Sr Engineering Program Manager
About The Position
Medtronic is a global leader in healthcare technology with a Mission to alleviate pain, restore health, and extend life. Our 95,000 employees work across more than 150 countries to put patients first — developing innovative medical technologies that improve the lives of 72+ million patients each year. Your unique talents will help shape the future of healthcare while building a career grounded in purpose, growth, and impact. A Day in the Life CardioVascular Surgery represents end-stage treatment in the care continuum for many cardiovascular diseases and provides an intimate relationship with the Cardiac Surgeon and Cardiac Operating Room through an unparalleled depth and breadth of technologies, including surgical heart valves, advanced aortic therapies, cardiac operating room solutions, extracorporeal life support and coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) solutions. At Medtronic, we bring bold ideas forward with speed and decisiveness to put patients first in everything we do. In-person exchanges are invaluable to our work. We’re working a minimum of 4 days a week onsite as part of our commitment to fostering a culture of professional growth and cross-functional collaboration as we work together to engineer the extraordinary. This position will be based in Mounds View, MN or Dexter/ Grand Rapids, MI. The Senior Quality Program Manager is a strategic individual contributor reporting to the Vice President, Quality, CardioVascular Surgery Operating Unit. This role is responsible for leading high-impact quality improvement initiatives across the business. This role will also lead the Operating Unit's Quality Strategic process. The Senior Quality Program Manager will lead complex, cross-functional efforts designed to improve product quality, compliance, operational performance, customer experience, and business outcomes. The role serves as a key integrator across functions including Research & Development, Quality (Operating Unit, Ops and Supplier), Manufacturing Engineering and Regulatory Affairs. This position requires an experienced leader capable of influencing without direct authority, driving execution across matrixed organizations, managing strategic initiatives, and effectively communicating progress, risks, and outcomes to executive leadership.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Quality, Life Sciences, Business, or related technical discipline.
- Minimum of 7 years of relevant experience in quality, engineering, operations, program management, or related functions. Or minimum 5 years of relevant experience in quality, engineering, operations, program management, or related functions.
- Experience working within a regulated industry environment.
Nice To Haves
- Medical device industry experience.
- Experience within cardiovascular or related medical technology fields.
- Program Management Professional (PMP) certification.
- Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, Green Belt, or equivalent process improvement certification.
- Demonstrated experience leading complex cross-functional projects or strategic initiatives.
- Experience developing and executing organizational strategic plans.
- Proven ability to influence stakeholders and drive results without direct reporting authority.
- Experience presenting program updates and recommendations to senior leadership and executives.
- Strong working knowledge of: Design Assurance/Design Controls Operations or Supplier Quality Risk Management ISO 13485 or FDA QMSR
- Experience leading large-scale quality transformation or continuous improvement initiatives.
- Demonstrated executive presence and communication skills.
Responsibilities
- Lead complex, cross-functional quality improvement programs across the product lifecycle, manufacturing operations, supplier network, and quality management system.
- Define project scope, objectives, success criteria, resource requirements, timelines, and risk mitigation plans.
- Apply structured problem-solving, continuous improvement, and risk management methodologies to drive sustainable results.
- Ensure projects deliver measurable improvements in quality performance, compliance, efficiency, and customer outcomes.
- Identify and remove barriers to execution through collaboration with functional leaders and key stakeholders.
- Establish mechanisms for tracking and reporting project performance, benefits realization, and organizational impact.
- Lead matrixed teams consisting of representatives from: Research & Development Operating Unit, Supplier and Operations Quality Manufacturing Engineering Regulatory Affairs
- Create strong alignment across stakeholders to ensure project objectives are understood and achieved.
- Facilitate decision-making and issue resolution across multiple functions and organizational levels.
- Influence outcomes through collaboration, credibility, and strategic leadership rather than direct authority.
- Foster a culture of accountability, transparency, and continuous improvement.
- Lead the development, deployment, and execution of the CardioVascular Surgery Operating Unit Quality Strategic Plan.
- Partner with Quality leadership and Operating Unit leadership to translate business priorities into actionable quality objectives and improvement initiatives.
- Establish strategic roadmaps, milestones, metrics, and governance processes to ensure successful execution of quality priorities.
- Monitor progress against strategic objectives and proactively identify opportunities to enhance organizational performance.
- Drive alignment between enterprise quality initiatives and Operating Unit goals.
- Prepare and deliver executive-level project updates, strategic reviews, and recommendations to Quality leadership and Operating Unit leadership.
- Develop concise executive communications that clearly articulate project status, risks, mitigation plans, and expected outcomes.
- Escalate critical risks and issues appropriately while recommending actionable solutions.
- Champion a culture of quality excellence, compliance, and continuous improvement throughout the organization.
- Drive adoption of quality best practices and standardized improvement methodologies.
- Support organizational change management efforts associated with quality transformation initiatives.
Benefits
- Health, Dental and vision insurance
- Health Savings Account
- Healthcare Flexible Spending Account
- Life insurance
- Long-term disability leave
- Dependent daycare spending account
- Tuition assistance/reimbursement
- Simple Steps (global well-being program)
- Incentive plans
- 401(k) plan plus employer contribution and match
- Short-term disability
- Paid time off
- Paid holidays
- Employee Stock Purchase Plan
- Employee Assistance Program
- Non-qualified Retirement Plan Supplement (subject to IRS earning minimums)
- Capital Accumulation Plan (available to Vice Presidents and above, or subject to IRS earning minimums)
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
