Senior Director, Project Management

Blue Bird Careers•Troy, MI

8d•Onsite

About The Position

The Sr Director, Project Management will lead the end-to-end program management office for the Blue Bird Chassis Business Unit as Blue Bird assumes design, manufacturing, sales, and service responsibility for the next generation medium-duty F53/F59 stripped chassis. This leader will translate the strategic opportunity into an integrated operating plan that delivers a successful launch with backlog, on time, on budget, with product and people continuity, competitive price, delivery, and quality, acceptable customer and dealer experience, retained critical talent where economically viable, acceptable returns, and a sustainable business model.

Requirements

Demonstrated experience leading large, cross-functional programs with executive-level visibility, external partner coordination, capital investment oversight, and complex launch timelines.
Strong financial acumen, communication skills, stakeholder management capability, and discipline in project governance.
Bachelor’s degree in engineering, business, operations, supply chain, or a related field required; advanced degree preferred.
10+ years of progressive program management, product launch, operations, engineering, or business transformation experience, preferably in commercial vehicles, automotive, manufacturing, or industrial products.
All candidates must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States and will be required to provide proof of employment eligibility at the time of hire.

Nice To Haves

Ability to anticipate and understand customer needs and provide guidance
Excellent interpersonal and customer relationship skills to handle difficult and sensitive matters.
Strong project management skills.
Exposure to difficult or complex projects a plus.
Ability to influence stakeholders
Effective communication and ability to communicate complex details in a clear manner.
Flexible workspaces and work hours to help you unleash the best you.
Working in a collaborative team and balancing the needs of individual stakeholders while delivering corporate objectives.

Responsibilities

Build and lead the integrated program management structure for the chassis business unit across design, procurement, industrialization, manufacturing transition, sales, marketing, service, dealer readiness, IT infrastructure, customer continuity, and business launch readiness.
Own the overall master project plan, governance cadence, milestone discipline, risk register, escalation process, KPI dashboard, and cross-functional decision-making forum.
Ensure seamless collaboration with Ford, Detroit Chassis Products, Body Builders internal business leaders, engineering, operations, supply chain, finance, legal, HR, sales, IT, service, and dealer network stakeholders.
Drive launch readiness for Q1 2028 production, including backlog readiness, product continuity, quality expectations, chassis related certification, customer transition plans, and scalable long-term operating processes.
Establish and monitor with finance a mechanism to manage product costs throughout the development to ensure acceptable returns.
Coordinate all project workstreams to protect budget commitments, capital investment plans, resource allocation, commercial commitments, customer experience, and sustainable profitability.
Lead the three director-level project management roles, ensuring clear accountabilities, issue resolution, aligned priorities, and executive-level visibility.
Provide concise executive updates to the business unit leader and senior leadership team on progress, risks, decisions required, and critical path dependencies.