Program Manager

Hutchinson • Grand Rapids, MI

14h • Hybrid

About The Position

The Program Manager will lead assigned programs across their full lifecycle, from initial RFQ support and feasibility studies through product development, validation, industrialization, PPAP, launch readiness, and post-launch stabilization. This role involves establishing program objectives, scope, and governance, leading cross-functional teams without direct supervisory authority, and facilitating decision-making. The Program Manager will serve as the primary customer interface, coordinate communications, and manage customer submissions and approvals. Key responsibilities include developing integrated program timelines, identifying critical-path activities, managing risks and issues, and monitoring financial performance against the business case. The role also entails leading the evaluation of engineering changes, coordinating APQP deliverables, ensuring manufacturing and supplier readiness for launch, and formally closing out programs. Compliance with company policies and general responsibilities are also expected.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, or a related technical discipline, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• At least five years of experience in automotive product development, manufacturing, engineering, quality, commercial, or program management.
• Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional teams.
• Working knowledge of APQP, PPAP, product and process validation, engineering change management, and automotive launch processes.
• Experience communicating directly with automotive OEM or Tier 1 customers.
• Ability to interpret technical drawings, specifications, cost information, validation results, and program financial data.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities, recognize critical-path risks, and drive closure without direct supervisory authority.
• Ability to communicate technical, commercial, and program information effectively in English, both verbally and in writing.
• Proficient in Microsoft O365 suite including Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Outlook, Teams, and MS Project.
• Able to develop and maintain integrated program schedules, analyze program cost and performance data, prepare executive-level program reviews, and effectively use customer portals and company program-management, ERP, PLM, and quality systems.
• Ability to learn new digital systems and reporting tools as required.
• Strong cross-functional leadership, facilitation, negotiation, conflict-resolution, and stakeholder-management skills.
• Clear written and verbal communication, including the ability to present complex program topics and recommendations to customers and senior management.
• Sound judgment and structured problem-solving, with the ability to define problems, collect and evaluate data, establish facts, assess reasonableness, and draw valid conclusions.
• Financial and commercial awareness, including the ability to assess program cost, margin, investment, and recovery impacts.
• Ability to work effectively across functions, sites, cultures, and time zones.
• High personal accountability, organization, attention to detail, and follow-through.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with antivibration, chassis, powertrain, elastomer, metal, plastic, mechatronic, or related automotive products and manufacturing processes.
• Familiarity with AIAG guidance and IATF-based automotive quality processes.
• PMP, PMI, or equivalent program-management education or certification.
• Previous automotive manufacturing launch experience.
• Experience working directly with Hyundai and/or Korean Tier 1 automotive customers and/or experience managing programs involving global automotive customers and cross-regional teams is preferred.
• Professional proficiency in Korean sufficient to conduct customer meetings, review business and technical communications, and coordinate program activities is preferred due to regular interaction with Korean-speaking customer and global-team stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead assigned programs across the full lifecycle, including RFQ and feasibility support, program award and kickoff, product and process development, prototype and validation phases, tooling and industrialization, PPAP and launch readiness, Start of Production, post-launch stabilization, and formal handoff.
• Establish program objectives, scope, assumptions, deliverables, governance, and cross-functional responsibilities in alignment with the approved customer offer and business case.
• Lead program kickoff meetings, recurring program reviews, APQP reviews, design reviews, gate reviews, launch-readiness reviews, and program closeout activities.
• Provide functional leadership to cross-functional program teams without direct supervisory authority. Establish clear commitments, action owners, due dates, and escalation paths.
• Facilitate cross-functional decision-making and document key program assumptions, decisions, approvals, and changes.
• Prepare concise, professional program status reports and presentations covering timing, cost, quality, technical status, risks, decisions, and required management support.
• Serve as the primary customer program interface and coordinate customer communications across commercial, technical, quality, timing, and launch topics in partnership with the appropriate functional representatives.
• Coordinate customer meetings, submissions, portal responses, deliverables, and approvals, ensuring commitments are understood and completed on time.
• Collaborate with the Sales Account Manager and cross-functional team to support RFQ responses, including feasibility, timing, technical content, investment, piece price, risks, and customer-offer preparation.
• Maintain effective communication with Engineering, Quality, Manufacturing, Purchasing, Sales, Finance, Supply Chain, and other stakeholders across applicable regions and sites.
• Develop and maintain an integrated cross-functional program master timeline containing customer, product, process, tooling, validation, purchasing, supplier, quality, logistics, and launch milestones.
• Identify critical-path activities, dependencies, resource constraints, and schedule deviations, and coordinate practical recovery plans.
• Maintain an active program risk, opportunity and issue register with impact, likelihood, mitigation actions, responsible owners, due dates, and escalation plans.
• Identify deviations from approved timing, cost, quality, technical, and resource objectives and promptly escalate significant risks with clearly defined recovery recommendations.
• Identify unresolved gaps and escalate them to the appropriate functional management.
• Monitor program financial performance against the approved business case, including development expense, prototype costs, tooling investment, capital expenditure, piece cost, and projected gross margin.
• Coordinate with Sales, Finance, Engineering, Purchasing, Costing, and Operations to identify financial variances and implement or escalate recovery actions.
• Coordinate tooling and material procurement, prototype delivery, production-tooling commitments, and related customer invoicing for pre-production expenses.
• Support commercial impacts, customer negotiations, and recovery actions associated with scope changes, timing changes, engineering changes, canceled or obsolete materials, premium freight, and other program impacts.
• Lead cross-functional evaluation of customer and internal engineering changes, including effects on product performance, validation, tooling, manufacturing process, timing, investment, piece price, inventory, logistics, and program risk.
• Ensure changes are documented, internally approved, commercially addressed when applicable, communicated to affected functions, submitted through required customer portals, and implemented through the appropriate change-control process.
• Maintain traceability of open and approved changes, implementation timing, cost recovery, and affected deliverables.
• Coordinate with responsible functional owners to ensure DFMEAs, PFMEAs, Process Flow Diagrams, Control Plans, validation plans and reports, PPAP documentation, and other required APQP deliverables are completed, reviewed, approved, and submitted in accordance with customer and internal requirements.
• Lead regular cross-functional APQP meetings and drive internal and customer-related open issues to timely closure.
• Coordinate manufacturing readiness, supplier readiness, validation completion, packaging, logistics, capacity confirmation, PPAP, launch containment, and production-ramp activities.
• Ensure unresolved launch or handoff items have documented owners, due dates, risk controls, and closure plans.
• Lead formal program closeout, including confirmation of deliverables, financial status, outstanding claims, lessons learned, and transfer of continuing responsibilities to serial-production owners.
• Comply with all applicable Hutchinson health, safety, environmental, quality, information-security, and business-conduct policies and requirements.
• Perform other duties consistent with the responsibilities and level of the position, as assigned.
• Participates in, understands, supports, and adheres to all Safety and Quality policies and requirements.

Benefits

• Competitive Compensation
• Comprehensive Health Benefits (medical, dental, and vision insurance)
• Company-Paid Coverage (Long-Term Disability, Short-Term Disability, Life Insurance, and AD&D Insurance)
• Generous Paid Time Off
• Retirement Planning (401(k) with employer match)
• Global Opportunities & Local Impact

What This Job Offers

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