You will serve as a key bridge, translating visionary concepts and emerging technologies into tangible, high-quality interior solutions. Working in close partnership with Design and Release, Program Quality Teams, and a diverse array of cross-functional teams, you will ensure that our interior designs not only meet the highest standards of quality and customer expectation but also set new benchmarks for innovation and user experience. This role demands visionary leadership, extensive Design and Release experience in Interior Systems and Components, a deep understanding of advanced automotive manufacturing and launch processes, an unwavering commitment to pioneering quality, and the exceptional ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams, external partners, and suppliers to bring cutting-edge interior innovations to life. **You Will…** + Pioneer Interior Innovation: Proactively identify, evaluate, and champion the industrialization of novel interior technologies, materials, and design concepts into forward model programs, ensuring Ford remains at the forefront of automotive interior innovation. + Strategic Design Content Review: Review forward model program Interior Design Content with a keen eye for future trends and customer expectations, identifying opportunities for innovative enhancements and ensuring comprehensive closure plans for any quality or experience gaps. + Robust Innovation Integration: Actively participate in design reviews, DFMEAs (Design Failure Mode and Effects Analysis), and other risk mitigation activities, providing specialized technical expertise to ensure that innovative designs are robust, reliable, and production-ready. + Solve Complex Innovation Challenges: Identify, analyze, and resolve complex technical issues unique to new or advanced interior components and systems, employing advanced root cause analysis and problem-solving methodologies. Six Sigma certification is a plus. + Future-Proofing & Technology Scouting: Proactively research and stay abreast of the latest automotive technologies, emerging materials, and transformative trends in interior design and engineering, including advancements in smart surfaces, sustainable materials, advanced Human-Machine Interface (HMI), personalized experiences, lightweighting, and cutting-edge manufacturing techniques like additive manufacturing. + Drive Iterative Innovation: Champion continuous improvement initiatives within the team, establishing effective prevention measures and fostering a culture of capturing and communicating lessons learned from innovative design processes. + Validate Innovative Requirements: Audit Design and Release engineering requirements and test reports for accuracy and clarity, ensuring they adequately address the unique characteristics and performance needs of innovative interior features. + Enable Advanced Manufacturing: Evaluate manufacturing process controls to ensure that the unique design characteristics of innovative components are properly controlled and seamlessly integrated into production. + Optimize Innovation Handoff: Collaborate closely with the Functional Engineering team to optimize the handoff process between design and manufacturing, facilitating the smooth transition of complex and novel interior designs into production. + Set New Quality Standards: Lead the development and implementation of Design Quality Best Practices for interior systems, ensuring adherence to Ford Standards while actively seeking to understand and integrate pioneering quality benchmarks from within and outside the automotive industry. + Catalyze Design Studio Vision: Work collaboratively with the Design Studio to identify and highlight both risks and opportunities for Design Quality, empowering the realization of their most visionary interior concepts. + **You'll Have…** Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or other relevant Engineering discipline. + 10+ years of experience in automotive interior design, development, validation, and quality assurance, with a proven track record of contributing to or leading the industrialization of significant interior innovations or first-to-market features. + 8+ years of experience in a leadership/management role within an automotive engineering environment, ideally with experience managing teams focused on advanced development or innovation. + Deep technical knowledge of automotive interior components and systems, including emerging materials, advanced manufacturing processes (e.g., smart textiles, integrated electronics, additive manufacturing), and assembly techniques, beyond traditional methods. + Expertise in Failure Mode avoidance processes (DFMEA, Boundary Diagram, P-Diagram), applied to complex, novel systems. + Strong understanding of reliability principles, including their application in validation plans for new and innovative technologies. + Lean Six Sigma (Green or Black Belt) Certification or similar experience in structured problem-solving, particularly for complex, undefined problems inherent in innovation. + Excellent communication (written and verbal), interpersonal, and leadership skills, with the ability to articulate complex technical and innovative concepts to very senior leaders and cross-functional teams. + Proven ability to manage and motivate a team of highly skilled engineers, fostering an environment of creativity and technical excellence. + Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to thrive under pressure, comfortable navigating ambiguity and defining clear paths forward for emerging technologies. + Ability to think strategically and independently, possessing the foresight to discern next steps for innovation without extensive guidance and to champion new ideas effectively. **What you'll receive in return…** As part of the Ford family, you’ll enjoy excellent compensation, and a comprehensive benefits package that includes generous PTO, retirement, savings and stock investment plans, incentive compensation, and much more. You’ll also experience exciting opportunities for professional and personal growth and recognition. Our benefits summary can be found here: https://corporate.ford.com/content/dam/corporate/us/en-us/documents/careers/2025-new-hire-benefit-summary-LL4.pdf 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. This position is a leadership level 4. 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. Onsite work of up to three days per week may be required for candidates within commuting distance of a Ford hub location. #LI-Onsite #LI-MB3 **Requisition ID** : 49556