Our client is a global leader in semiconductor manufacturing equipment and solutions, supporting customers across the electronics and advanced manufacturing industries worldwide. As part of continued growth, they are looking for an experienced New Product Development (NPD) Quality Director to drive quality strategy and execution across the full product development lifecycle.
This is a high-impact leadership role, reporting directly to the Vice President of Quality, with responsibility for embedding quality excellence into New Product Development — from concept through to launch and mass production, both internally and at customer sites. The successful candidate will work in close collaboration with cross-functional teams across a global manufacturing network.
What You'll Do
- Develop the New Product Development (NPD) quality process from a strategic level, defining quality control plans that meet design specifications.
- Oversee product and process quality through the development phase, from concept to launch, internally and at customer sites.
- Conduct regular risk assessments to identify potential vulnerabilities in the NPD process, and monitor industry and competitor trends for emerging risks.
- Develop, maintain and continuously improve a robust Quality System spanning NPD through to mass production.
- Lead and manage the quality function across the full lifecycle — from new product conception through manufacturing process control to field analysis.
- Drive risk assessment and mitigation plans aligned with recognised automotive/industrial quality standards (e.g. IATF 16949).
- Develop and implement quality standards, reliability testing and evaluation processes.
- Partner with internal and external stakeholders, project owners and manufacturing teams to improve deliverable quality and customer satisfaction.
- Collaborate with senior leadership across departments to establish and align on quality standards.
- Ensure a deep understanding of end-customer requirements to inform product design and development.
- Report and review quality assurance status periodically to executive leadership and, where required, regulatory bodies.
- Build and lead a high-performing team focused on continuous improvement, added value and cost reduction within the NPD process.
- Set department objectives and monitor performance and progress in a timely manner.
- Foster strong communication within the team to drive information-sharing, change and continuous improvement.
- Optimise resource planning to meet quality assurance and manufacturing targets.
- Develop and implement a quality workflow governance process, leveraging structured documentation (e.g. APQP) and lessons-learned databases to drive continuous improvement and sustainability.
- Support integration of NPD quality data with other enterprise systems to improve data sharing and portfolio oversight across business units and manufacturing sites.
- Lead a geographically distributed quality team across multiple international manufacturing sites within a high-precision production environment, covering new product introduction, incoming/outgoing quality and after-sales customer complaints.
What You'll Bring
- Bachelor's degree or above in Engineering, Physics, Materials Science or a related field.
- Certification and/or strong working knowledge of quality standards such as ISO 9000, IATF 16949 or equivalent is a strong advantage.
- Proven experience in a quality leadership role, ideally within semiconductor, electronics or precision manufacturing.
- Experience in New Product Development, manufacturing and customer launch is preferred.
- Proven leadership and people management skills, with the ability to optimise team performance and development.
- Excellent relationship management skills, with the ability to engage, negotiate and manage key stakeholders and suppliers.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills; familiarity with Six Sigma methodologies is an advantage.
- Ability to respond quickly and effectively to changing priorities and schedules in a fast-paced environment.
- Willingness to travel internationally on a frequent basis, with possible extended postings.
- Comfortable using digital tools to automate and simplify data sets for analytics purposes.
Interested candidates are invited to apply with their updated resume for a confidential discussion. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
