V&V Engineering Program Manager

Ford • Dearborn, MI

2d • $84,480 - $162,120 • Hybrid

About The Position

We are seeking multiple Verification and Validation (V&V) Engineering Program Managers (EPM) to support internal vehicle software validation initiatives.
This role leads cross functional testing and validation efforts, working closely with Feature Assurance, V&V, and other stakeholder teams to ensure vehicle deliverables, compliance, and readiness targets are met.
The position supports a range of V&V initiatives including end to end testing, OTA testing and compliance, validation strategy, and continuous quality improvement. Candidates should bring an agile mindset, strong coordination skills, and hands on automotive software validation experience.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or Engineering
• 3+ years of experience in automotive system validation, or vehicle‑level testing
• 3+ years of project management
• 2+ years of experience in agile methodology
• Experience working in cross‑functional environments with engineering, quality, and program teams
• Understanding of end‑to-end testing concepts, OTA validation, and test strategy fundamentals
• Experience in creating project status in Jira dashboards
• Experience working in Jira, FEDE, Jama, and TestRail
• Strong communication, organization, and stakeholder management skills

Nice To Haves

• Master’s degree or MBA
• 7+ years of experience in program management
• Strong understanding of the software development lifecycles
• Background as an Agile trainer, scrum master, or agile coach
• Experience supporting quality improvement initiatives such as Prevent, defect escape analysis, OTA process improvement, and FMEA

Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate internal Verification & Validation (V&V) initiatives, including end‑to-end vehicle software testing, OTA testing and compliance, and validation strategy execution.
• Partner with cross‑functional stakeholders to align validation plans, test evidence, and readiness status with vehicle deliverables and milestone requirements.
• Collaborate with Quality teams to drive continuous improvement initiatives, including Prevent actions, defect escape reduction, and OTA process enhancements.
• Define, implement, and evolve V&V test strategies to improve coverage, effectiveness, and early risk identification.
• Support strong cross‑functional alignment across engineering, quality, and program teams to enable efficient validation execution.
• Apply technical project planning, management, and leadership to ensure successful development and delivery of V&V initiatives.
• Provide regular status reporting to management, including progress, risks, issues, and mitigation plans.
• Help resolve or facilitate resolution of technical and execution issues impacting validation delivery.
• Increase visibility of V&V activities by providing proactive updates through tools such as Wiki, Jira, Teams, email, and other communication channels.
• Communicate and present V&V project status, risks, and outcomes to a broad stakeholder and leadership audience.
• Proactively identify, assess, and manage validation and delivery risks, developing mitigation and recovery plans when needed.
• Effectively utilize work management and project tracking tools (e.g., Wiki, Jira, project management tools) to maintain transparent plans, status, and contingency options for leadership.
• Apply agile principles to the planning, execution, and delivery of V&V activities to improve flow, predictability, and outcomes.

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 and management leases
• 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