Associate Director, Quality (Key Customer)

About the role

The Associate Director of Quality, Key Customer is a strategic quality leader responsible for shaping and delivering the Data Center Solutions quality strategy while serving as the primary quality owner for a critical, high impact customer. This role ensures products, processes, suppliers, and quality systems consistently meet or exceed customer, regulatory, and enterprise requirements.

Responsibilities

• Develop and deploy a unified Data Center Solutions quality vision, strategy, and governance model aligned with enterprise objectives.
• Establish and harmonize quality standards, metrics, policies, and procedures across sites and segments.
• Provide regular quality performance insights, risk assessments, and recommendations to executive leadership.
• Champion a consistent, enterprise-wide quality culture focused on prevention, transparency, and operational rigor.
• Serve as the primary quality point of contact for a strategically critical key customer.
• Represent the organization in customer audits, business reviews, escalations, and governance forums.
• Translate customer requirements into internal quality strategies, priorities, and execution plans.
• Own customer quality key performance indicators, including PPM, complaints, corrective actions, audit outcomes, and field performance.
• Lead and govern APQP, PPAP, FMEA, SPC, control plans, and validation activities.
• Drive structured problem solving and root cause analysis to resolve chronic and systemic quality issues.
• Partner with Engineering, Operations, Logistics, and Supply Chain to embed quality into product design, NPI, and manufacturing processes.
• Develop and lead the enterprise supplier quality strategy in partnership with Sourcing and Procurement.
• Oversee global internal, supplier, and customer audit programs, ensuring timely and effective closure of CAPAs.
• Ensure disciplined change management, validation, and documentation practices across the organization.
• Lead large scale, data-driven continuous improvement initiatives using Lean, Six Sigma, and related methodologies.
• Establish and manage enterprise dashboards for defects, cost of poor quality (COPQ), audit performance, and customer metrics.
• Identify and deploy digital quality tools to advance analytics, monitoring, and predictive quality capabilities.
• Proactively identify operational and quality risks and drive mitigation plans.
• Lead, develop, and scale a high-performing, multi-site quality organization across manufacturing, supplier quality, and corporate functions.
• Coach and mentor site and segment quality leaders, building depth, capability, and succession strength.
• Influence cross-functional leaders without direct authority to ensure alignment and accountability.
• Serve as a trusted quality authority and advisor across the enterprise.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations, Science, or a related technical field.
• Master’s degree preferred.
• 12+ years of progressive experience in Quality, Operations, or Engineering, including multi-site and/or global leadership.
• Demonstrated success leading enterprise-wide quality initiatives and complex customer quality relationships.
• Deep expertise in Quality Management Systems, standards, and regulatory requirements (e.g., ISO 9001).
• Proven ability to lead multi-functional, geographically distributed teams.
• Exceptional analytical, structured problem-solving, and root cause analysis skills.
• Strong executive presence with the ability to translate complex quality data into actionable business insights.
• Professional quality certifications (CQE, CQM/OE, CQA) preferred.
• Six Sigma Black Belt or higher preferred.
• Experience leading supplier quality organizations and global supply bases.
• Advanced knowledge of enterprise quality systems and digital quality platforms.

Qualifications

• Dynamic global reach with diverse operations around the world.
• Commitment to strengthening communities where employees live and work.
• Philanthropic activities encouraged and supported.
• nVent in Action matching program available.

Skills

• Strategic thinking and leadership.
• Customer relationship management.
• Quality system development and implementation.
• Supplier management and collaboration.
• Continuous improvement methodologies (Lean, Six Sigma).
• Project management and coordination.
• Communication and stakeholder engagement.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision plans.
• Flexible spending accounts.
• Short-term and long-term disability benefits.
• Critical illness, accident insurance, and life insurance.
• 401(k) retirement plan.
• Employee stock purchase plan with company match.
• Tuition reimbursement.
• Back-up care services.
• Paid time off including volunteer time.
• A well-being program.
• Legal & identity theft protection.

Pay

$146,300.00 - $271,700.00 Depending on the position offered, employee may be eligible for other forms of compensation, such as annual incentives.

Schedule

Full-time.