Principal Program Manager, Auto & Industrial

Description

The company runs a digital marketplace that connects buyers, including Fortune 1000 companies, with manufacturers and gives those manufacturers the resources to grow.

This Principal Program Manager oversees a portfolio of the company's largest and most complex production programs, often several at once and often $5M or more each, from award through launch and into steady-state supply. You are the main contact for the customer and lead the cross-functional and partner teams that deliver each program, answering for quality, delivery and financial results.

Beyond individual programs, the role improves how the company runs programs as a whole. You set the standard for program management practice, drive operational changes that let the portfolio scale, and mentor other program managers.

This role reports to the Director, Strategic Program Operations.

Responsibilities

• Run several complex production programs at once, often $5M or more each, from opportunity and award through first article, launch and repeat production.
• Build detailed program plans that meet customer and internal requirements for scope, timeline, quality and cost.
• Deliver programs using the company Product Development Process, aligned with APQP.
• Manage program budgets and financials, including tooling, capital and margin, and take action to hit financial targets.
• Track launch and production metrics: timeline adherence, on-time delivery, quality, customer experience and program financial results.
• Act as the primary contact for the customer's program, engineering, quality and procurement teams.
• Lead cross-functional teams across Sales, Field Deployed Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain Planning and the Partner Network.
• Hold manufacturing partners to their program commitments and work with them on capacity, schedule and quality problems.
• Coordinate resources, partner capacity and dependencies across programs, spot risks early, escalate when needed, and lead mitigation and recovery across customer, partner and internal teams.
• Report program status in regular reviews with customers and internal leadership.
• Identify chances to expand programs within existing accounts and pass them to Sales and Account Management.
• Lead cross-functional operational initiatives that make programs more efficient, scalable and repeatable.
• Define and track program KPIs and use the data to find and drive improvements.
• Apply Lean principles and best practices to program workflows, and find opportunities for automation and process improvement.
• Write and maintain program management standards, templates and playbooks for the team.
• Work with Product and Engineering to improve the tools and systems that support program execution.
• Coach program managers on launch planning, customer management, financial management and structured problem solving.
• Be the escalation point for difficult issues across the portfolio.
• Help onboard new program managers and take part in hiring.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Business, Operations, Supply Chain or a related field.
• 12+ years of program or project management, including leading production programs in manufacturing.
• Hands-on experience with processes such as CNC machining, injection molding, sheet metal, stamping, die casting or extrusion.
• Proven record running several concurrent complex programs, often $5M or more each, from award through launch and into repeat production.
• Working knowledge of APQP and related quality planning practices.
• Experience managing program budgets, timelines, scope and financial results.
• Experience leading cross-functional teams and managing supplier or contract manufacturer performance.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving and facilitation skills in technical and manufacturing settings.
• Strong written and verbal communication, including executive-level presentation skills.
• Hands-on and accountable, willing to go into the details to keep a program on track.
• Credible with a customer's program director and a partner's plant manager.
• Structured and data-driven, acting on program signals before they become escalations.
• Customer focused, with clear and proactive communication.
• Builds processes and standards others can follow.
• Comfortable working alone and on a team in a fast-paced setting.
• Preferred, optional: 5+ years of military experience, such as in program management, acquisition, logistics or operations.
• Preferred, optional: PMP certification.
• Preferred, optional: Lean or Six Sigma certification.
• Preferred, optional: experience in automotive, aerospace, defense or industrial manufacturing.
• Preferred, optional: experience with PPAP, AS9102 first article inspection or other customer launch requirements.
• Preferred, optional: familiarity with ERP systems, Salesforce, BI tools such as Tableau or Looker, and project tools such as Smartsheet, Jira, Asana or Microsoft Project.
• Preferred, optional: experience in a high-mix contract manufacturing or manufacturing marketplace environment.

Conditions

Remote or hybrid.

Roughly 25% travel to customer and partner facilities.

Must be ITAR eligible: a U.S. person under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (22 C.F.R. § 120.62), such as a U.S. citizen or national, lawful permanent resident, or someone granted asylum or refugee status, because the role requires access to export-controlled information.

Equal opportunity employer; all applicants are considered regardless of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.