Director of Engineering

Summary of Position

The Director of Engineering provides hands-on technical leadership and strategic direction across Design Engineering, R&D, Equipment Start-ups, and Electrical Engineering. This person takes direct, hands-on ownership of equipment design quality and technical decisions, working closely in the details of design engineering with the design engineering manager, while relying on a strong electrical engineering lead, R&D engineering lead, and start-up engineering lead for other functions. A key part of this role is building engineering talent — mentoring and developing junior and mid-level engineers into strong technical contributors and future leaders. This position is a member of the executive leadership team (ELT) and is expected to attend ELT meetings and functions to contribute to the overall leadership of the organization.

Objectives

• Complete a full skills assessment of the Design Engineering team within the first 60–90 days, identifying strengths, gaps, and individual development needs
• Establish a baseline BOM error rate reaching production and implement a review process to significantly reduce BOM mistakes within the first 6–9 months
• Establish and document company-wide engineering design standards across Design Engineering, R&D, and Electrical Engineering by the end of year one
• Assess and update the engineering file structure and document management practices within the first 6 months
• Evaluate long-term engineering software needs (CAD, PLM/PDM, and related systems) and present a scalability roadmap to leadership by the end of year one

Scope

• Authority over engineering strategy, technical standards, and design decisions across Design Engineering, R&D, Equipment Start-ups, and Electrical Engineering
• Personally own equipment design quality and serves as the final technical authority on design matters
• Rely on the R&D Engineering Lead for day-to-day R&D project execution
• Rely on the Start-up Engineering Lead for day-to-day equipment start-up and commissioning execution
• Rely on the Electrical Engineering Lead for day-to-day electrical/controls issues
• Own the engineering file structure and software infrastructure (CAD, PLM/PDM, and related systems) across all engineering functions
• Manage engineering budget, headcount, and resource allocation across all four functions
• Report directly to executive leadership team.

Responsibilities

• Take direct, hands-on ownership of equipment design quality, standards, and technical decisions, working closely with the Design Engineering Manager
• Personally review and guide design work, ensuring designs meet functional, cost, manufacturability, and quality requirements
• Serve as the final technical authority on equipment design issues and design reviews
• Drive design standardization, documentation practices, and engineering best practices across the team
• Actively mentor and coach young/early-career engineers, building technical skill and long-term capability on the team
• Create structured pathways for engineer growth and build a pipeline of future engineering leads
• Partner with and rely on the R&D Engineering Lead to guide research initiatives and new technology development aligned with company strategy; oversee the R&D pipeline from concept to commercialization
• Partner with and rely on the Start-up Engineering Lead to oversee planning and execution of new equipment installations and commissioning, ensuring start-ups are completed safely, on schedule, and to spec
• Drive root-cause analysis and continuous improvement for equipment start-up issues
• Partner with and rely on the Electrical Engineering Lead to manage electrical/controls design and issues, maintaining enough technical fluency to make informed cross-functional decisions
• Set overall engineering strategy and roadmap across Design Engineering, R&D, Equipment Start-ups, and Electrical Engineering
• Own the engineering file structure and software infrastructure (CAD, PLM/PDM, and related systems), ensuring it can scale with business growth
• Own the engineering budget, headcount planning, and resource allocation
• Align engineering priorities with company goals and production/operations needs
• Represent engineering in leadership meetings and report on key metrics

Preferred Education/Experience/Skills

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or related field (required)
• Master’s degree (preferred)
• Professional Engineer (PE) license (preferred)
• 10+ years of progressive engineering experience, including 5+ years in a leadership role
• Strong, hands-on design engineering background — this is not a purely administrative leadership role
• Demonstrated success mentoring and developing engineers, ideally with examples of engineers who grew under their leadership
• Experience with equipment start-ups/commissioning in an industrial or manufacturing environment
• Experience managing or overseeing R&D/new product development processes
• Comfortable managing an electrical engineering function through a strong subject-matter expert, without needing deep personal electrical expertise
• Experience setting and enforcing engineering standards and documentation practices across multiple teams
• Ability to travel as needed to support equipment start-ups and field commissioning