Whisker is hiring: Vice President, Product Management & UX in Auburn Hills

Join to apply for the Vice President, Product Management & UX role at Whisker

Description

At Whisker, we’re redefining the pet care experience through the invention and design of innovative pet care solutions; creating a connected ecosystem of delightful robotic solutions and extraordinary digital products, to make life with pets endlessly better. With iconic products including the Litter-Robot® and exciting upcoming robotic devices in feeding and hydration, we’re uniquely positioned at the intersection of AI, robotics, and deeply personalized digital experiences. If you’re ready to inspire and lead a product team committed to making everyday moments for pets and their parents more insightful and enjoyable, this is your moment.

As Whisker’s Vice President, Product Management & UX, you’ll define, own, and accelerate our ambitious vision for an integrated digital and hardware ecosystem. You’ll lever every data‑driven insight from millions of daily interactions—over 750,000 MAUs, 1.5M+ connected devices, 5 million daily cat weights and many other data points—to anticipate needs, drive product strategy, and redefine what intuitive pet care truly means. Your impact will extend globally, shaping pet parenting experiences that blend physical innovation seamlessly with digital interaction and advanced AI insights for pet parents everywhere.

You will join Whisker’s Leadership Team, reporting directly to the CEO, and partner closely with the SVP of Engineering. This on‑site role is not open to remote candidacy; relocation is available. We work onsite 4+ days a week in Auburn Hills, Michigan, and Juneau, Wisconsin.

What You’ll Do

The Vice President will define and accelerate Whisker’s vision for an integrated hardware and digital ecosystem, leveraging data and AI insights to own the product roadmap across physical devices, mobile apps, and software. This leader will champion a culture of innovation, build and mentor a high‑performing product team, and ensure the delivery of cohesive, customer‑centric experiences that achieve global scale.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

This list of duties and responsibilities is not all‑inclusive and may be expanded to include other duties and responsibilities as deemed necessary.

General Management

• Leads Whisker’s product management organization across hardware, software, and digital experiences, aligning teams around a unified strategic vision.
• Builds and leads a product organization that balances long‑term vision with rapid, iterative execution.
• Leads the prioritization of initiatives that deliver measurable customer impact and business value.
• Champions a culture of innovation that continually challenges industry norms and inspires groundbreaking ideas in design, technology, and user experience.
• Defines and owns the product roadmap, identifying high‑impact opportunities for new categories, features, and ecosystem expansion.
• Embeds deep customer empathy into the product development process, translating pet parent needs into solutions that feel intuitive, delightful, and essential.
• Represents the voice of the customer at the executive level, ensuring that Whisker’s innovation roadmap aligns with the evolving needs of pet parents everywhere.

Software / Firmware

• Vision: Define and shape the future of Whisker’s digital experiences, including freemium and premium mobile apps, connected robot interfaces, Whisker’s insights platform, and more.
• AI: Shape the evolution of AI‑enabled features for Whisker App users, building on our rich data platform foundation.
• UX: Drive the future of UX to deliver experiences that feel simple, personal, and delightful.
• SDLC: Establish rapid release cycles and agile frameworks that accelerate learning and product delivery with our software team.
• Firmware: Guide the evolution of firmware that powers Whisker’s connected devices, enabling smarter performance and real‑time insights for the best on‑device user experience.
• Quality: Champion firmware reliability, scalability, and integration with cloud and app platforms.
• Collaboration: Deep partnership with engineering to accelerate firmware iteration cycles and improve the feedback loop between device performance and customer experience.

Hardware

• Vision: Oversee the strategy for Whisker’s connected devices, collaborating with R&D, design, and operations to align product innovation with manufacturing and supply chain.
• R&D Pipeline: Partner with the R&D team to define the next wave of products, technology, and subsystems.
• New Category Definition: Drive expansion into new hardware categories that strengthen Whisker’s connected ecosystem and deliver a complete end‑to‑end experience.
• Integration: Ensure every hardware product integrates seamlessly with software and data platforms.

Leadership Responsibilities

Directly supervise department teams, carrying out supervisory responsibilities per Whisker policies and applicable laws. Responsibilities include interviewing, training, hiring, planning, assigning work, appraising performance, addressing team issues, and upholding safety and quality guidelines.

Requirements

What You’ll Bring

• Bachelor’s Degree in engineering, marketing, or related fields.
• 12+ years of experience in product management with a track record of success across connected consumer products, hardware, and digital ecosystems.
• Demonstrated ability to define and execute multi‑year product strategies that achieve global scale and market leadership.
• Proven experience integrating hardware, mobile applications, and AI technologies into cohesive, customer‑centric experiences.
• Strong leadership skills with experience managing and developing high‑performing teams.
• Expertise in data‑informed decision making, balancing quantitative insights with customer empathy.
• Exception collaboration and communication skills, capable of influencing at all organizational levels.
• Deep understanding of user experience principles, product design processes, and agile methodologies.
• Maintains confidentiality of proprietary information.
• Ability to maintain a professional atmosphere in a fast‑paced environment with numerous interactions and interruptions.
• 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).

Benefits & Purrks

• Premium Medical/Dental/Vision insurance
• Paid parental leave
• Whisker Parents Program
• 1 day "pawternity" leave for new pet adoption
• Pet insurance discount
• 401(k) 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.