Bilingual Product Manager (Japanese-English)

Tokyo Office
Product /
Full-time /
Hybrid
Our Mission:
Driving technology always feels old. Not by a little bit. We believe vehicles can be a thousand times smarter, safer, and more connected to the world around us, and our mission is to see it happen. In 2019, we joined forces with Honda as their first startup acquisition, and now we’re expanding our vision into building the future of electric vehicles (BEV) for millions of people around the world.

Why Drivemode: 
Join Drivemode for an exciting startup environment and a vibrant culture that combines impactful work, competitive compensation, and excellent benefits. By becoming a part of our team, you'll contribute to a crucial mission that revolutionizes the way people engage with vehicles, addressing both business needs and the world's environmental challenges. This presents an exceptional opportunity to be at the forefront of innovation and drive Honda's success in the EV market.

About the role
As a Product Manager, you lead the development team and collaborate with Drivemode cross-functional members and global Honda teams to build the future mobile apps and platforms. Your particular focus is to define and build the next generation of connected vehicle features for global Honda customers. This role is critical to positioning Honda as a leader in the electric vehicle (EV) and software-defined vehicle (SDV) revolution.This is a unique opportunity to shape the future of mobility and infotainment at one of the world’s most iconic automotive brands.

What You Will Do:

    • Define and Execute Product Strategy: Develop and own the product vision, strategy, and roadmap for core part of Honda’s connected features, ensuring alignment with the company’s broader goals for EVs and SDVs (software-defined vehicles).
    • Drive Customer-Centric Innovation: Leverage data, user research, and market insights to create intuitive, delightful, and highly functional mobile app experiences for global customers.
    • Cross Functional Collaboration: Work closely with stakeholders and engineers at Honda and Drivmode design, product and engineering to align priorities, manage expectations, and deliver solutions that meet both regional and global needs.
    • Champion Product Excellence: Establish best practices for product management, UX design, and technical integration, ensuring Honda remains at the forefront of the connected service innovation.
    • Travel: Occasional travel to Honda in Tochigi and other locations, as well as Drivemode and Honda US offices, may be required to collaborate with key stakeholders.

What We Are Looking For:

    • Experience: 5+ years of product management experience, with a proven track record of delivering successful consumer-facing tech products. Experience in both large corporations and startups is highly preferred.
    • Industry Expertise: Deep understanding of product development fundamentals and UX/UI principles. Also, this role requires a basic understanding of vehicle architecture and embedded software, cloud services, and mobile apps. Experience in the automotive industry is a strong plus but not mandatory.
    • Bilingual Proficiency: Fluency in both spoken and written Japanese and business level English are required
    • Great collaborator: Thrive in a multicultural/ multi-region environment with many stakeholders involved by getting everyone together
    • Analytical & Strategic: Exceptional problem-solving skills and ability to balance long-term vision with short-term execution, driving innovation while delivering results.
    • Passion for Mobility: A strong interest in the future of transportation, electric vehicles, and software-defined vehicles.
EEOC Statement:Drivemode is proud of a very diverse team with employees coming from 5 continents/20 countries as of today. Diversity in our workplace has played an important part in our success; we recognize each employee’s unique background, knowledge, experiences, ideas, and viewpoints which are all critical in developing a product that has the greatest impacts on drivers all over the world. Drivemode provides equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or any other characteristics that make you unique.