Data Platform Portfolio Manager

Introduction: A Career at HARMAN Automotive

We're a global, multi-disciplinary team that's putting the innovative power of technology to work and transforming tomorrow. At HARMAN Automotive, we give you the keys to fast-track your career.

• Engineer audio systems and integrated technology platforms that augment the driving experience
• Combine ingenuity, in-depth research, and a spirit of collaboration with design and engineering excellence
• Advance in-vehicle infotainment, safety, efficiency, and enjoyment

As a Data Platform Portfolio Manager, you will manage demand intake, portfolio planning, roadmap coordination, dependencies, and capacity reporting for HARMAN Automotive's Enterprise Data Platform. Reporting to the Executive Director of Data and Analytics, you will work with business domains, data product teams, platform engineering, analytics, AI, architecture, security, and leadership to translate agreed priorities into a coordinated, sequenced platform portfolio.

This role manages day-to-day portfolio practices within agreed governance and prioritization criteria: clarifying requests, identifying cross-domain dependencies, maintaining roadmap and capacity information, and preparing options for review. You will provide the transparency and analysis needed for the Data Platform Manager to make final roadmap, resource, and prioritization decisions.

This is not a traditional PMO coordination role and does not own hands-on platform engineering. It requires enough commercial and technical depth to understand modern data platforms, data products, cloud capabilities, delivery constraints, and operating-model choices so that limited engineering capacity is consistently applied to the work that creates the greatest value.

• Manage the platform demand intake and portfolio planning process using agreed practices, working with business and technology stakeholders to maintain a consolidated view of current demand, emerging needs, and upcoming platform requirements.

• Engage business domains, data product teams, analytics, AI/ML, architecture, governance, security, and technology leaders to clarify upcoming requirements, dependencies, constraints, and opportunities for reuse, escalating material conflicts or gaps.

• Translate agreed priorities into a sequenced platform roadmap and backlog, preparing options for balancing platform capabilities, technical improvements, onboarding needs, regulatory or risk requirements, and near-term business demand.

• Manage intake, prioritization, sequencing, dependencies, and capacity planning across the portfolio, partnering with the Data Platform Manager, Platform Engineers, and Data Platform Reliability Engineers to understand delivery constraints and develop realistic portfolio options.

• Apply clear prioritization and investment criteria to distinguish high-value or strategic needs from lower-value requests, constructively challenge demand, and make trade-offs visible to stakeholders and decision-makers.

• Support the hub-and-spoke data operating model by documenting options and dependencies for central development, platform reuse, federation, common services, or delivery by domain and data product teams, with architecture and ownership decisions made by the accountable leads.

• Coordinate domain onboarding demand without turning the central platform organization into a delivery factory, clarifying platform responsibilities, domain responsibilities, prerequisites, dependencies, and expected adoption before work enters the committed roadmap.

• Maintain portfolio transparency across initiatives, milestones, capacity, dependencies, risks, decisions, expected outcomes, and material changes in demand, providing concise recommendations and trade-off views for the Data Platform Manager and senior stakeholders.

• Maintain a forward-looking portfolio view spanning data engineering, governed data products, analytics, AI/ML, governance, security, self-service capabilities, platform reliability, operational improvements, and other platform capabilities required by the organization.

• Support the Data Platform Manager's investment planning by compiling business-case inputs, funding requirements, resource scenarios, vendor considerations, and licensing or consumption implications for review.

• Track value realization from platform investments, including adoption, reuse, business outcomes, engineering efficiency, cost avoidance, platform utilization, or reduction of operational and technology risk.

• Support portfolio planning for legacy technology transition, including Snowflake and Qlik rationalization where relevant, by identifying demand, sequencing dependencies, platform readiness, and competing priorities without taking ownership of the migrations themselves.

• Identify and implement agreed improvements to portfolio practices, including demand forecasting, capacity views, portfolio metrics, backlog quality, and decision information, proposing changes to governance or prioritization methods for approval.

• 5+ years of relevant experience in technology portfolio management, product management, enterprise technology delivery, or a related discipline.

• Experience coordinating a technology portfolio or multiple related initiatives with competing priorities, dependencies, multiple stakeholder groups, and constrained engineering or delivery capacity.

• Strong understanding of modern data-platform concepts, including cloud platforms, data engineering, governed data products, analytics, AI/ML, data governance, platform services, and self-service operating models.

• Demonstrated experience developing roadmaps and applying structured approaches to demand management, backlog prioritization, dependency management, capacity planning, sequencing, and value realization.

• Sound business and technology judgment, including the ability to clarify underlying needs, constructively challenge incomplete requests, assess relative value using agreed criteria, and escalate trade-offs for decisions.

• Experience working across business stakeholders, engineering, architecture, cybersecurity, finance, procurement, vendors, and senior technology leadership.

• Strong communication and presentation skills, with the ability to make complex priorities, constraints, trade-offs, risks, and recommendations clear to both technical and non-technical audiences.

• Experience working with agile or product-oriented delivery models and portfolio/backlog management tools such as Jira, Azure DevOps, or comparable platforms.

• Experience with Microsoft Azure, Databricks, or comparable enterprise-scale cloud data platforms.

• Experience working within a federated or hub-and-spoke data organization, including shared platform services and domain-owned data products.

• Experience supporting technology investment planning, budgeting, vendor planning, commercial assessments, or business-case development.

• Experience measuring platform adoption, technology investment outcomes, reuse, cost efficiency, or other forms of value realization.

• Experience supporting data-platform modernization, technology rationalization, or transitions from legacy analytics and data platforms in a global organization.

• This role is based in Novi, Michigan and follows a hybrid schedule, with regular in-office collaboration alongside engineering, product, and customer program teams.
• This role requires occasional domestic and international travel.
• Successfully complete a background investigation and drug screen as a condition of employment (post-offer).

• A hybrid work environment that balances flexibility with in-person collaboration, with most office-based roles onsite three days a week.

• Access to employee discounts on HARMAN and Samsung products (including JBL, Harman / Kardon, AKG, and others)

• Learning and development opportunities through our award-winning HARMAN University programs

• Wellness benefits designed to support your overall well-being

• Tuition reimbursement support

• Access to the HARMAN campus fitness center and cafeteria, where available

• An inclusive and diverse work environment that supports both your professional and personal development