Corporate Director of Quality

Summit Polymers, Inc. • Portage, MI

8d

About The Position

The Director, Corporate Quality is a management position responsible for developing, implementing, and continually improving Summit Polymers’ standardized manufacturing quality systems globally. The role works collaboratively with plant quality managers, general managers, and other company resources to achieve world-class quality performance measured by customer quality scorecards. It also interfaces with key customer personnel to build customer confidence, ensure customer expectations and requirements are met, and resolve significant customer quality concerns.

The position typically requires approximately 18 weeks of travel per year to Summit Polymers manufacturing sites. The job description notes that duties and responsibilities may be assigned or reassigned by management and requires completion of all post-hire required training.

Requirements

• A four-year college degree in a technical or management field is preferred.
• Five years of experience in a Quality Manager role at an automotive supplier is preferred.
• Broad knowledge of quality systems and management practices in automotive plastics manufacturing operations.
• Expertise in major automotive OEM quality systems, including Ford Q1, GM BIQS, FCA, Nissan, VW, BMW, and Toyota.
• Expert problem-solving skills using root-cause-based methods, including Practical Problem Solving (PPS), 8D, and 5 Why methodology.
• Ability to gather and analyze information and make appropriate decisions.
• Outstanding leadership, team-building, coaching, and decision-making abilities.
• High energy, confidence, and assertiveness, with the ability to lead and motivate others.
• Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills.
• Minimum score of 50 on the Wonderlic Select Assessment, or a traditional score of 28 on the cognitive portion.
• Agreement to complete all post-hire required training.

Nice To Haves

• Four-year college degree in a technical or management field.
• Five years of experience as a Quality Manager at an automotive supplier.

Responsibilities

• Exhibit positive leadership and act with the highest levels of integrity and ethics.
• Champion company-wide manufacturing quality system standardization.
• Collaborate with plant quality managers, general managers, and regional directors of manufacturing to identify best practices and develop standardized quality systems and procedures for manufacturing facilities.
• Administer, train, and communicate the standardized quality system and procedures to ensure effective implementation and maintenance throughout the company.
• Conduct plant quality system standards compliance audits and lead follow-up action plan reviews with each plant.
• Lead continuous improvement of quality systems.
• Champion overall quality scorecard performance for all customers and develop deep knowledge of each customer’s quality scorecard.
• Train plant quality managers, materials managers, and general managers on customer scorecards and their scoring methodologies.
• Monitor changes to customer scorecard methodologies and scoring, and ensure corporate procedures, metrics, and personnel adapt proactively.
• Work with other functional departments to understand customer scorecards and take actions that support scorecard success.
• Help develop internal performance metrics that support successful customer scorecard results.
• Build constructive relationships with key customer contacts and represent the company at customer quality events and quality roundtables.
• Review customer quality system requirements and specifications and ensure they are communicated and implemented throughout the organization.
• Participate in problem solving and customer-response preparation for significant customer quality issues and warranty concerns.
• Lead company responses and negotiations at critical customer quality concern reviews to achieve resolution.
• Act as the point of contact for customer warranty concerns and engage plant and engineering resources to resolve them.
• Champion Practical Problem Solving activities and improve management team leadership of the process.
• Lead development, updating, training, and compliance for corporate IATF-16949-compliant systems and procedures.
• Support new business initiatives and projects with quality-related data, metrics, support plans, and technical expertise.
• Support the development and delivery of training plans for plant quality managers and quality engineers.
• Provide additional support at manufacturing plants as needed.
• Perform other tasks and duties as assigned.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director