Director - Supplier Development, Industrialization and Quality

Rivian Automotive; Plymouth Charter Township (MI); On-site; USD 183,000 - 287,000; Full time

Job summary

Rivian Automotive is seeking a Director of Supplier Development, Industrialization & Quality to lead a global team responsible for end-to-end supplier execution, capability building, tooling industrialization and quality assurance across Rivian's supply base.

The ideal leader brings deep automotive or EV experience, combining technical rigor with hands-on problem solving to ensure flawless program execution, capacity realization and zero-defect quality across launch and current production

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Electrical, Industrial, or Manufacturing) or related field.
• Supply Chain Management or related technical field.
• Master's degree preferred.

Responsibilities

• Strategic Organization Leadership: Build, lead and mentor a global team of Supplier Development, Industrialization & Quality Engineers across major commodity sectors.
• Cradle-to-Grave Part & Supplier Ownership: End-to-end component ownership and cross-functional alignment across pre-PPAP and post-PPAP production quality.
• Upstream Quality Prevention: Conduct DFM, DFMEA and PFMEA reviews early in program development cycles with Engineering and Purchasing.
• Tooling & Capacity Industrialization: Oversee supplier tooling timelines, audits and capacity mapping to resolve bottlenecks.
• Rigorous PPAP & Launch Gatekeeping: Enforce APQP/PPAP, Safe Launch protocols and recovery plans for supplier milestones.
• Rapid Problem Solving & On-Site Triage: Deploy resources to supplier facilities for root-cause analyses and yield recovery.
• Supplier Performance & Governance: Track global supplier scorecards, audits and corrective action programs.
• Cross-Functional Executive Partnership: Align sourcing strategies with Procurement, Hardware Engineering, Manufacturing Operations.

Skills

Leadership & Change Management

Communication & Negotiation

Operational & Analytical Discipline

Willingness to Travel

Cradle-to-Grave Domain Expertise

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering

Master's degree preferred

Tools

APQP/PPAP

PFMEA

SPC

8D

5-Why

Poka-Yoke

Lean Manufacturing

Job description

About Rivian

Rivian is on a mission to keep the world adventurous forever. This goes for the emissions-free Electric Adventure Vehicles we build, and the curious, courageous souls we seek to attract.

As a company, we constantly challenge what's possible, never simply accepting what has always been done. We reframe old problems, seek new solutions and operate comfortably in areas that are unknown. Our backgrounds are diverse, but our team shares a love of the outdoors and a desire to protect it for future generations.

Role Summary

The Director of Supplier Development, Industrialization & Quality will lead a team responsible for end-to-end supplier execution, capability building, tooling industrialization and quality assurance across Rivian's global supply base. Merging pre-PPAP development engineering with post-PPAP quality management, this role establishes a single point of accountability for parts and systems from concept and tooling kickoff through ramp-up and serial production.

The ideal leader brings deep automotive or EV industrialization experience, combining technical rigor with a "boots on the ground" problem-solving methodology to ensure flawless program execution, capacity realization and zero-defect quality across launch and current production vehicles.

Responsibilities

• Strategic Organization Leadership: Build, lead and mentor a high-performing global team of Supplier Development, Industrialization & Quality Engineers across major commodity sectors (e.g. Chassis, Battery, Drive Unit, Thermal, Interior, Exterior and Power Distribution).
• Cradle-to-Grave Part & Supplier Ownership: Oversee end-to-end component ownership, streamlining supplier communications and cross-functional alignment across both pre-PPAP development and post-PPAP production quality.
• Upstream Quality Prevention: Engage early in program development cycles alongside Engineering and Purchasing to conduct DFM, DFMEA and PFMEA reviews, resolving downstream ramp and quality constraints long before Start of Production (SOP).
• Tooling & Capacity Industrialization: Oversee supplier industrialization timelines, tool kickoffs, tooling audits and station-by-station capacity mapping (JPH / throughput modeling, sensor checks and Poka-Yoke validations) to resolve yield bottlenecks and secure confirmed production volumes.
• Rigorous PPAP & Launch Gatekeeping: Enforce strict APQP/PPAP gatekeeper discipline, executing Safe Launch containment protocols, Rate-at-Rate verifications and mandatory recovery glide paths for supplier milestones.
• Rapid Problem Solving & On-Site Triage: Deploy resources directly to supplier facilities during critical ramps to perform root-cause analyses (5-Why, 8D, PFMEA updates) and drive immediate yield and quality recovery.
• Supplier Performance & Governance: Establish and track global supplier scorecards, quality metrics, and audit schedules, driving corrective action plans and ongoing continuous improvement initiatives across the supply chain.
• Cross-Functional Executive Partnership: Collaborate closely with Procurement, Hardware Engineering, Manufacturing Operations and Program Management to align sourcing strategies.

Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Electrical, Industrial, or Manufacturing), Supply Chain Management or a related technical field. Master's degree preferred.
• Experience: 15+ years of progressive leadership experience in supplier development, supplier quality or manufacturing industrialization within the automotive or high-growth EV sector.
• Cradle-to-Grave Domain Expertise: Proven track record of managing components through the entire lifecycle - from early engineering design reviews, APQP and PPAP approval to serial production quality management.
• Technical Mastery: Deep proficiency in core quality and manufacturing tools such as APQP, PPAP, PFMEA, SPC, 8D, 5-Why, Poke-Yoke systems and Lean Manufacturing.
• Operational & Analytical Discipline: Demonstrated experience in hands-on bottleneck resolution, capacity modeling, line-walk audits and data-driven root-cause problem solving.
• Leadership & Change Management: Experience building, restructuring or scaling global technical teams, instilling operational discipline and metric accountability while maintaining startup agility.
• Communication & Negotiation: Exceptional interpersonal and executive presentation skills; capable of holding supplier C-suite leadership accountable to Rivian performance expectations.
• Willingness to Travel: Ability to travel up to 50% (domestic and international) to engage suppliers directly on-site.

Pay Disclosure

The salary range for this role is USD $183,000.00-$262,000.00 for Normal, IL and Plymouth, MI based applicants and $201,000-$287,000 for Irvine, CA. This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee's position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, specific competencies, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, shift, and organizational needs.
The successful candidate may be eligible for annual performance bonus and equity awards.