Senior Manager Strategic Customer Projects (m/f/x)

ZEISS Group; Oberkochen; On-site; EUR 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

ZEISS Group in Germany seeks a Senior Manager Customer Projects to lead strategic, high-impact initiatives within the Shared Production Unit. You will own end-to-end programs such as product ramp-ups, launches, transfers and productivity improvements, translating customer needs into actionable execution.

You will align senior stakeholders across functions, drive decisions and deliver measurable business impact in a complex production environment, communicating risks and progress clearly to

Qualifications

• Minimum a university degree in engineering, physics, optics, natural sciences or business and a strong academic record.
• Proven track record in management consulting, corporate strategy, transformation, program/project management, operations or customer-facing roles.

Responsibilities

• Identify, scope, structure and lead strategic and operational projects with ZEISS units, external customers and internal teams.
• Structure complex challenges into clear workstreams, decision points and actionable project plans.
• Take ownership for end-to-end delivery and represent projects credibly to customers and stakeholders.
• Manage projects to ensure on-time, on-budget, high-quality delivery with measurable impact.
• Drive cross-functional alignment across functions, sites and levels, even without direct reporting lines.
• Propose pragmatic, solution-oriented approaches and drive adoption in a multi-stakeholder environment.
• Communicate progress, risks and decisions clearly to all stakeholders and senior management.

Skills

Management consulting

Stakeholder alignment

Project leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

University degree in engineering, physics, optics, natural sciences, business

Tools

Lean

Six Sigma

Job description

Your Role

We are seeking a highly motivated and experienced Senior Manager Customer Projects to lead strategic, high-impact initiatives across the ZEISS Shared Production Unit. You will take end-to-end responsibility for complex customer-related programs – including product ramp-ups, new product launches, production transfers and productivity initiatives – and translate customer requirements into robust operational execution.

Working across functions and organizational boundaries, you will align senior stakeholders, drive decisions and deliver measurable business outcomes in a complex production environment.

• Identify, scope, structure and lead strategic and operational projects with ZEISS Strategic Business Units, external customers and the Shared Production Unit team
• Structure complex challenges into clear workstreams, decision points and actionable project plans
• Take ownership for successful end-to-end project delivery and represent projects credibly towards internal and external customers
• Manage projects to ensure on-time, on-budget and high-quality delivery with measurable business impact
• Drive cross-functional alignment and implementation across functions, sites and hierarchical levels, including in situations without direct reporting authority
• Bring a pragmatic, solution-oriented perspective to identify the best solutions in a complex multi-stakeholder environment and challenge established ways of working constructively
• Communicate progress, risks, decisions and required escalations clearly to all stakeholders and senior managemen

Your Profile

• University degree in engineering, physics, optics, natural sciences, business, or a comparable field, with a strong academic record
• Several years of relevant experience in management consulting, corporate strategy, transformation, program/project management, operations, or customer-facing roles
• Proven track record of leading complex, high-impact cross-functional initiatives, ideally in product ramp-ups, industrialization, production transfers, launches, or operational improvement
• Strong analytical and problem-structuring skills, with the ability to turn ambiguous challenges into clear recommendations, decisions, and executable plans
• Demonstrated lateral leadership: able to create alignment across organizational boundaries, engage stakeholders from shopfloor to senior management, and drive implementation without direct authority
• High ownership, resilience, and results orientation; experience in manufacturing, Operational Excellence or Lean is strongly preferred, while a technical background in physics, optics, or engineering is an advantage

Your ZEISS Recruiting Team

Norman Funk