Kia NA Warranty Specialist

General Summary

The Kia NA Warranty Specialist facilitates day-to-day Kia North America regional warranty operations, including warranty systems administration, claim processing, recovery support, subsidiary assistance, reporting, and designated reimbursement and billing processes. The position serves as a regional subject matter expert and coordinates with North American subsidiaries, manufacturing plants, Headquarters, and cross-functional stakeholders to resolve issues, improve claim quality, maintain consistent warranty processes, and strengthen Regional Headquarters capabilities.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Priority One – Warranty Operations and Systems Management – 35%

• Coordinate daily regional warranty operations, systems administration, workflows, and reimbursement processes.

Priority Two – Claim Processing and Recovery Support – 30%

• Provide claim-processing and recovery support through operational review, analysis, reporting, coordination, and issue resolution.

Priority Three – Subsidiary and Program Operations Support – 20%

• Manage warranty support workflows and provide operational assistance to subsidiaries for campaigns, visiting-owner matters, reimbursement processes, and other regional warranty programs.

Priority Four – Reporting and Operational Improvement – 15%

• Develop reporting, performance monitoring, procedures, controls, and process improvements that support claim quality, warranty cost visibility, processing effectiveness, and regional warranty administration.

Personally Performed Duties

• Facilitates day-to-day regional warranty operations and related system workflows for (KUS, KCA, KMX, HMGMA and KaGA).
• Review and manage assigned claim-processing, authorization, billing, reimbursement, and campaign activities.
• Oversee warranty hotline operations and coordinate the resolution and escalation of subsidiary requests.
• Develop and maintain recurring and automated reporting for warranty operations, campaign performance, recovery support, and key performance indicators.
• Analyze warranty data to identify trends, improve claim accuracy, and recommend system and process enhancements.
• Maintain operating procedures, workflow controls, reference materials, and escalation processes.
• Monitor workloads, claim aging, service levels, and recurring operational issues.
• Support the development, testing, implementation, and ongoing improvement of warranty systems and programs.
• Coordinate operational issues and requirements with subsidiaries, manufacturing plants, Headquarters, and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Provide functional leadership, coordinate operational coverage, and support the training and development of assigned personnel.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications/Education

• Bachelor’s degree or an equivalent combination of education and directly related experience required.

Job Requirement

• Minimum of 6+ years of automotive industry experience in warranty operations, warranty administration, claims, reimbursement, service operations, technical operations, or a related field.
• Minimum of 3 years of directly related experience at the automotive manufacturer, distributor, regional headquarters, or manufacturing level.
• Project leadership or operational process leadership experience  required.
• Automotive warranty administration, claim processing, warranty reimbursement, service operations, or manufacturer/distributor warranty support experience required.
• Experience with warranty systems, operational reporting, process development, billing, recovery support, or system implementation preferred.
• Experience interpreting warranty policies, claim requirements, reimbursement criteria, and system logic preferred.
• Experience with continuous improvement, process mapping, root-cause analysis, or project management preferred.

Specialized Skills and Knowledge Required

• Knowledge of automotive warranty administration, claim processing, reimbursement processes, and vehicle repair operations.
• Strong analytical, investigative, and independent problem-solving skills.
• Knowledge of business systems, operational workflows, system development, and system maintenance.
• Ability to analyze warranty data, identify trends, determine root causes, and recommend practical solutions.
• Strong process-management, project-coordination, prioritization, and organizational skills.
• Ability to facilitate cross-functional activities and coordinate effectively with subsidiaries, manufacturing plants, Headquarters, and technical teams.
• Strong written, verbal, training, and presentation skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel, Power BI, PowerPoint, Word, SharePoint, and related reporting and collaboration tools.
• Ability to develop procedures, reports, dashboards, work instructions, and management presentations.
• Ability to work effectively in a multicultural and international business environment.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment while handling confidential and financially sensitive warranty information.
• This position exercises independent judgment in regional warranty operational matters, determines appropriate actions within delegated authority, and coordinates or escalates matters requiring policy, financial, technical, manufacturing, legal, or Headquarters review.

Other Requirements

• Physical Requirements: Primarily sedentary office environment requiring prolonged sitting and computer use. Occasional standing, walking, reaching, handling light materials, and driving. Requires sufficient vision, hearing, and communication abilities to perform essential job functions. Physical effort is minimal (approximately 1-2% of the workday).
• Travel Requirements: Requires 10-15% domestic and occasional international travel to support  NA Subsidiary visits, local factory visits, dealer visits, warranty audits, training programs, supplier meetings, and other business-related activities. Overnight travel may be required.
• Job demands may include reading (documents), detailed work, confidentiality, problem solving, language, reasoning skills, oral communication, written communication, customer contact, ability to effectively present information in one-on-one and small group situations to customers, vendors, and other employees, multiple concurrent tasks, ability to work with constant interruptions, etc.
• Must be able to maintain focus and attention to detail in a fast-paced environment.
• Ability to analyze information and make sound decisions under time constraints.
• Problem-solving skills and the ability to work independently
• Must be able to respond to challenges with poise and agility.
• Ability to handle competing priorities effectively and with composure.