Corporate Customer Quality Program Manager

Making a difference in the world by reducing carbon emissions and improving access to clean energy with every module we make. 

  Our purpose is to make a difference in the world by reducing carbon emissions and improving access to clean energy with every module we make.

At Silfab Solar, the energy of our people is the power behind our success. Our employees actively shape the solar innovations of tomorrow, while adhering to the highest ethical operating standards and promoting a respectful and safe workplace for our diverse workforce.

Our state-of-the art facilities in the US and Canada engineer and design the latest generation of solar products and utilize advanced manufacturing technology to produce high-efficiency PV cells and modules intended to outperform the market. As a profitable and rapidly expanding company in one of the fastest-growing sectors in the renewable energy industry, Silfab provides you with an incredible opportunity to build your career and contribute to a sustainable future. We are committed to investing in our employees, providing a dynamic and supportive environment for learning and professional growth.  We offer competitive pay, generous benefits, and opportunities for advancement, but more importantly, we offer you the ability to make a real difference in the world.

Together we can create a brighter, cleaner future for generations to come.

Summary of Position

The Corporate Customer Quality Program Manager is responsible for establishing and maintaining the Customer Quality corporate program, to drive outgoing product safety, quality and RCA, customer satisfaction and reduced RMA's. Manages the Customer Audit and Inspection Process.  Works with Sales, Engineering, Product and Operations teams to drive improvement in process and product reliability. Standardizes and drives Customer Quality practices and metrics across sites. Works with Sales to reduce response time on RMA's. Defines and implements competitive benchmarking and customer delight programs. Drives COPQ reduction in RMA process and related non-conformances.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Align the Customer Quality function and processes with Silfab Vision and Purpose.
• Build Silfab’s Customer Experience and Quality (SCE&Q) program structure, short-term, mid-term and long-term goals and metrics for strategic success.
• Establish and deploy and ensure adherence to the Silfab’s Customer Experience & Quality SCE&Q maturity growth Road Map.
• Benchmark Best-In-Class metrics and performance on Customer Quality within our industry and outside our industry.
• Drive and deploy the SCE&Q program through x-functional and x-site collaboration effort.
• Implement and improve customer and third-party auditor IPM (In-Process Monitoring), PSI (Pre-Shipment Inspection)  and CLM (Container Loading Monitoring) processes.
• Manage and improve Silfab’s customer risk score.
• Respond to field quality failures.
• Work with site Customer Quality Engineers to implement standard RMA, RCCA process at the sites, communicate and replicate Best Customer Quality Practices and lessons learned across all facilities.
• Build SCE&Q team capabilities by training and developing all team members, developing performance metrics.
• Deploy and lead the PK, A3 and Apollo processes for conducting, implementing, reporting and following up on Problem-Solving, Escalation, Root Cause Analysis and Corrective Action of customer quality issues.
• Liaison with key departments, to improve IPM (In-Process Monitoring)  and RMA response time and aging time.
• Conduct benchmarking and analysis on customer satisfaction, quality and service metrics; identify and implement process improvement opportunities.
• Work with the Sales and Product Engineering teams and play a proactive role in collecting the voice of the customer (VOC), defining, implementing and driving customer satisfaction and delight methodologies that will result in Silfab customers achieving a level of customer experience that will set us apart from all competitors.
• Work with Safety, Product Engineering, Production and Sales teams to ensure the highest level of safety in our products.
• Work with Sales Team to build close strategic relationships with key customers and identify new and innovative ways to improve customer experience and win market share.
• Visit and actively shadow distributor, and end-user customers to understand customer’s interactions and point of view with our company, services and products.
• Work with Product Design and Manufacturing Engineers to drive innovation, improve existing designs and reduce defects.
• Work with IT to develop information systems and automated, intelligent dashboards for the SCE&Q Program, for internal (company) and external (customer) use and interaction.
• Establish operating mechanisms for reviewing, reporting and communicating SCE&Q program performance and maturity progress at multiple levels in the organization.
• Manage budget targets and financial reporting on External Failure COQ.
• Participates in Continuous Improvement and Quality Summits, Share and Learn, and Benchmarking events.
• Other functions as deemed relevant and/or assigned to this role by the Corporate Director of Continuous Improvement and Quality.
• Willingness and ability to travel based on customer need; up to but not limited to 50%.

Skills

• Strong Analytical and Problem-Solving skills.
• Outstanding facilitation and presentation skills.
• Proficient with a variety of computer software applications including Minitab, Business Central, Microsoft Office products and PowerBI.
• Outstanding organizational and planning skills.
• Outstanding communication skills.
• Strong ability to work and deliver under time constraints.
• Quickly adapt and correct course under changing priorities.
• Strong ability to work well in a team atmosphere, resolve conflict, and comply with high quality and ethical standards.
• Strong conflict resolution and negotiating skills.

Traits

• Customer-centric visionary.
• Passion for sustainability and a genuine desire to make a positive impact on the world through the reduction of carbon emissions and promotion of clean energy. 
• Demonstrated leadership abilities, with experience managing and mentoring cross-functional teams. 
• Servant Leadership mindset.
• Builds team value through diversity, thrives in diverse environment.
• Accomplished listener.
• Demonstrated, effective change agent.
• Ability to see and understand the Big Picture and manage at tactical level.
• Experienced influencer. Demonstrated ability to get work done through others.

Education and/or Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering or equivalent work experience.
• Minimum 7 years working in a Quality or Customer Service organization (customer-facing relationship experience preferred).
• Minimum 5 years in a Quality Management or Quality Engineering role.
• Minimum 3 years Project Management experience managing large-scale, x-functional projects.
• Experience with field failures/complaints required.
• Must be a Certified Quality Engineer (CQE).
• Must be a Certified Internal Auditor.
• Proven record of excelling on customer-facing relationships.
• Proven record of results managing in a matrix environment.
• Experience in solar/PV manufacturing preferred.
• Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt preferred; alternatively, certification as a Lean Master or Lean Expert is also acceptable.

Compensation and Benefits

• Paid Time Off (vacation, sick, and holiday) 
• 401(k) Retirement Plan
• Medical/Dental/Vision Insurance Plans
• Health Savings Account option
• Supplemental/Voluntary Insurance Plans
• Employee Assistance Program
• Tuition Reimbursement Program 
• Employee Recognition Programs
• Employee PV Panel Purchase Program