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.
Why Ford Energy? 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.
In this position...
The Senior Manager Quality Assurance will serve as the senior quality leader and executive champion for Ford Energy quality culture. This highly visible leadership role is responsible for leading a team of engineering supervisors and quality engineers while owning the end-to-end quality operating model across the full development lifecycle. Beyond technical execution, you will be responsible for the financial protection of the subsidiary by managing the total "Cost of Quality" and warranty exposure. You will ensure that Ford Energy’s solutions are technically sound, safety and regulatory compliant, and capable of meeting customer expectations in production and in the field, serving as the primary quality interface for both internal and external executives.
What you'll do...
Quality System Ownership & Governance
- Own the quality operating model, quality gates, escalation paths, and KPI structure for Ford Energy.
- Establish and enforce the high-level quality standards and technical rigor that the engineering, manufacturing, and service organizations must live by.
- Manage the "clock speed" of the quality organization, providing data-driven insights that influence product strategy and launch decisions.
Strategic Quality & Financial Accountability
- Manage the total "Cost of Quality" (CoQ) for the subsidiary, including the mitigation of warranty spend and long-term liability.
- Develop and own the quality standards and audit processes for global licensing partners and international cell suppliers to ensure consistency across the supply chain.
- Represent Ford Energy Quality in discussions with internal and external executives, providing technical recommendations and risk assessments to support commercial decisions.
End-to-End Technical Quality (The "V" Model)
- Drive rigorous Failure Mode Avoidance (FMA) processes, ensuring quality is designed into requirements, architecture, and system integration.
- Oversee validation strategy, factory acceptance readiness, and analysis of field usage/diagnostics data.
- Lead Root Cause Analysis for complex system failures, supporting fast-response containment and recurrence prevention.
Regulatory, Certification & Manufacturing Support
- Lead the strategy and execution for regulatory compliance and certification testing (e.g., UL, IEC).
- Manage customer certification and accreditation processes to ensure project "bankability" and customer confidence.
- Provide technical leadership for End of Line and Factory Acceptance Testing processes to ensure production units meet all requirements before shipment.
You'll have...
- Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or a related technical field.
- 10+ years of experience in Quality Assurance, Systems Engineering, or Product Development within the energy or automotive sectors.
- 3+ years of leadership experience managing engineering teams.
- Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional issue resolution and communicate complex technical quality risks to executive-level stakeholders.
- Expertise in Failure Mode Avoidance tools (DFMEA, PFMEA).
- Deep understanding of high-voltage battery systems or power electronics.
- Experience managing the "Cost of Quality" and warranty analytics for large-scale industrial or automotive programs.
- Direct experience with global supplier quality or managing quality standards for technology licensing agreements.
- Direct experience with stationary Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS).
- Black Belt or Master Black Belt certification in Six Sigma or equivalent methodologies.
Even better, you may have...
Master’s degree in Engineering or an MBA.
Experience with grid-scale certification standards (UL, IEC, NFPA).
Leadership Attributes
- Strategic Culture Builder who sets the tone for technical excellence and accountability across the organization.
- Executive-level communicator capable of translating technical quality risks into business and financial impacts.
- Operationally strong leader capable of scaling a quality organization in a fast-paced startup environment.
- Technical visionary with a "Safety-First" mindset who prioritizes long-term asset performance.
Location & Travel
- Flexible Location: This position is hybrid-friendly for candidates with a proven ability to deliver results outside of a traditional office environment.
- Travel Expectations: This role may require travel to manufacturing sites, supplier locations, and customer installations to ensure quality standards are met.
You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!
This position is leadership level 5 and ranges from $141,700-268,300.
Final determination of salary grade will be based on candidate's skills and experience, and base salary will be set within the applicable range according to job scope, responsibility and competitive market value.
For more information on salary and benefits, click here: https://fordcareers.co/LL5FE
Company: As Ford establishes a wholly owned subsidiary focused on Battery Energy Storage Systems, this role will initially be employed by Ford and is expected to transition to the subsidiary within one year.
Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.
This position is hybrid. Candidates who are in commuting distance to a Ford hub location may be required to be onsite four or more days per week.
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.
We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status. In the United States, if you need a reasonable accommodation for the online application process due to a disability, please call 1-888-336-0660.
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