Director, Engineering

Edwards Lifesciences Gruppe; East Alton (IL); On-site; USD 159,000 - 226,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Performance-based incentives

Benefits programs

Job summary

Edwards Lifesciences is seeking a Director of Global Supply Chain and Quality (GSCQ) to lead textile materials manufacturing, scale‑up, and supplier partnerships for implantable medical devices. You will oversee validation, scale‑up, and continuous improvement across knit, woven, non‑woven, and braided components, aligning engineering, manufacturing, and quality with business goals.

This role demands strategic leadership, cross‑functional collaboration, and the ability to deploy Lean/Six Sigma

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering required with strong foundation in materials/texiles/polymers.
• Proven experience leading engineering teams in medical device or textile manufacturing.
• Willingness to travel up to 25% domestically and internationally.
• On-site presence required to lead cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead a high‑performing team of engineers and scientists with a culture of accountability and collaboration.
• Oversee transfer, qualification, scale‑up, and design for manufacturability of textile components for implant networks.
• Define strategic and tactical initiatives across technical operations and process engineering.
• Drive continuous improvement using Lean, Six Sigma, and other quality tools to enhance capability and performance.
• Manage budgets, resource planning, and development of talent across global supply chains.
• Establish and nurture supplier relationships and external technology partnerships to maintain supply continuity.

Skills

Leadership

Engineering Management

Textile Engineering

Six Sigma

Medical devices knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering

Tools

MS Project

MS Office

Job description

Imagine how your ideas and expertise can directly change a patient’s life. Our Global Supply Chain and Quality (GSCQ) team plays a critical role in ensuring life‑saving cardiovascular therapies are reliably delivered to patients around the world. In this role, you will collaborate closely with manufacturing operations, engineering, and commercial teams to solve complex challenges and deliver practical, high‑impact solutions, while continuing to build deep expertise in the medical device industry. Whether your focus is strategic inventory planning, labeling, warehouse and material management, or other supply chain functions, your work will make a meaningful difference—to our team and to patients globally. This is a highly impactful leadership role responsible for driving the innovation, scale‑up, and commercialization of advanced materials technologies used in implantable medical devices. The role provides oversight of validation, scale‑up, and continuous improvement for knit, woven, non‑woven, and braided textile components, ensuring strong alignment across engineering, manufacturing, quality, and business objectives. Through technical leadership and cross‑functional collaboration, you will help translate innovative concepts into robust, scalable solutions that support life‑saving products. Partnering closely with R&D, Quality, Operations, and external industry technology leaders, the Director leads the design and deployment of scalable, reliable manufacturing solutions that support complex, high-quality medical products. This role drives operational excellence through continuous improvement, leveraging Lean and Six Sigma methodologies to enhance efficiency, quality, and consistency across global operations. The Director is a strategic leader who inspires innovation, builds and develops high-performing engineering teams, and strengthens cross-functional collaboration—ultimately enabling the delivery of life‑changing therapies and making a meaningful impact on patients worldwide.

How you’ll make an impact:

• Develop and execute strategic plans to seamlessly transfer and qualify textile component designs into the Implant Network supply chain and global manufacturing operations, ensuring readiness, scalability, and sustained performance.
• Partner closely with the Textiles Center of Excellence (COE) and New Product Development teams to embed Design for Manufacturability (DFM) principles early in the development lifecycle, enabling robust, scalable, and cost‑effective solutions across the new product portfolio.
• Define and drive both strategic and tactical initiatives aligned with the vision, priorities, and long‑term objectives of the Implant Network Technical Operations and Process Engineering organizations.
• Lead, coach, and inspire a high‑performing team of engineers and scientists, fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration, technical rigor, and strong customer focus.
• Attract, develop, and retain top textile engineering talent, building strong succession plans and technical depth to meet current business demands and future growth objectives.
• Establish and manage strategic supplier relationships and external technology partnerships to support innovation, ensure product quality, and maintain continuity of supply across the global network.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives by identifying, prioritizing, and executing opportunities to enhance manufacturing capability and performance using DFM, Six Sigma, and Lean Manufacturing principles.
• Oversee budgets, resource planning, and talent development, ensuring efficient utilization of resources and effective execution of business and operational objectives.

What you’ll need (Required):

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering is required, with a preferred concentration or strong foundation in Material Science, Chemical Engineering, Textile Engineering and/or Polymer Science.
• Proven experience leading, managing, and developing engineering teams, ideally within the medical device, advanced materials, or textile manufacturing industries.
• Willingness to travel up to 25%, both domestically and internationally, as required to support business and manufacturing needs.
• On‑site presence required to effectively lead teams, collaborate cross‑functionally, and support manufacturing operations.

What else we look for (Preferred):

• Master’s degree.
• Six Sigma Black Belt certification is highly desirable.
• Demonstrated deep subject‑matter expertise in material engineering and/or textile manufacturing technologies, with the ability to apply technical knowledge to scalable, production‑ready solutions.
• Demonstrated experience with Performance Qualification (PQ), Design Verification, Validation, and Biocompatibility evaluation of materials and components for Class II and Class III medical device applications.
• Strong business acumen, with a proven track record of developing and executing both strategic and tactical technical business plans aligned with organizational objectives.
• Exceptional communication, negotiation, and presentation skills, with the ability to convey complex technical and strategic concepts and influence decision‑making at the highest levels of the organization.
• Proven ability to establish and sustain strategic relationships with raw material and component suppliers, academic institutions, and external technology partners.
• Demonstrated capability to manage complex technical programs and global supply chains, effectively balancing risk, priorities, and execution in fast‑paced environments with aggressive timelines.
• Experience applying Six Sigma tools to solve complex technical challenges and leveraging Lean Manufacturing principles to develop robust, sustainable manufacturing processes.
• Proficient in the Microsoft Office Suite, including MS Project, to support planning, execution, and communication of technical initiatives.

Aligning our overall business objectives with performance, we offer competitive salaries, performance-based incentives, and a wide variety of benefits programs to address the diverse individual needs of our employees and their families.

For California (CA), the base pay range for this position is $159,000 to $226,000 (highly experienced). The pay for the successful candidate will depend on various factors (e.g., qualifications, education, prior experience). Applications will be accepted while this position is posted on our Careers website.

Edwards is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer including protected Veterans and individuals with disabilities.

Edwards Lifesciences is the leading global structural heart innovation company, driven by a passion to improve patient lives. Through breakthrough technologies, world‑class evidence and partnerships with clinicians and healthcare stakeholders, our employees are inspired by our patient‑focused culture to deliver life‑changing innovations to those who need them most.