Vice President, Transformation, Global Quality and Operational Risk

Fluence Energy•Arlington, VA

About The Position

Fluence is seeking an accomplished Leader to become our Vice President of Transformation, Corporate Quality & Operational Risk. This role serves as the company’s internal engine for enterprise-wide transformation , driving strategic and operational improvements across Product, Engineering, Supply Chain, Sales, Project Delivery, Services, and Regional Operations. The VP owns Fluence’s global Quality Management System (QMS) and Operational Risk Framework , ensuring that all core processes—from design and sourcing to manufacturing, commissioning, and service—are reliable, compliant, and continuously improving. The leader will refresh the QMS to reflect new industry, regulatory, and market requirements (e.g., ISO 9001:2015 Amendment 1 on climate context; EU Battery Regulation; updated UL/NFPA/IEC standards relevant to energy storage). This executive partners deeply with leaders across the entire value chain to embed sustainable processes, quality-by-design, and proactive risk management , while building the capabilities, tools, and culture needed to support Fluence’s rapid global growth.

Requirements

15+ years of progressive leadership in Quality, Operations, or Risk in renewable energy, storage, power, utilities, or complex industrial projects; global scale experience.
Prior experience in a top-tier management consultancy, with a strong track record of leading complex, cross-functional strategic or operational improvement programs.
Ability to translate consultancy-grade problem-solving, analytics, and structured execution into sustainable processes within a global industrial/technology organization.
Proven success building global QMS and operations risk frameworks across multi‑region supply chains and EPC/project environments.
Deep knowledge of ISO 9001 and its 2024 climate‑context amendment; fluency with ISO 31000; working knowledge of AIAG‑VDA FMEA, APQP, PPAP, MSA, SPC.
Familiarity with energy‑storage safety and installation standards (UL 9540, UL 9540A, NFPA 855) and IEC 62933 for grid‑integrated systems; ability to translate into quality/risk controls.
Executive presence with strong stakeholder influence, analytics, and program management; excellent communication and audit skills.
Bachelor’s in Engineering, Operations Management, or equivalent; advanced degree preferred; ability to lead distributed teams and travel internationally.

Responsibilities

Global Transformation Office Lead Fluence global Transformation Office, operating as an internal management consultancy that drives high-impact, cross-functional strategic and operational initiatives.
Identify, prioritize, and structure transformation programs using data-driven assessments, business cases, and value hypotheses; ensure alignment with ELT and functional/regional leaders.
Drive structured problem-solving and operational excellence (Lean, Six Sigma, process re-engineering, value-stream mapping, Agile program delivery, portfolio management).
Lead and coach multidisciplinary transformation teams (internal consultants + functional stakeholders) in the execution of major initiatives.
Establish enterprise standards for process design and change execution, ensuring transformation outputs result in sustainable, repeatable, auditable processes tightly integrated with the QMS.
Foster a culture of operational rigor and continuous improvement, reinforcing the principle that Transformation = Sustainable Quality .
Quality Leadership Own the global QMS strategy and roadmap aligned to ISO 9001; incorporate the 2024 climate‑context amendment into risk and context analyses, objectives, and management reviews.
Establish governance, assurance, and continuous improvement across the lifecycle (design, sourcing, supplier qualification, incoming, build, commissioning, service).
Deploy lifecycle tools and core methods (AIAG‑VDA FMEA, Control Plan, MSA, SPC; APQP/PPAP‑style gated readiness for new products/suppliers) in collaboration with operational quality teams.
Set and publish quality KPIs (e.g., DPPM, FPY, CoQ, warranty cost, FRACAS closure time, MTBF/MTTR, software defect escape); run executive reviews and drive corrective/preventive actions.
Lead customer/third‑party audits and certifications; standardize audit practices and ensure rapid, effective CAPA closure.
Operational Risk Management Design and run a global operations risk framework aligned to ISO 31000—identify, assess, prioritize, and treat risks spanning supply chain, manufacturing, project execution, commissioning, and service.
Run risk reviews for strategic programs and high‑value projects; provide clear risk posture and options to the ELT.
Integrate safety‑critical and compliance risks from energy‑storage codes/standards (e.g., UL 9540/9540A, NFPA 855, IEC 62933) with contractual and regulatory obligations.
Embed structured lessons‑learned and reliability growth (FRACAS) to reduce field risk and warranty exposure.
Digital Quality & Data Build an eQMS ecosystem and quality data model that supports global processes, supplier portals, and end‑to‑end traceability (including data needed for battery passport and sustainability reporting).
Enable advanced analytics for early‑warning signals (e.g., SPC alerts, escape detection) and automate KPI dashboards for ELT and sites.
Governance & Collaboration Serve as the corporate voice for quality and operational risk to the ELT; establish escalation paths and decision forums.
Partner with Product, Engineering, and Supply Chain to embed design‑for‑reliability/quality; with Commercial to assess bid risk; with EHS to align on safety and compliance; and with customer success unites in countries to standardize and ensure quality in projects and services while meeting local requirements.
Leadership & Capability Building Lead and develop a global team of quality and risk professionals; define roles, goals, and career paths; foster a high‑performance, learning culture.
Roll out training on core tools (FMEA, Control Plan, APQP/PPAP), audit excellence, and risk methods; create communities of practice.