SIT Lab US Customer Validation Senior Manager

Company Description

At Western Digital, our vision is to power global innovation and push the boundaries of technology to make what you thought was once impossible, possible.

At our core, Western Digital is a company of problem solvers. People achieve extraordinary things given the right technology. For decades, we’ve been doing just that. Our technology helped people put a man on the moon.

We are a key partner to some of the largest and highest growth organizations in the world. From energizing the most competitive gaming platforms, to enabling systems to make cities safer and cars smarter and more connected, to powering the data centers behind many of the world’s biggest companies and public cloud, Western Digital is fueling a brighter, smarter future.

Binge-watch any shows, use social media or shop online lately? You’ll find Western Digital supporting the storage infrastructure behind many of these platforms. And, that flash memory card that captures and preserves your most precious moments? That’s us, too.

We offer an expansive portfolio of technologies, storage devices and platforms for business and consumers alike. Our data-centric solutions are comprised of the Western Digital®, G-Technology™, SanDisk® and WD® brands.

Today’s exceptional challenges require your unique skills. It’s You & Western Digital. Together, we’re the next BIG thing in data.

Job Description

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

• Lead a department supporting multiple customers in the customer validation organization of the SIT Lab to higher level of customer satisfaction by meeting customer expectations and commitments to the business through continuous improvement of organizational processes and operational excellence.
• Contribute to the creation of organizational plans and objectives focused on meeting customer expectations.
• Facilitate setting of department objectives consistent with the organizational goals. Assess and report progress on Department objectives.
• Stays abreast of daily operations of the department and works to remove blockers for the team as necessary.
• Responsible for department staffing and resource needs based on upcoming roadmaps and customer engagement.
• Ensure department is providing appropriate input to organizational budget development.
• Monitoring of department expenses.
• Work closely with customers and customer facing teams (Customer Technical Support, Customer Quality Management, and Marketing) to understand customer expectations for upcoming products.  Capture insights and share internally.
• Evaluate and assess product readiness against customer requirements and represent the customer in new product development.
• Partner with customer through joint qualification of our Enterprise products to accelerate time to market and provide field issue support.
• Provide periodic communication to the team and management to ensure organizational alignment
• Collaborate with other SIT Lab teams to deliver on program commitments
• Build sense of trust with department members & with external organizational interfaces by providing useful feedback on a regular basis
• Enable an environment where healthy conflict is acceptable to ensure all ideas are brought forward
• Hold stakeholders, internal & external, accountable to commitments - Work across organizational boundaries to ensure actions & processes are in the best interest of the company
• Guide employees toward their career goals consistent with business imperative

Qualifications

REQUIRED

• BS in Electrical / Computer Engineering or Computer Science
• 6+ years of leading and managing a large teams required
• 3+ years experience with customer management
• Experience with financial and resource planning and forecasting

SKILLS

• Strong organizational leadership and communication skills at 1:1 & large group levels
• Ability to foster strong customer relationships
• Organizational and systems thinking skills to recognize when change is required to improve efficiency & clarity
• A willingness to work to consensus without impacting business & personal principles
• Technical & business skills to enable quick organizational decision making
• An understanding of customer validation to ensure the correct priority calls are made
• Strategic thinking to ensure long-term success of the team

Additional Information

Western Digital is committed to providing equal opportunities to all applicants and employees and will not discriminate based on their race, color, ancestry, religion (including religious dress and grooming standards), sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, breastfeeding or related medical conditions), gender (including a pe