Team Manager Maintenance, Ford Energy

Ford Motor • Glendale, KY

2d • Onsite

About The Position

Ford Energy is a newly formed, wholly-owned subsidiary of Ford Motor Company dedicated to accelerating U.S. energy independence. Leveraging Ford’s century of manufacturing excellence and world-class battery energy storage systems (BESS) technology, Ford Energy designs, manufactures, and services grid-scale and commercial DC battery energy storage systems (BESS). Ford Energy is uniquely positioned to capture the growing demand for reliable, US-built energy storage systems. We are not just building batteries; we are building the infrastructure for the next generation of the American grid. At Ford Energy, you have the backing of an industrial manufacturing powerhouse with the agility of a dedicated energy startup offering industry leading technology. We offer a competitive compensation package including performance-based bonuses, Ford vehicle discounts, and the opportunity to shape the energy strategy of one of the world's most iconic brands. As the Maintenance Team Manager, you will be a critical architect of reliability and technical excellence at our state-of-the-art facility. You will lead a high-performing team to ensure equipment uptime, optimize life-cycle costs, and drive the Maintenance Operating System (MOS). This role is pivotal in our transition to electrification, requiring a leader who can navigate the ambiguity of a greenfield startup while building a culture of "leaders as teachers" and technical precision.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical/Automation Engineering, or a related technical field.
• 3+ years of maintenance management experience in a high-volume manufacturing environment (Automotive, Aerospace, or Electronics preferred).
• 3+ years of experience utilizing Maximo or an equivalent Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) system.
• Proven experience managing departmental budgets and large-scale capital projects.
• Demonstrated ability to lead technical teams through complex equipment commissioning and high-pressure troubleshooting scenarios.
• Candidates for positions with Ford Motor Company must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.

Nice To Haves

• Master’s degree in Engineering or an MBA.
• Direct experience with lithium-ion battery production equipment or advanced robotics.
• 3+ years of hands-on experience with PLC programming (e.g., Allen Bradley, Siemens) and industrial networking.
• Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt certification and a deep understanding of Lean Manufacturing/TPM.
• Prior experience in a "Greenfield" site startup or major facility brownfield conversion.
• Strategic Visionary: Able to translate the rapidly evolving global energy storage market into actionable maintenance strategies.
• Decisive Under Pressure: The ability to remain calm and make rapid, data-driven decisions during facility constraints or critical equipment failures.
• Adaptability: The resilience to lead a team through the ambiguity of a new site startup, where processes are being built and refined in real-time.
• Business Partner: The ability to translate technical maintenance requirements into sound financial business cases for executive stakeholders.
• Visionary strategic thinker able to navigate rapidly evolving global energy storage markets.

Responsibilities

• Design and execute equipment maintenance strategies (Preventive, Predictive, and Corrective) to ensure reliability meets or exceeds production capacity targets.
• Direct the implementation of standard manufacturing maintenance protocols, ensuring data integrity within the CMMS (Maximo) and alignment with global standards.
• Partner with Engineering to evaluate new equipment specifications, ensuring long-term maintainability and spare parts optimization from the design phase through installation.
• Champion a TPM (Total Productive Maintenance) culture, leveraging Six Sigma methodologies and PLC diagnostics to solve complex technical challenges and improve First-Time-Through (FTT) capability.
• Formulate and manage multi-million dollar O&M budgets and capital projects, ensuring fiscal responsibility and alignment with plant profitability.
• Serve as the primary advocate for safety, ensuring all maintenance activities—especially high-risk electrical events—are performed with zero-compromise adherence to safety protocols.
• Manage and mentor a multi-skilled team of engineers and technicians, fostering a "Leaders as Teachers" environment that prioritizes technical upskilling.
• Recruit and develop a diverse, high-performing team capable of supporting advanced battery technology and automated manufacturing systems.
• Create a culture of trust and psychological safety, encouraging diversity of thought and removing systemic barriers to team success.

Benefits

• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage
• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more
• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members
• Tuition assistance
• Established and active employee resource groups
• Paid time off for individual and team community service
• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager