Site IT Manager

BorgWarner•Dixon, IL

About The Position

The Site IT Manager is accountable for IT services at assigned plant locations, ensuring stable, secure, standardized delivery aligned with enterprise IT strategies, platforms, and policies. The role serves as the primary IT partner and single point of contact for plant leadership, owns the site-specific digital roadmap and technology adoption, and coordinates with regional and global IT teams to deliver enterprise capabilities at the plant level. It is a hands-on leadership position that champions practical AI and automation solutions, works credibly with plant engineering teams, and leads and develops local IT resources where applicable. The manager oversees site business alignment and IT governance; manufacturing IT/OT execution and cybersecurity; digitalization and adoption of AI, automation, analytics, and enterprise platforms; end-to-end IT operations and escalation management; site project delivery; talent and capability development; and site IT financials. The role promotes responsible AI use and good data practices, ensures continuity and audit readiness, manages local vendors, and maintains alignment with enterprise standards and regional priorities. The position reports to the Regional Senior IT Manager, with a dotted-line relationship to the Plant Manager. It leads local IT resources where applicable and coordinates enterprise service teams and providers within the global IT operating model. The role must adhere to BorgWarner’s Global Star Safety Program, safety rules, practices, and training.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems, Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field.
At least 5 years of progressive IT experience, including at least 2 years in a site or hands-on IT leadership role in a manufacturing or industrial environment.
Hands-on skills with Power Platform, Copilot Studio, approved Azure AI services, basic Python and SQL scripting, modern endpoint management, and workflow automation; ability to build small prototypes and read code well enough to engage credibly with engineering teams.
Practical IT/OT experience supporting MES/SCADA environments, plant networks, edge and IIoT connectivity, and shop-floor systems, with ability to collaborate substantively with controls engineers and plant technologists.
Demonstrated experience deploying and driving site-level adoption of enterprise AI tools, intelligent automation, and responsible AI, including coaching users and embedding tools into daily work.
Working cybersecurity knowledge of zero-trust principles, OT security, identity, vulnerability management, and patch hygiene sufficient to apply enterprise standards and respond to local incidents.
Continuous upskilling mindset, including staying current through experimentation, technical certifications, and participation in communities of practice.
Strong service excellence orientation, including hands-on incident management, root-cause discipline, and ITIL fundamentals.
Site-level vendor and supplier management skills, including holding providers accountable to technical standards and enterprise agreements.
Strong communication and stakeholder management skills with plant leadership, shop-floor teams, and regional and global IT counterparts.

Responsibilities

Serve as the primary IT business partner and single point of contact and accountability for plant leadership.
Represent enterprise IT services at the site and coordinate service teams to meet business requirements and priorities.
Build and deploy practical AI, automation, and reporting prototypes to support site decisions and change management.
Shape and lead the site digital roadmap in alignment with regional roadmaps and enterprise strategies, identifying opportunities for productivity, efficiency, and value creation.
Evaluate practical use cases for Copilots, agents, automation, and low-code platforms, including total cost of ownership and reuse of enterprise capabilities.
Communicate IT priorities, service performance, risks, and improvement actions using data, dashboards, and AI-generated insights.
Ensure site adherence to global IT governance, standards, and architectural principles.
Own site-level execution and governance of IT and alignment with OT environments, including MES, SCADA, connectivity, and engineering systems.
Ensure IT/OT cybersecurity compliance, including asset inventory, segmentation, vulnerability remediation, identity hygiene, and change controls.
Coordinate with regional and global cybersecurity teams to remediate risks and incidents.
Implement, test, and maintain site business continuity, disaster recovery, and resilience plans.
Champion AI adoption and coach plant engineers, operators, knowledge workers, and local IT staff on enterprise AI tools.
Lead local adoption of enterprise AI, digital platforms, tools, and processes, and guide stakeholders through associated change.
Execute site components of regional and global initiatives, including IIoT, analytics, automation, AI enablement, and enterprise platform deployments.
Identify and escalate adoption barriers, local risks, and improvement opportunities.
Build site-level prototypes, automations, and Copilot agents using approved enterprise low-code and AI tools.
Apply responsible AI practices, including data classification, approved use cases, human-in-the-loop review, and enterprise AI governance.
Promote data quality, ownership, and curation as a foundation for AI, analytics, and reporting.
Own end-to-end IT service performance at the site and act as the escalation point for incidents, service degradation, and operational risks.
Coordinate local and enterprise service teams to resolve issues promptly and eliminate root causes.
Promote a Shift Left mindset and root-cause analysis to prevent recurrence and reduce demand on enterprise service teams.
Participate in service reviews with site leadership and support SLA and KPI adherence.
Maintain visibility into site cybersecurity risks and partner with cybersecurity teams to mitigate business risks.
Ensure operational compliance, audit readiness, data protection, business continuity planning, and enforcement of IT and IT/OT policies.
Manage local vendors and service providers in accordance with enterprise agreements and technical standards.
Lead and coordinate site-level IT projects and initiatives; manage scope, schedule, risk, and vendor coordination.
Align site projects with global and regional priorities, PMO standards, and enterprise delivery models, and report status, dependencies, and business impact.
Lead, coach, and develop local IT team members where applicable, building capabilities across operations, IT/OT, cybersecurity, and digital technologies.
Foster ownership, service excellence, safety, and continuous improvement, and participate in regional IT communities and capability-building initiatives.
Refresh the site IT team’s hands-on skills across AI tooling, scripting, endpoint management, OT security, and data fundamentals; role-model continuous upskilling.
Manage site IT budgets, forecasts, and actuals, ensuring cost transparency and compliance with approved spending.
Adhere to the Global Star Safety Program, follow required safety rules and practices, take reasonable precautions to protect self and coworkers, and report injuries and potential hazards or incidents to the immediate supervisor.