Program Manager

Lakeside Recruiting Solutions; Birmingham (AL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Lakeside Recruiting Solutions is seeking a Program Manager to lead automotive programs from quotation to production readiness and ongoing support. You will interface with engineering, quality, operations, supply chain, tooling, and leadership to ensure on-time, within-budget delivery aligned with customer requirements.

Responsibilities include creating and maintaining timing plans, coordinating cross-functional activities, managing APQP/PPAP activities, and presenting status reports to customers

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Business, Operations Management, or related field.
• 5 years of automotive manufacturing and program management experience.
• Experience with new product launches, tooling projects, and customer deliverables.

Responsibilities

• Lead assigned automotive manufacturing programs from award through launch, production ramp-up, and ongoing production support.
• Develop, maintain, and communicate program timing plans, milestones, deliverables, open issues, and risk mitigation plans.
• Serve as the primary customer contact for program timing, technical deliverables, launch readiness, engineering changes, commercial issues, and program status updates.
• Coordinate cross-functional activities with engineering, quality, production, maintenance, purchasing, logistics, finance, tooling, and plant operations teams.
• Manage APQP activities, including feasibility reviews, design reviews, process flow, PFMEA, control plans, gage planning, capability studies, run-at-rate activities, PPAP submissions, and customer approvals.
• Track tooling, equipment, fixtures, gauges, packaging, EDI requirements, material readiness, and supplier deliverables to support successful program launch.
• Support engineering change management by evaluating timing, cost, quality, material, tooling, and production impacts.
• Monitor program budgets, capital expenditures, tooling costs, material costs, and change requests to ensure financial targets are achieved.
• Coordinate prototype builds, pre-production trials, process validation, PPAP runs, and launch readiness reviews.
• Support customer visits, audits, launch meetings, technical reviews, and issue-resolution activities.
• Prepare and present program status reports to customers, leadership, and internal stakeholders.

Skills

Program management

Cross-functional collaboration

Project planning

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering/Manufacturing/Business

Tools

APQP processes

PPAP submissions

Job description

The Program Manager will be responsible for leading and coordinating customer programs from quotation, development, tooling, launch, and production readiness through full production support. This role serves as the primary interface between the customer, engineering, quality, operations, supply chain, tooling, and plant leadership teams to ensure programs are delivered on time, within budget, and in alignment with customer requirements.

Responsibilities

• Lead assigned automotive manufacturing programs from award through launch, production ramp-up, and ongoing production support.
• Develop, maintain, and communicate program timing plans, milestones, deliverables, open issues, and risk mitigation plans.
• Serve as the primary customer contact for program timing, technical deliverables, launch readiness, engineering changes, commercial issues, and program status updates.
• Coordinate cross-functional activities with engineering, quality, production, maintenance, purchasing, logistics, finance, tooling, and plant operations teams
• Manage APQP activities, including feasibility reviews, design reviews, process flow, PFMEA, control plans, gage planning, capability studies, run-at-rate activities, PPAP submissions, and customer approvals.
• Track tooling, equipment, fixtures, gauges, packaging, EDI requirements, material readiness, and supplier deliverables to support successful program launch.
• Support engineering change management by evaluating timing, cost, quality, material, tooling, and production impacts.
• Monitor program budgets, capital expenditures, tooling costs, material costs, and change requests to ensure financial targets are achieved.
• Coordinate prototype builds, pre-production trials, process validation, PPAP runs, and launch readiness reviews.
• Support customer visits, audits, launch meetings, technical reviews, and issue-resolution activities.
• Prepare and present program status reports to customers, leadership, and internal stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Business, Operations Management, or a related field; equivalent experience may be considered.
• 5 years of experience in automotive manufacturing, program management, launch management, engineering, quality, or operations.
• Experience managing new product launches, engineering changes, tooling projects, and customer program deliverables.
• Experience with aluminum die casting, high-pressure die casting, machining, tooling, or automotive structural/component manufacturing
• Experience working with OEMs or Tier 1 automotive suppliers.