Automation Strategy Lead

At John Deere, we're tackling the world's biggest challenges in food, fiber, and infrastructure for a rapidly growing global population. Join us to work on meaningful projects with the latest technology and a team of bright minds.

About the role

The Automation Strategy Lead defines and drives the automation strategy for the Ag & Turf US/Mexico division, partnering with factory leadership, engineering, operations, Smart Connected Factory, and enterprise stakeholders. This role identifies, prioritizes, standardizes, and scales automation capabilities to deliver measurable business value across the manufacturing network. You will own a portfolio of automation opportunities, translating factory needs into a cohesive roadmap that advances safety, quality, productivity, flexibility, and operational excellence.

Responsibilities

• Define and continuously evolve the divisional automation strategy and multi-year roadmap aligned to business priorities and manufacturing objectives.
• Identify, evaluate, and prioritize automation opportunities across the Ag & Turf US/Mexico manufacturing network based on business value, scalability, and strategic alignment.
• Partner with factory leadership and cross-functional teams to understand operational challenges, define future-state capabilities, and align automation investments to business priorities.
• Lead governance processes ensuring consistent prioritization, portfolio transparency, risk management, and effective investment decisions across automation initiatives.
• Establish and promote automation standards, architectural principles, and reusable solutions for consistency, maintainability, and scalability across manufacturing locations.
• Define and evolve automation operating models, capability roadmaps, and organizational approaches to sustain and scale automation capabilities.
• Collaborate with operations, engineering, IT, OT, quality, maintenance, safety, finance, and Smart Connected Factory teams to develop and deploy integrated automation capabilities.
• Represent the voice of the factory through structured demand intake, stakeholder engagement, and prioritization processes.
• Track business outcomes to ensure automation investments achieve expected value in safety, quality, productivity, cost, delivery, and operational performance.
• Monitor industry trends, benchmark peer organizations, and evaluate emerging technologies to inform future automation strategy.
• Support business case development, capital planning, and portfolio investment decisions related to automation strategy and deployment.
• Champion organizational adoption of automation capabilities and foster alignment across factories and functional teams.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Automation, Information Technology, or a related field.
• 8 or more years of experience in manufacturing, automation, engineering, operations, digital manufacturing, technology strategy, or related disciplines.
• Demonstrated experience developing and executing automation, manufacturing technology, operational excellence, or digital transformation strategies.
• Experience leading strategy, governance, or transformational initiatives spanning multiple manufacturing sites, business units, or enterprise functions.
• Proven ability to influence and align stakeholders across multiple functions, organizations, and leadership levels without direct authority.
• Experience translating business needs into technology capabilities, strategic roadmaps, and investment priorities.
• Demonstrated experience developing standards, reusable solutions, or common approaches adopted across multiple sites or organizations.
• Experience establishing governance, prioritization, or decision-making processes aligning investments and resources across competing initiatives.
• Strong business acumen with experience developing business cases and measuring value realization from technology investments.
• Working knowledge of industrial automation technologies and manufacturing systems.
• Experience in several of the following areas: Industrial automation and controls; Robotics and autonomous systems; Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES); Industrial networks and operational technology (OT); Digital manufacturing and Industry 4.0 technologies; Data analytics and manufacturing intelligence platforms; System integration and automation architecture.

Skills

• Experience leading enterprise automation, smart manufacturing, operational technology, or digital transformation strategies across multiple facilities or business units.
• Experience driving the adoption of standardized and reusable automation solutions across a manufacturing network.
• Experience designing or implementing manufacturing automation operating models, center-of-excellence structures, or enterprise standards.
• Experience establishing governance models, prioritization frameworks, or portfolio management processes for technology and automation investments.
• Experience supporting capital planning, investment governance, or strategic technology portfolio management.
• Experience evaluating, piloting, or deploying emerging manufacturing technologies such as AI, advanced analytics, machine vision, industrial IoT, or autonomous systems.
• Experience conducting technology benchmarking, innovation assessments, or external partnership evaluations.
• Experience working across global, regional, or geographically distributed organizations.
• Advanced degree in engineering, technology, business, or a related field.

Benefits

• Flexible work arrangements
• Highly competitive base pay
• Savings & Retirement benefits (401K and Defined Contribution)
• Healthcare benefits with a generous company contribution in the Health Savings Account
• Adoption assistance
• Employee Assistance Programs
• Tuition assistance
• Fitness subsidies and on-site gyms at specific Deere locations
• Charitable contribution match
• Employee Purchase Plan & numerous discount programs for personal use
• Vacation and Holiday Pay

Pay

$162,240.00 - $243,348.00 + Benefits

VISA sponsorship is NOT available for this position.

Primary location: Moline, IL or Waterloo, IA (onsite).