Who We Are: Challenge Manufacturing’s mission is to manufacture with operational excellence by empowering our employee-owners. As a leading tier 1 supplier of complex metal assemblies for the global automotive industry, we drive innovative solutions for future mobility. We believe the best ideas come from individual unique perspectives. These ideas combined with the teamwork of industry leaders allow us to accomplish any challenge. Our team members take pride in the work we do and embody our core values of safety, ownership, and teamwork every day; they are the true driving force in our operations.
Challenge is proud to be one of the largest employee-owned automotive companies in North America. One of the many benefits of joining the Challenge team is the ESOP program. This program allows Challenge to give shares of the Company to all employee-owners annually. These shares are an additional retirement benefit that will continue to grow during your time at Challenge. Being part of an ESOP means our employee-owners share in Challenge’s success!
Challenge is #QualityDriven and #PeoplePowered!
Who We Want:
We are seeking a Director of Advanced Quality to lead Challenge Manufacturing’s product launch quality strategy across multiple programs and customers. This role ensures that all Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) and Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) requirements are executed to world-class standards, supporting launch excellence and long-term customer satisfaction.
As a key leader within a Tier 1 automotive supplier, this individual will drive cross-functional alignment between Quality, Program Management, Engineering, Manufacturing, and Suppliers to ensure compliance with IATF 16949, customer-specific requirements, and OEM expectations. The ideal candidate is a seasoned automotive quality professional who thrives in dynamic, fast-paced environments and consistently delivers measurable results in launch performance and customer quality metrics.
What You'll Do:
- Provide strategic leadership for the Advanced Quality function, ensuring all launch programs meet or exceed customer quality and timing requirements.
- Act as the primary escalation point for internal and external quality concerns during all phases of pre-production and launch.
- Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing team of Advanced Quality Engineers (AQEs), driving ownership, accountability, and technical excellence.
- Establish and maintain robust APQP and PPAP processes across all programs, ensuring documentation, validation, and sign-off requirements are achieved on time.
- Oversee execution of Safe Launch protocols, ensuring seamless transition from launch to plant production quality ownership.
- Drive proactive risk mitigation by ensuring early and effective participation in DFMEAs, PFMEAs, gage design reviews, supplier PPAPs, and customer validation builds.
- Lead and support Pre-Production Builds, ensuring parts are inspected per the Pre-Production Control Plan, gages are validated, and customer-specific requirements are met.
- Facilitate effective handoffs between the Advanced Quality and Plant Quality teams, defining ownership, expectations, and transition timing.
- Review and “walk through” PFMEAs at pre-production stages to confirm potential failure modes are identified, and high RPN items are mitigated before home-line equipment installation.
- Collaborate with Program Management to ensure appropriate Quality CapEx is planned, justified, and executed for gages, testing, and inspection equipment.
- Participate in weekly Corrective Action (CA) meetings with plants to capture lessons learned, ensuring production issues inform future program prevention plans.
- Drive compliance to AIAG Core Tools (APQP, PPAP, FMEA, MSA, SPC, Control Plan) and customer-specific standards.
- Maintain traceability and control of all launch quality documentation.
- Ensure consistent application of 8D, 5-Why, and problem-solving methodologies to resolve pre-production issues and prevent recurrence.
- Serve as the voice of the customer, ensuring all quality commitments are met and customer audits are passed with zero findings.
When and Where:
This position is located at ourCorporate Office in Walker, MI.
Occasionally, this may require you to arrive early, stay late, or work on weekends, outside of our regular hours, to ensure we successfully meet customer needs, deadlines, or urgent requests.
What You Need to Have:
- Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Quality, or a related field (Master’s degree preferred)
- 10–15 years of progressive quality experience in automotive manufacturing, including at least 7+ years in a leadership or management role.
- Proven success leading quality initiatives during program launch phases for major Tier 1 or OEM customers (e.g., GM, Ford, Honda, Stellantis, Tesla).
- Deep knowledge and hands-on experience with APQP, PPAP, GD&T, and AIAG Core Tools.
- Strong understanding of IATF 16949 standards and customer-specific requirements (CSR).
- Experience in body structures, welding, and assembly manufacturing environments, with advanced understanding of dimensional validation, gage R&R, and GD&T principles.
- Background in weld quality systems, joining technologies, and tooling or process validation.
- Demonstrated success managing multi-site or cross-functional launch teams.
- Familiarity with customer portals such as Honda NARS, GM SQMS, and Ford eAPQP.
- Exceptional communication, problem-solving, and decision-making skills with the ability to influence across all organizational levels.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office and quality-related software (e.g., Plex, Teamcenter, or equivalent PLM/QMS tools).
- Professional certifications such as CQE (Certified Quality Engineer) or Lead Auditor (IATF/ISO 9001) preferred.
- Availability to travel 50% or more is required.