all aspects of product planning with a strong understanding of the automotive industry, but also be the company’s thought leader regarding cutting edge future mobility product offerings. The eventual candidate would need to place a strong emphasis on delivering the technologies customers desire now and into the future with responsibility for the company’s mobility strategy, including IT business solutions, connected car technology, and future innovations.

The specific insights we drew and the alignment we found in the early days of this search created clarity and little need for specification iteration as the search developed. Our team rigorously mapped the market for candidates whose attributes were attuned to the needs of our client.

After tens of interviews, we submitted a total of two dozen seasoned automotive executive candidates for consideration for the role.  Despite a COVID-related slowdown, we worked with our client to identify a candidate with deep product planning expertise and a recognized thought leader in the future mobility of automobiles.