Senior Manager Engineering - Customer Quality

Generac•Waukesha, WI

About The Position

We are Generac, a leading energy technology company committed to powering a smarter world. Over the 60 plus years of Generac’s history, we’ve been dedicated to energy innovation. From creating the home standby generator market category, to our current evolution into an energy technology solutions company, we continue to push new boundaries. Sr. Manager Engineering - Customer Quality plays a critical role in ensuring customer satisfaction within the Commercial and Industrial Business Group. This position is responsible for driving the resolution of product quality issues using Six Sigma problem-solving and root cause analysis methodologies. Drives continuous improvement initiatives to enhance product reliability and customer experience. Serving as a key liaison between customers, service, engineering, and manufacturing teams, this leader manages field quality performance, directs root cause investigations, and ensures the effective implementation of corrective and preventive actions across the entire value chain.

Requirements

BS in Engineering or related field
10 years engineering experience
5 years management experience

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in engineering (Mechanical, Electrical or related technical field)
Master’s degree preferred but not required
5 - 8+ years of progressive experience in Quality Engineering or Customer Quality Engineering
Demonstrated experience supporting external customers and managing customer quality issues

Responsibilities

Manage and analyze warranty data, field failures/trends, and service data for all C&I products and associated components (engines, alternators, controllers, enclosures, trailers, etc.).
Manage the investigation process for failed components collaborating with product engineering and new product development team, operations engineering team as needed. Coordinate teardown analysis, supplier review, and failure mode identification.
Lead cross-functional problem-solving using structured methods (8D, 5 Why, Fishbone etc.)
Track and report issue resolution metrics (claim rates, failure cost, MTBF, reliability trends).
Drive cross-functional teams to develop and implement sustainable corrective and preventive actions.
Work with internal teams and suppliers to ensure containment, corrective, and preventive actions (CAPA) are effectively implemented.
Lead quality improvement projects to enhance reliability, reduce field failures, and improve customer satisfaction.
Collaborate with Product Engineering and Manufacturing to embed lessons learned and field feedback into new product design and production processes.
Support new product introduction (NPI) with customer reliability data and warranty performance insights.
Champion best practices in quality systems, problem-solving, and field issue prevention.
Provide feedback to new product development teams with lessons learned and attend design reviews as necessary.
Maintain a warranty performance dashboard and issue periodic reports summarizing trends, costs, and progress on corrective actions.
Use statistical tools (Pareto, regression analysis) to identify top failure drivers and opportunities for cost reduction.
Utilize statistical and reliability tools (Pareto, Weibull, Power BI) to drive data-based decision-making.
Develop cost-of-poor-quality (COPQ) metrics for warranty claims and drive reduction initiatives.
Manage and develop a team of Customer Quality Engineers.
Establish team performance objectives aligned with company quality, warranty, and service goals.
Provide coaching, mentorship, and technical guidance on quality tools and methods.
Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and customer focus across the organization