Thermal Lead Development Engineer - GM Defense

General Motors•Milford, MI

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

GM Defense is looking for a Thermal Lead Development Engineer (LDE) that is interested in creating the future of GM Defense-related vehicles. The GM Defense Performance Team is a dynamic, fast paced environment where every day provides a new problem to solve that is having an impact on our current & future defense ground vehicles. This includes participating in the AVD process, establishing vehicle level and subsystem requirements. Then following that project through protype builds, integrating the vehicle and then launching a new vehicle program. The Thermal LDE provides technical leadership for thermal system integration, with deep knowledge of thermal integration at the vehicle level and proficiency in applicable requirements and standards. This role leads a cross-functional team including hardware performance and design release engineers, comfort and propulsion/powertrain cooling calibrators, and thermal analysis engineers, serving as the Thermal single-point contact to the program team and other integration areas — working closely with vehicle systems engineers, technical leads, and program management. The LDE relentlessly drives consistent thermal system and vehicle integration for a given program or architecture, holding themselves and others accountable for high-quality, timely delivery without compromising integrity, safety, or quality.

Requirements

BS/MS in Engineering
5+ years of experience in thermal system design release, development, or validation (any combination)
Strong knowledge of applicable thermal requirements, standards, and vehicle-level specifications
Demonstrated ability to simplify complex technical concepts and communicate effectively across all levels — from peers to senior leadership
Ability to work independently and collaboratively; comfortable navigating ambiguity to enable timely decisions
Working knowledge of DFMEA, PFMEA, and CFD analysis
Strong knowledge of program timing and vehicle development process deliverables
Candidate must be a U.S. Person (U.S. citizen, U.S. permanent resident, asylee or refugee).

Nice To Haves

MS in Mechanical Engineering
8+ years of experience in thermal systems
Demonstrated engineering leadership experience (e.g., team lead or subject matter expert)
Experience supporting both battery electric and conventional powertrain architectures
Familiarity with virtual vehicle analysis tools or HVAC calibration processes
Demonstrated ability to interpret customer satisfaction data and translate to development priorities
Six Sigma certification or equivalent structured problem-solving experience
Defense engineering experience

Responsibilities

Provide technical direction and assurance to performance engineers and design release engineers
Own and develop vehicle-level thermal system requirements in collaboration with vehicle performance owners and technical stakeholders
Manage the development and validation plan, including prioritization of physical properties (benches/vehicles), climatic wind tunnel time, and trip coordination
Partner with virtual analysis teams to prioritize computational work and special requests
Lead thermal program integration meetings; engage in program forums across vehicle performance, development, and validation workstreams
Review engineering design documents; advocate for design best practices and participate in component technical reviews
Lead thermal system peer reviews at key program milestones; ensure team readiness and delivery excellence
Coordinate read-across and cross-program integration issues
Lead issue resolution for customer-facing concerns related to comfort, quality, and warranty; balance ongoing system and feature continuous improvement work alongside active program milestone delivery
Mentor team members and support their professional development