Sub-Platform Quality Manager - Semiconductor

3M•Maplewood, MN

17d•Onsite

About The Position

The Sub-Platform Quality Manager provides strategic leadership and organizational direction for quality across semiconductor product development, manufacturing, suppliers, and customers. The role owns the enterprise quality strategy and embeds quality, reliability, and customer requirements throughout the product lifecycle, from new product introduction and design qualification through high-volume manufacturing, field performance, and end-of-life. It establishes and deploys a scalable Quality Management System across multiple manufacturing sites and functions, driving measurable improvements in customer satisfaction, product reliability, manufacturing yield, supplier performance, and cost of poor quality. The manager partners with Operations, Engineering, Product Development, Supply Chain, Procurement, Sales, and executive leadership. The role combines technical depth in semiconductor quality with the ability to influence across organizational boundaries, establish accountability, and translate quality performance into business results. The position follows an on-site working model, requiring at least four days a week at the 3M center in Maplewood, Minnesota, or Austin, Texas. Travel may include up to 25% domestic and/or international travel; relocation may be authorized. Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the country of employment without employment visa sponsorship. The position may involve direct or indirect access to information, systems, and technologies subject to U.S. export-control requirements.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Quality, Materials Science, Manufacturing, or a related technical field.
At least 5 years of progressive quality, engineering, manufacturing, or reliability experience.
At least 2 years of experience in semiconductor, microelectronics, electronics, or advanced manufacturing.
At least 1 year of experience in a Quality Leadership or Management role; multi-site or global responsibility is preferred.
Legally authorized to work in the country of employment without sponsorship for employment visa status.
Ability to work on-site at least four days a week at the 3M center in Maplewood, Minnesota, or Austin, Texas.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree in Engineering, Quality, Business, or a related discipline.
Quality leadership or management experience with multi-site or global responsibility.
ASQ CQE, CMQ/OE, or equivalent professional certification.
Demonstrated experience leading NPI or product quality programs.
Strong experience with supplier quality and/or customer quality management.
Strong understanding of semiconductor manufacturing, assembly, packaging, testing, or related processes.
Demonstrated experience with reliability engineering and product qualification.
Strong knowledge of Quality Management Systems, audits, corrective action, risk management, and continuous improvement.
Demonstrated ability to lead complex cross-functional and multi-site initiatives.
Strong analytical, financial, communication, and executive presentation skills.
Six Sigma Black Belt or equivalent.
Experience with ISO 9001, IATF 16949, AS9100, or other relevant quality systems.
Knowledge of applicable semiconductor standards such as JEDEC and AEC-Q100/AEC-Q200, where relevant to the business.
Experience with wafer foundries, semiconductor packaging, test operations, or complex electronics supply chains.
Experience leading global quality organizations.
Experience implementing enterprise quality-management systems or digital quality transformation.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute the global quality strategy in alignment with business objectives, technology roadmaps, and customer expectations.
Establish quality objectives, policies, standards, and performance targets across product centers and manufacturing locations, and provide executive visibility into quality performance, risks, trends, and improvement priorities.
Establish a consistent quality operating model across sites, promote quality ownership and continuous improvement, and advise on strategic business, product, manufacturing, and customer decisions.
Establish quality strategy and requirements from product concept through commercialization and production ramp; lead quality activities for NPI, including design reviews, risk assessments, qualification, validation, and production readiness.
Implement APQP or equivalent planning processes where applicable, and set requirements for DFMEA, PFMEA, Control Plans, MSA, SPC, capability analysis, quality gates, and launch criteria.
Ensure product and process risks are identified, quantified, mitigated, and formally accepted before production release; partner with R&D and Product Engineering on reliability and qualification strategies.
Provide escalation and decision support for significant launch-quality risks, and ensure lessons learned inform future product and process development.
Provide strategic quality leadership across manufacturing facilities, internal operations, and outsourced partners; standardize quality processes, metrics, governance, and practices across sites.
Set site-level quality objectives and hold leadership teams accountable; monitor trends and lead cross-site efforts to improve yield, reduce variation, eliminate recurring defects, and lower cost of poor quality.
Establish escalation mechanisms for critical manufacturing and product-quality issues and replicate successful practices across manufacturing locations.
Establish the strategic supplier quality program, including risk-based supplier qualification, development, monitoring, audits, surveillance, performance expectations, and escalation strategies.
Lead executive engagement with strategic suppliers on significant quality or reliability issues; ensure effective containment, root-cause analysis, corrective action, and prevention.
Partner with Procurement and Supply Chain on supplier selection and sourcing decisions, and identify systemic supplier risks before they affect production or customers.
Serve as the senior quality escalation point for key customers and strategic accounts; establish customer-quality strategies aligned with customer requirements and business priorities.
Lead resolution of major customer complaints, quality incidents, product returns, and field issues, ensuring timely and technically rigorous 8D, root-cause, containment, corrective-action, and effectiveness-verification processes.
Support customer audits, quality reviews, product qualifications, and supplier assessments; partner with Sales and Account Management on customer expectations and emerging risks.
Monitor customer quality trends and convert feedback into product and process improvements; build customer confidence through transparent communication and demonstrated prevention.
Establish the semiconductor product reliability strategy and define reliability qualification requirements, methodologies, and acceptance criteria.
Oversee reliability qualification, life testing, accelerated testing, failure analysis, and field-performance monitoring; incorporate reliability modeling and risk assessment into product development.
Manage reliability excursions and field failures in partnership with Design, Process, Packaging, Test, and Failure Analysis organizations; monitor field-return data and incorporate lessons into product design and manufacturing controls.
Maintain awareness of applicable industry standards and customer-specific reliability requirements.
Own the strategic direction and effectiveness of the global QMS; establish governance across manufacturing sites and functions and ensure compliance with applicable standards, customer and regulatory requirements, and industry expectations.
Lead management reviews, establish executive visibility into QMS performance, and set a risk-based internal audit strategy.
Oversee corrective and preventive action systems, ensuring systemic effectiveness; standardize quality processes, documentation, records, and controls across sites.
Simplify and strengthen the QMS while ensuring it supports business growth, new technologies, acquisitions, and manufacturing expansion.
Establish an enterprise-wide framework to identify, assess, mitigate, and monitor product and process quality risks, incorporating quality risks into business continuity, product development, supplier management, and manufacturing decisions.
Set escalation criteria for critical risks; provide executive assessments of quality risk, business impact, and mitigation status; lead cross-functional risk reviews and ensure high-risk issues receive resources and executive attention.
Establish a company-wide quality improvement roadmap focused on defect prevention and business impact; drive Six Sigma, Lean, SPC, and structured problem-solving methodologies.
Identify opportunities for automation, data analytics, predictive quality, and advanced process monitoring; ensure improvement projects have measurable financial and quality outcomes and replicate successful programs across sites.
Establish a global quality-data strategy, standardized quality dashboards, and executive KPIs across manufacturing sites.
Integrate customer, supplier, manufacturing, reliability, and field-quality data to identify systemic trends; promote advanced statistical analysis and predictive quality methodologies.
Leverage digital quality systems, automated reporting, analytics, and data visualization; establish data governance and consistent definitions for enterprise quality metrics.
Comply with corporate policies, procedures, and security standards while performing assigned duties; follow safety policies, identify hazards, and contribute to a strong EHS culture and continuous improvement.