Chief of Staff & Operations - Hardware Engineering

The Chief of Staff & Business Operations Manager for Vehicle Hardware Engineering (VHE) is a leadership position reporting directly to the Vice President of Vehicle Hardware Engineering . In this high-impact role, you will lead and manage the dedicated VHE Business Operations & Strategic Engineering Management Team —the operational engine responsible for strategy, process governance, business performance, and cultural execution across global hardware engineering.

As Chief of Staff, you serve as a strategic partner, trusted proxy, and operational integrator for the VP. You will lead your team to bridge Executive Leadership Team (ELT) objectives with ground-level engineering execution, transitioning VHE from a traditional product developer into an enterprise Strategic Asset delivering market-leading product quality, bulletproof reliability, and unmatched cost efficiency.

- Education: Master’s degree in Engineering, Business Administration (MBA), or related technical management field required. Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Systems, or Automotive Engineering strongly preferred.

- People Management & Team Leadership: 2+ years of direct experience managing high-performing teams of operational, process, or program management professionals within complex global manufacturing/automotive organizations.

- Progressive Engineering Experience: 10+ years of progressive leadership experience in automotive hardware engineering, D&R processes, GPDS vehicle gateways, FEDE BoM management, and B10 reliability standards.

- Process & Quality Mastery: Demonstrated expertise in 8D root-cause problem solving, Failure Mode Avoidance (FMA), DFMEA, Design for Manufacture & Assembly (DFM/DFA), and Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE).

- Strategic & Business Acumen: Proven track record in multi-year strategic planning, engineering productivity modeling, ED&T should-cost analysis, prototype multiplier management, and footprint optimization.

- Executive Presence & Communication: Exceptional oral and written communication skills; ability to synthesize complex technical challenges, present to Executive Leadership Teams (ELT), and drive cross-functional consensus.

- High Reliability Leadership Mindset: Deep commitment to First-Principles thinking, intellectual humility, operational curiosity, and building safe, structural escalation mechanisms for technical risks.

You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!

As an established global company, we offer the benefit of choice. You can choose what your Ford future will look like: will your story span the globe, or keep you close to home? Will your career be a deep dive into what you love, or a series of new teams and new skills? Will you be a leader, a changemaker, a technical expert, a culture builder…or all of the above? No matter what you choose, we offer a work life that works for you, including:
• 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.

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.

For more information on salary and benefits, click here: https://fordcareers.co/LL5

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.