Director of Product, Autos Advertising

Help shape the future of automotive advertising at one of the world’s most influential media companies. Hearst Magazines is looking for a strategic, commercially minded product leader to build advertising solutions that connect automotive marketers with engaged audiences across a premium portfolio of brands, including Car and Driver, MotorTrend, Road & Track, Hot Rod, and Autoweek.

This role involves collaboration with internal teams, publishers, and external clients to maximize monetization opportunities across our portfolio of sites. This individual will also serve as a strategic consultant to sales of automotive OEMs and agency partners leveraging deep expertise in automotive upfronts to shape industry-leading advertising solutions.

The ideal candidate demonstrates expertise in developing monetization strategies, possesses strong leadership, excels in cross-functional coordination, and can translate market insights into impactful ad product offerings.

Hearst Magazines is one of the largest publishers in the world, with more than 30 iconic brands including Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Esquire, Good Housekeeping, Harper’s BAZAAR, Popular Mechanics, and Oprah Daily. We reach more than 150 million people every month in the United States alone, delivering trusted content and experiences across digital, print, video, social, and emerging platforms.

• Analyze automotive market trends, competitive dynamics, and consumer shopping behaviors to provide strategic insights that inform advertiser media strategies and product development
• Lead package development during automotive upfront seasons with strategic recommendations aligned with advertiser annual planning cycles and business objectives
• Develop strategic frameworks and thought leadership on automotive advertising effectiveness, in-market targeting and measurement approaches

• Define and maintain the autos ad product roadmap with input from leadership and stakeholders.
• Evaluate and evolve offerings based on consumer shopping trends and market demand.
• Create the next generation of revenue-generating data, content, and display products for automotive OEMs.
• Have a clear and compelling vision of the future and lay out the milestones to get there.
• Identify, vet, and help choose key products and partners that meet strategic priorities.

• Oversee the development and improvement of ad operations technology for ad serving
• Own requirements and use cases for improving and unifying operations to Magazines ad operation tools

• Partner with sales, marketing, and insights teams to develop go-to-market strategies and promotional materials.
• Support the organization through team updates to ensure alignment on priorities and product requirements.
• Work with publishers on monetization strategies and product integration.
• Represent the company during client-facing meetings to present product updates and gather feedback.
• Partner closely with internal product and technology teams to address monetization needs effectively.

• Oversee end-to-end management of autos ad product initiatives, including requirement documentation and stakeholder sign-off.
• Provide site-specific monetization analysis and guidance in coordination with publisher team.
• Conduct thorough analyses of ad product performance and monetization opportunities to inform improvements.
• Develop frameworks and mechanisms for implementing enhancements that align with user behaviors and client demand.
• Measure success through adoption rates, user engagement, and revenue growth.

• 7+ years of experience in product development, digital advertising, ad product strategy, or a related field, with experience in automotive media strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to build, launch, and operationalize advertising products that drive revenue and meet advertiser needs.
• Deep understanding of digital advertising, ad technology, ad serving, targeting, measurement, and industry best practices.
• Strong automotive industry knowledge, including OEM priorities, agency planning cycles, automotive upfronts, and consumer shopping behaviors.
• Experience leading cross-functional initiatives across sales, marketing, product, technology, analytics, insights, and operations teams.
• Strong strategic thinking, project management, and data-driven decision-making skills, with the ability to turn market insights into clear product direction.
• Ability to communicate complex product, monetization, and technical strategies clearly to a wide range of stakeholders, including senior leaders and external clients.
• Working knowledge of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Google Analytics, SEO tools, or related digital platforms is a plus.
• Bachelor’s degree in a technical, business, or related field preferred, or equivalent professional experience.
• This role is based in New York City and follows a hybrid schedule, with an expectation of working in the office 4 days per week.