Quality Manager

Job Description:

Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc.

When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other. We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.

Role Definition

This is a leadership role that will work directly with department heads within Thiruvallur Operations team and RFT Product groups (Rigid Frame Trucks: 770-793, LMT-PC, OHT, Bodies & Buckets), and will collaborate between various parts of the enterprise.

Role will report directly to LMT-PC (785-793) PVSM, with dotted-line to OHT (770-777) PVSM & Thiruvallur Facility Mgr.

Analyzes customer requirements, defines specifications for products and services, and develops quality control processes to review and ensure compliance with quality standards.

Responsibilities

Ensure RFT products built in Thiruvallur achieve world-class quality levels quickly, and facilitate a culture of Continuous Improvement. Initial focus on Zero Months in Service (0 MIS) Defects per Unit (DPU) & 2 MIS , with an expanding focus on 12-36 MIS DPU. Facilitate partnership and replication, increase collaboration between all facets of the organization. Most closely between Operations (Thiruvallur, Decatur and others) and the RFT Product organizations (LMT-PC & OHT – Design, Product Support and Value Chain), but also with the broader organization - including but not limited to: Suppliers, Purchasing organizations, Regional Marketing teams, Wheeled Product Engineering, LPSD-Drivetrain & Engines, Mining Center of Excellence, and PSLD. Focus with priority on protecting the customer, ensuring the flow of defects is stopped (BIQ Stop Capability), and working to resolve issues (RCCA) with a focus on 1) designing out the possibility of defects, 2) ensuring processes eliminate the possibility of defects, and 3) ensuring controls are in place to check and ensure defects are found. Collaborate through all teams and initiatives that impact product quality. Work with leaders at various levels of the organization to ensure teams are growing in their ability to collaborate and reduce defects through the extended value chain (Design > Suppliers > Manufacturing > Transportation > Field Assembly > Aftermarket) Work with Product Support teams, including travel to better understand defects experienced in the field, and ensure understanding through the value chain to causal areas. Direct responsibility will include Pre-Delivery Audit (PDA) for CIPL-built products, but primary influence will be from indirect responsibilities, networking with other teams and ensuring replication across the broader organization.

Degree Requirement

Degree required.

Skill Descriptors

Customer Focus: Knowledge of the values and practices that align customer needs and satisfaction as primary considerations in all business decisions and ability to leverage that information in creating customized customer solutions.

Level Expert:

Champions, models and directs an organization's commitment to externally focused decision-making tied to customer business needs and satisfaction. Provides customer focused vision, strategy and leadership that exceeds customer expectations. Persuasively articulates the link between customer focus and enhanced business success to stakeholders. Teaches others to foster customer relationships based on mutual understanding, respect, trust and 'business partnering'. Develops 'best practices' to create, evaluate and enhance customer loyalty that are sought by others within and outside the organization. Consults with senior executives regarding critical success factors and details to being a customer focused organization.

Planning: Tactical, Strategic: Knowledge of effective planning techniques and ability to contribute to operational (short term), tactical (1-2 years) and strategic (3-5 years) planning in support of the overall business plan.

Level Expert:

Develops, refines, and communicates tactical plans for own responsibilities. Provides the right level of detail as input for strategic plan development. Demonstrates the value and necessity of linking tactical plans to overall strategic plan. Ensures attention to the detail and dependencies of existing departmental-level plans. Plans for allocation of resources in line with unit goals, technical and business objectives. Ensures the planning process is integrated with the overall business plan.

Quality Management: Knowledge of quality management methods, tools, and techniques and ability to create and support an environment that meets the quality goals of the organization.

Level Extensive Experience:

Raises awareness of the impact of quality management on the bottom line. Works with organization's executives to establish appropriate approach to quality management. Directs development of quality guidelines, policies, and procedures. Assesses industry and marketplace for quality management best practices and tools. Consults on quality metrics, practices, guidelines, policies, and procedures. Monitors organization and industry experience, and identifies improvement opportunities.

Decision Making and Critical Thinking: Knowledge of the decision-making process and associated tools and techniques; ability to accurately analyze situations and reach productive decisions based on informed judgment.

Level Extensive Experience:

Differentiates assumptions, perspectives, and historical frameworks. Evaluates past decisions for insights to improve decision-making process. Assesses and validates decision options and points and predicts their potential impact. Advises others in analyzing and synthesizing relevant data and assessing alternatives. Uses effective decision-making approaches such as consultative, command, or consensus. Ensures that assumptions and received wisdom are objectively analyzed in decisions.

