Prototype Program Lead

Stellantis; Auburn Hills (MI); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Stellantis in Auburn Hills, MI, is building a Design & Manufacturing of Advanced Demonstrators (DMAD) team in North America. The role leads a high-impact group delivering rapid prototyping, cross-functional engineering, and agile execution to advance automotive innovations.

You will shape priorities, manage resources, and ensure delivery across quality, cost and schedule while mentoring engineers and coordinating with suppliers and stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical or Electrical Engineering.
• 8+ years working experience in the Automotive Industry.
• Experience in BIW transformation, vehicle architecture and prototyping processes.
• English: able to lead meetings in English.

Responsibilities

• Managerial and operational responsibility for teams.
• Accountable for resources and results.
• Internal team composition: non-management and management employees.
• Typical team size: 5 to 10 employees plus contractors.
• Activity scope: primarily local/regional.
• Technical scope: programs, projects, serial-life activities, or engineering standards.
• Forward-looking strategic vision.
• Custodian of regional standards and reference frameworks.

Skills

Leadership

Cross-functional coordination

Problem solving

Communication

Stakeholder management

Fast-paced environment

Education

Bachelors in ME/EE

Job description

We are hiring and building a Design & Manufacturing of Advanced Demonstrators (DMAD) team in North America. DMAD supports innovation across all Group entities and regions. We act as a strategic enabler for both upstream research phases and downstream development and industrial activities. Our ambition is to deploy our unique model globally, bringing excellence in advanced prototyping to key regions,
including North America.We are a high-impact execution team:Specifications makers, Full-stack engineering capabilities, Strong multidisciplinary expertise, Cross functional project management, Rapid prototyping & technical integration andAgile, decision-driven execution.

Key Activities:

• Lead the team by defining priorities to ensure that all expected results and deliverables are achieved.
• Ensure the quality and relevance of team deliverables in accordance with project milestones.
• Direct activities and processes to contribute to the performance objectives assigned to the department across QCDP dimensions (Quality, Cost, Delivery, Performance), including value optimization, mass reduction, and complexity reduction targets.
• Supervise outsourced deliverables by ensuring the robustness of input data, assessing deliverable quality, and driving continuous improvement plans.
• Anticipate staffing requirements (internal and external) in line with project and deliverable schedules.
• Manage workload and define internal or external resources required to support and execute programs. Manage external resources to ensure deliverables are achieved.
• When applicable, develop and maintain knowledge of key suppliers and establish operational plans for using their capabilities and expertise.
• Participate in structured problem-solving activities (Problem Resolution, DFSS) and maintain best practices through lessons learned across regions and global teams.
• Define and manage team standards and verify their application across all projects.
• Leverage competitive benchmarking activities in collaboration with the Global Technical Team when relevant.
• Ensure standards are developed in cooperation with methods and expert teams.
• Coach and support team members and ensure required competencies are developed through training and mentoring.
• Conduct individual performance reviews, regular one-to-one meetings, and competency assessments.
• Define and monitor individual training plans.
• Implement and lead safety initiatives aligned with team activities, including shop-floor safety walks.

Responsibilities:

• Managerial and operational responsibility for teams.
• Accountable for resources and results.
• Internal team composition: non-management and management employees.
• Typical team size: 5 to 10 employees plus contractors.
• Activity scope: primarily local/regional.
• Technical scope: programs, projects, serial-life activities, or engineering standards.
• Forward-looking strategic vision.
• Custodian of regional standards and reference frameworks.

Working Relationships:

• Reports to the Discipline Manager.
• Provides guidance and direction to team members.
• Shares strategic vision when requested by management.
• Cooperates with internal and external stakeholders.
• Contributes to strategy discussions with internal and external partners.
• Builds and manages relationships with external service providers.

Profile

• Bachelor’s degree Mechanical or Electrical Engineering
• Minimum 8 years working experience in the Automotive Industry
• Experience in BIW transformation, vehicle architecture and synthesis and prototyping processes
• English: able to lead meetings in English

Key Skills & Qualifications

• Proven leadership and cross-functional team coordination skills.
• Excellent problem-solving and technical decision-making abilities.
• Experience managing engineering risks, requirements, and validation activities.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management capabilities.
• Ability to work in fast-paced and evolving development environments.