Senior Supplier Development Engineer

Career Area:

Job Description:

Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc.

When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other.  We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.

This role provides technical expertise and leadership to Caterpillar’s Hydraulics supply base within the Resources Industries Segment. This includes execution of robust quality plans within the suppler network, implementation of well-documented continuous quality improvement processes, and strict process controls. Results will be used for the evaluation and development of new and existing suppliers worldwide, to maximizing Quality, Cost, Logistics, Delivery, and Management (QCLDM) within the supply network. Responsibility to ensure that a supplier is able to meet corporate and business unit requirements for Supplier Excellence Recognition certification levels and customer requirements for quality, cost, and delivery of purchased material.

What You Will Do:
• Ensuring the quality of supplies by conducting tests and assessments on incoming supplies to identify any quality issues; Developing supplier inspection, testing, and evaluation mechanism.
• Generating reports on supplier quality, by monitoring their defect rates and areas that can lead to potential flaws; Guiding suppliers to reduce these defect rates.
• Researching the potential vendors, assessing their manufacturing environment, practices, and procedures; Conducting supplier quality control audits to ensure compliance with organizational and federal policies and standards.
• Supporting suppliers in improving their performance through process enhancements, implementing process controls, and developing quality assurance plans.

Education Requirement:
Degree or equivalent experience desired

What You Will Have:
Effective Communications: Understanding of effective communication concepts, tools and techniques; ability to effectively transmit, receive, and accurately interpret ideas, information, and needs through the application of appropriate communication behaviors.
Level Extensive Experience:
• Reviews others' writing or presentations and provides feedback and coaching.
• Adapts documents and presentations for the intended audience.
• Demonstrates both empathy and assertiveness when communicating a need or defending a position.
• Communicates well downward, upward, and outward.
• Employs appropriate methods of persuasion when soliciting agreement.
• Maintains focus on the topic at hand.

Problem Solving: Knowledge of approaches, tools, techniques for recognizing, anticipating, and resolving organizational, operational or process problems; ability to apply knowledge of problem solving appropriately to diverse situations.
Level Extensive Experience:
• Ensures capture of lessons to be learned from a problem-solving effort.
• Organizes potential problem solvers and leads problem resolution efforts.
• Uses varying problem-solving approaches and techniques as appropriate.
• Contributes to standard practices for problem-solving approaches, tools, and processes.
• Analyzes and synthesizes information and devises alternative resolution strategies.
• Develops successful resolutions to critical or wide-impact problems.

Process Improvement: Understanding and insight into evaluating current product quality and production methods and ability to maintains focus on the continuous improvement of processes, products and services.
Level Extensive Experience:
• Streamlines the critical workflow for executing key processes.
• Sets priorities for addressing process problems that limit performance.
• Develops methods for improving and establishing controls for critical processes.
• Monitors external sources for applicable new methods and controls.
• Analyzes findings from improvement cycles to ensure success of interventions.
• Coaches others to develop the skills to improve processes.

Quality Orientation: Knowledge of quality management methods, tools, and techniques; ability to create and support an environment that meets the quality goals of the organization.
Level Expert:
• Promotes quality as a corporate value and source of pride.
• Establishes guidelines for organizational quality programs based on strategic intent.
• Leads the organization to incorporate concepts such as sustainability and fair trade into corporate policies on quality.
• Shapes a culture of quality