Influencing: Knowledge of effective influencing tactics and strategies; ability to impact decisions within and outside own organization.

Level Extensive Experience:

Achieves influence and impact even when holding a position contrary to the majority. Discards examples of persuasive arguments lacking substance or impact. Leads and presents collaborative assessments that persuasively influence decision makers. Advises on techniques to build rapport and commitment to common purpose. Determines and leverages the decision-making style of the individual or group being influenced. Delivers well-received presentations of cost, benefits, risks, and other considerations.

Problem Solving: Knowledge of approaches, tools, techniques for recognizing, anticipating, and resolving organizational, operational or process problems; ability to apply knowledge of problem solving appropriately to diverse situations.

Level Extensive Experience:

Ensures capture of lessons to be learned from a problem-solving effort. Organizes potential problem solvers and leads problem resolution efforts. Uses varying problem-solving approaches and techniques as appropriate. Contributes to standard practices for problem-solving approaches, tools, and processes. Analyzes and synthesizes information and devises alternative resolution strategies. Develops successful resolutions to critical or wide-impact problems.

Quality Risk Management: Knowledge of processes, tools, and techniques for Quality Risk Management; ability to implement the quality assurance process of assessment, control, communication, and review of risks to the quality of products.

Level Extensive Experience:

Analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of various Quality Risk Management models. Coaches others on how to effectively mitigate risks associated with quality. Consults on quality risks metrics, practices, guidelines, policies, and procedures. Designs awareness programs and campaigns for mitigating cross-functional quality issues. Leads crisis management team to determine the severity of crises and initiates appropriate response actions. Supervises the documentation and evaluation of Quality Risk Management processes.

Manufacturing Standards, Procedures and Policies: Knowledge of organizational standards, procedures and policies in manufacturing activities; ability to plan, guide, and monitor manufacturing processes for compliance.

Level Extensive Experience:

Consults on development and implementation of cross-functional standards. Participates in the development of organizational policies and practices. Develops and uses control and monitoring mechanisms for adherence. Collaborates with other functions on establishing and documenting joint standards. Participates in defining architectural principles and standards for organization. Ensures communication vehicles are effectively informing affected areas and employees.

Root Cause Analysis (RCA): Knowledge of the concepts, principles and techniques of root cause analysis (RCA); ability to use a structured approach to identify the causes of undesirable consequences in a manufacturing environment and the changes needed to prevent recurrences.

Level Extensive Experience:

Leads the implementation of structured approaches to investigate a vast range of problem types, determine causes, and find resolutions. Mentors others in determining which situations are candidates for root cause analysis. Facilitates choosing one of multiple approaches to resolution; helps weigh relative resource expenditures. Consults on figuring out the root cause to a complex problem or situation. Oversees situations where the removal of the cause entails more resource expenditure than dealing with the symptom. Creates and fosters an RCA-friendly culture and environment; helps instill a "non-punitive" policy towards problem identifiers.

Effective Communications: Understanding of effective communication concepts, tools and techniques; ability to effectively transmit, receive, and accurately interpret ideas, information, and needs through the application of

appropriate communication behaviors.

Level Extensive Experience:

Reviews others' writing or presentations and provides feedback and coaching. Adapts documents and presentations for the intended audience. Demonstrates both empathy and assertiveness when communicating a need or defending a position. Communicates well downward, upward, and outward to both dealers and customers. Employs appropriate methods of persuasion when soliciting agreement. Maintains focus on the topic at hand.

Relationship Management: Knowledge of relationship management techniques; ability to establish and maintain healthy working relationships with clients, vendors, and peers.

Level Extensive Experience:

Communicates to clients regarding expectations of all parties. Participates in negotiating the terms of the business relationship. Conducts periodic reviews of work effort, progress, issues, and successes. Maintains productive, long-term relationships with clients or vendors. Creates opportunities to educate support teams on client priorities. Empowers others to establish collaborative, healthy relationships.

Strategic Thinking: Knowledge of the importance of "big picture" thinking and planning; ability to apply organizational acumen and competitiveness to identify and maintain focus on key success factors for the organization.

Level Extensive Experience:

Directs strategic alliances and partnerships for mutual benefit. Makes sound business decisions on behalf of the group when faced with complex and contradictory alternatives. Builds the strategic thinking capability of the group. Interprets available data and analyses when creating business plans. Recommends ways to position the organization for long-term competitiveness. Prepares the group's response to key marketplace trends, opportunities, and vulnerabilities.

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