Sr Safety Investigations Engineer

Ford-Motor-Company; Dearborn (MI); Hybrid; USD 116,000 - 218,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical/Dental/Vision coverage

Parental leave and family care days

Tuition assistance

Vehicle discount program for employees

Paid time off and holidays

Job summary

Ford Motor Credit Company seeks an accomplished engineer to lead safety defect investigations and collaborate with Product Development, Manufacturing, and Customer Service teams across global operations.

You will translate complex engineering data into clear executive-level arguments, interface with regulators, and help prevent recalls through rigorous analysis and documentation.

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science degree in a technical field as listed.
• 5+ years of engineering, quality assurance, systems safety, or defect investigation experience in complex hardware/software environments.
• Strong knowledge of modern vehicle systems, ECUs, and system architecture.
• Exceptional analytical and problem-solving abilities with rigorous root-cause analysis.
• Outstanding communication skills enabling clear, defensible arguments for executive and legal audiences.
• Ability to interface effectively with all levels of management.

Responsibilities

• Act as the lead technical investigator for internal and external safety defect and compliance investigations.
• Partner with cross-functional teams to design tests, conduct field surveys, and gather facts for risk evaluation.
• Document Ford’s engineering positions with rigorous data analysis and prepare reports for leadership.
• Collaborate with government agencies on investigations and audits; support OGC and outside law firms.
• Identify trends and lessons learned from field issues and feed insights back into development cycles to prevent recalls.
• Coordinate with regional and global teams to resolve worldwide vehicle concerns; maintain investigation documentation.

Skills

Analytical skills

Root cause analysis

Communication skills

Cross-functional collaboration

Data analysis

Education

Bachelor of Science in Mechanical, Electrical, Software, Systems Engineering or related field

Job description

The Ford Motor Credit Company team helps put people behind the wheels of great Ford and Lincoln vehicles. By partnering with dealerships, we provide financing, personalized service and professional expertise to thousands of dealers and millions of customers in over one hundred countries around the world.

What you'll do...

Prepare presentations and reports, including engineering analysis and the coordination of special vehicle/component demonstrations, to be used in both technical and non-technical discussions with all levels of leadership. Work proactively with NHTSA and TC on government investigations and compliance audits. Collaborate with facing organizations in the development of service solutions for potential field issues. Create and maintain investigation documentation in accordance with document retention guidelines and submit regulatory documentation as necessary. Identify potential lessons-learned opportunities in support of the company's efforts to prevent future potential recalls through involvement in stop ships, Prevent Action Closures, Campaign Trends Task Force meetings, SDS development, and other initiatives.

You'll have...

• Act as the lead technical investigator for internal and external safety defect and compliance investigations.
• Partner with cross-functional teams (Product Development, Manufacturing, Customer Service, Suppliers) to design special tests, conduct field surveys, and gather the facts necessary to evaluate potential safety and compliance risks.
• Establish and document Ford’s engineering positions using rigorous data analysis. Prepare comprehensive reports, presentations, and vehicle demonstrations for technical and non-technical audiences, including executive leadership.
• Work proactively with government agencies (e.g., NHTSA, Transport Canada) on investigations and compliance audits. Provide crucial technical assistance to the Office of General Counsel (OGC) and outside law firms.
• Identify global trends and 'lessons learned' from field issues. Inject these insights back into the product development cycle (via stop ships, Task Forces, and design updates) to proactively prevent future recalls.
• Work seamlessly with regional peers and global teams to resolve complex, worldwide vehicle concerns.
• Create & maintain investigation documentation in accordance with document retention guidelines and submit regulatory documentation as necessary.
• Identify potential lessons-learned opportunities in support of the company’s efforts to prevent future potential recalls through involvement in stop ships, Prevent Action Closures, Campaign Trends Task Force meetings, SDS development, and other initiatives.
• Provide technical assistance to the OGC, Design Analysis, PD activities, and outside law firms as appropriate.
• Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, Systems Engineering, or a related technical field.
• 5+ years of experience in engineering, quality assurance, systems safety, or defect investigation within complex hardware/software environments.
• Strong working knowledge of modern vehicle systems, electronic control units (ECUs), and system architecture.
• Exceptional analytical and problem-solving skills, with a proven ability to conduct rigorous root-cause analysis on highly complex technical issues.
• Outstanding communication skills; you must be able to translate dense engineering data into clear, defensible, and articulate arguments for executive and legal audiences.
• Ability to interface effectively with all levels of management.

Even better, you may have...

High emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills to effectively navigate high-pressure situations with diverse, cross-up global teams.

Even better:

• Hands-on experience in Software Development, Software Quality, or Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) engineering.
• Prior experience interacting directly with regulatory bodies (NHTSA, Transport Canada, FAA, FDA) or managing government compliance audits.
• A strong understanding of automotive OEM product development lifecycles and manufacturing processes (Ford-specific experience is a plus, but not required).
• Experience providing technical assistance to legal teams, participating in legal investigations, or drafting regulatory documentation.
• Familiarity with functional safety standards such as ISO 26262.

Benefits

• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage.
• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more.
• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more.
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases.
• Tuition assistance.
• Established and active employee resource groups.
• Paid time off for individual and team community service.
• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day.
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

This position is leadership level 6 and ranges from $115,500-$218,100.
Final determination of salary grade will be based on candidate's skills and experience, and base salary will be set within the applicable range according to job scope, responsibility and competitive market value.
Internal applicants: moving into this role may result in an adjustment to your current compensation based on the posted pay range for this role, taking into consideration your qualifications and other relevant factors.

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Candidates for positions with Ford Motor Company must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status. In the United States, if you need a reasonable accommodation for the online application process due to a disability, please call 1-888-336-0660.

This position is hybrid with a requirement to be onsite four or more days per week.