ACCOUNTABILITY OBJECTIVE:
This position represents the primary Project authority for assigned company International Projects. As such, projects that his/her directly manages shall meet deadlines, achieve profitability and quality targets, meet or exceed customer and internal requirements and expectations, thereby maximizing customer satisfaction while optimizing business, and plant results. Finally Projects targets have to fit to company International Strategy & contribute to the overall company Fiscal Year goals.
PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES:
1. General
a. Manages own projects.
b. Manage to achieve project targets and launch products.
c. Plan and allocates Project Management resources & skills to support projects.
d. Coordinate Project Gate Reviews and hold Pre-Reviews for all projects of his/her responsibility.
e. Support RFQ activities for all new business globally, following the HIPE Phase 0 and Phase 6 process.
f. Supports the Technology Roadmap and Advanced Project activities to ensure new technologies being developed will support future customer demands and are aligned with customer projects
g. Report Project Status according to company reporting standards to the VP Project Management.
h. Coordinates Lesson learned across programs
2. Direct Reports
a. Approve, asses & review the Goals together with the VP Project Management
b. Asses the SDP (Succession and Development Plan)
3. Customer
a. Maintains clear understanding of customer expectations
b. Defines a strategy for customer communication and organize communication and visits for himself/herself and the project teams
c. Establish professional and fluent relationship with the customer in all affected areas.
d. Make sure that his/her directly manager achieve customer milestones & specifications
4. Time Line
a. Make sure that his/her directly manager
i. Establish project plan by determine time frame oriented to achieve customer milestones
ii. Ensures timely product design according to specifications
iii. Ensures timely supplier tool & assembly line, as well as company’s assembly lines readiness.
b. Controls project plan by approving and scheduling all changes if needed.
c. Assesses his/her directly manager for risk analysis and creation of contingency plans
d. All 3 points above are also applicable for his/her own projects.
5. Finance
a. Coordinate the Quote Template Approval Process for all Projects
b. Controls the Tracking and Achievement (investment, development and launch costs, profitability) of the Quote Template targets.
c. Assistance of Sales & Marketing to negotiate with the OEM the change according to the Change Order business allowance
6. Product Changes
a. Ensures proper management of the change requests with regard to the specification, the target costs and possible cost reimbursements.
7. Quality
a. Ensure advanced quality planning (APQP) for all projects belonging to his/her directly manager.
b. Ensures 100% HIPE compliance
8. R&D
a. Maintains professional and technical knowledge by attending educational workshops; reviewing professional publications; establishing personal networks; participating in professional societies.
b. Involvement during the pre-development phase (Adv Engineering) and internal discussion about product ideas/brainstorming.
c. Engineering involvement in the launch of a new product
9. Project Quality: Ensures all own projects have an accurate & updated:
a. Project Scope
b. Project Time line
c. Work Breakdown Structure, ART, OIL
d. Project Cockpit
e. Team Feasibility Commitment
f. CapEx Plan & Status
g. EBIT Status with financial causals & recovery plans if needed.
h. Escalation topics to the Steering Committee properly documented
i. Resource plan.
j. Product Change Request Status.
10. Project conflict resolution:
a. This position is the first escalation authority, with the goal to reduce the amount of topics which are escalated to the Steering Committee.
11. Team building / management
a. Ensures that the company product development procedures (HIPE) are understood and compliance applied, seeking for training if needed for any of the project team members.
Recommended tools: Quote Template, ART, CR, Cockpit Charts, Gate Review Templates, MS Project, Risk Assessment Tools,
Recommended process: HIPE, Project Steering Committee Escalation Process.
PRINCIPAL WORKING RELATIONSHIPS:
Key Internal Relationships: Management team and each department
Key External Relationships:
REQUIRED EDUCATION BACKGROUND, KNOWLEDGE AND WORKING EXPERIENCE:
1. Bachelor’s degree in Engineering.
2. Demonstrated management leadership and communication skills
3. Experience with one or more than one product
4. International assignment or exposure preferred
5. Quality certifications preferred (CRE CQE Black Belt etc.)
6. 5 Years Experience in Automotive Supply base / Industry
7. Native German, and fluency in English
COMPETENCIES/SKILLS
1. Strong Team Management Skills (Leads the team, superior leadership skills required)
a. Business Acumen, makes proper business decisions & drives for Business Results maintaining Customer focus & Customer fluent relationship.
- Entrepreneurial (recognizes and manages risks & sets priorities).
- Develops & Coaches Others.
- Influence (no direct reports to PMs). Builds Teams.
- Negotiate (within the team, functional areas, able to influence resource
allocation)
- Problem Solving Support/Leadership (including problem solving techniques)
- Communicate (organizational transparency). Fosters Open Communication
- Leadership (modeling the way). Has authority and decision making responsibility relating to project execution.
- Self-motivated. Persistent and tenacious in conflict resolution
2. Stakeholder Mentality:
- Acts as an enterprise representative, not a functional representative
b. Looks at “how” to instead of “why not” (Action oriented)
3. Project Management Competencies, f.e.:
- APQP Process and Requirements
- Product Development Principles
- Basic Financial Knowledge and cost focus
