Title: Cross Reference Manager
Job Type: Perm/Direct Hire
Location: Atlanta, GA – hybrid

Overview
Our client is seeking a Manager, Product Cross Reference & Competitive Product Intelligence to lead the development, organization, and continuous improvement of the company’s product cross-reference capabilities.

This role will oversee the process of comparing internal products against competitor offerings to help Sales teams quickly identify viable alternatives and make competitive recommendations to customers. The position sits at the intersection of data analysis, internal customer support, and operational process improvement.

The manager will be responsible for bringing structure, organization, and scalable processes to a large product dataset while managing a small team supporting cross-reference requests from Sales and other internal stakeholders. Success in this role will require strong analytical skills, comfort working with large product catalogs, and the ability to balance data work with stakeholder communication.

This is an excellent opportunity for someone who enjoys working with large datasets, improving systems, and helping business teams make faster, more informed decisions.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and manage the product cross-reference function responsible for comparing internal products with competitor offerings.
• Manage and mentor a small team supporting cross-reference requests from Sales and internal stakeholders.
• Organize and improve the existing cross-reference database to ensure product comparisons remain accurate, structured, and scalable.
• Analyze large product datasets to identify appropriate product alternatives and substitution opportunities.
• Respond to cross-reference requests submitted by Sales through a new internal ticketing system while maintaining defined response SLAs.
• Partner with Sales, Pricing, Merchandising, and other internal teams to support product comparisons needed for bids, customer requests, and product substitutions.
• Maintain and update product cross-reference data when product specifications, packaging configurations, or SKUs change.
• Identify opportunities to improve workflows, systems, and processes related to product data and cross-referencing.
• Support ongoing improvements to the product cross-reference system architecture and data structure.
• Track and report on cross-reference database growth and performance metrics.

Hard Requirements

• 5+ years of professional experience in data analysis, product data management, pricing analysis, or a similar analytical role
• Advanced Excel skills including pivot tables, data analysis, filtering, and complex formulas
• Experience working with large product catalogs or datasets (ideally 10,000+ SKUs)
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with high attention to detail
• Experience managing or organizing structured datasets and improving data processes
• Ability to manage multiple requests and prioritize work in a fast-paced, request-driven environment
• Strong communication skills and ability to interact with internal stakeholders such as Sales, Pricing, and Merchandising
• Experience balancing independent analytical work with internal stakeholder communication

Bonus / Preferred Qualifications

• Experience using Power BI or Tableau for reporting or data visualization
• Basic knowledge of SQL for querying data
• Experience working with product catalog data, SKU-level data, or product attribute data
• Experience improving workflows, data systems, or operational processes
• Experience supporting internal teams through ticketing or request management systems
• Background in distribution, business products, office products, or similar high-SKU environments

Education
Bachelor’s degree in Business, Data Analytics, Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field preferred

Interview Process
Step 1: 30-minute Teams interview with the hiring manager
Step 2: 1-hour onsite panel Interview 
 
At SPECTRAFORCE, we are committed to maintaining a workplace that ensures fair compensation and wage transparency in adherence with all applicable state and local laws. This position’s starting pay is: $ 90000.00/Yearly.