Manager, Product Engineering - Automotive Sensors

About Us:

We are committed to finding smart solutions that enable an intelligent and seamless world. Our success as a world-class leader in technology has evolved from humble beginnings. In 1896, the enterprising father and son team of A.J. and George

A. Briggs partnered with S.A. Buffington, a Chicago lawyer, to establish Chicago Telephone Supply Company (later to become CTS).Today, CTS is a leading designer and manufacturer of sensors, actuators, and electronic components for suppliers and original equipment manufacturers. We have over 20 locations in 12 countries and more than 3,500 employees. Our innovative sensing, connectivity, and motion solutions offer a diverse range of products across diversified end markets including transportation, medical, aerospace and defense, and industrial.

We are at the forefront of supporting innovating life-changing technology, focusing on quality to keep people safe, healthy, and happy. POSITION SUMMARY: The Product Engineering Manager – Automotive Sensors leads product engineering for assigned automotive sensor product families and is accountable for project execution, customer technical engagement, product-development discipline, and sustaining engineering support. This role develops engineering talent, drives cross-functional accountability, and ensures multidisciplinary sensor solutions meet customer, business, quality, and regulatory expectations from concept through production.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES Lead, coach, and develop the product engineering team; establish clear priorities, roles, objectives, deliverables, and accountability; provide regular feedback; support performance management, succession planning, and capability development.

Plan and allocate internal and external engineering resources to meet program, customer, and business priorities.

Own complete product engineering outcomes for assigned sensor product families, including requirements, product performance, interfaces, technical risks, verification, validation, release, launch, and lifecycle support.

Serve as a senior technical contact for customers and support Sales, Business Development, Product Management, and Program Management in technical assessments, new-business pursuits, and RFQ responses.

Lead engineering execution from concept through production, ensuring disciplined design reviews, verification and validation, engineering change control, launch readiness, and sustaining support.

Drive timely, structured problem solving for customer, production, supplier, field, warranty, and quality issues, with technically sound corrective actions and clear recovery plans.

Partner with Quality, Manufacturing, Operations, Supply Chain, Sales, Program Management, and Product Management to align priorities, resolve issues, and deliver business commitments.

Build organizational capability through design standardization, knowledge reuse, external partner leverage, cost reduction, continuous improvement, and practical use of AI-enabled and digital engineering tools.

Ensure compliance with applicable automotive development practices and customer requirements, including APQP, PPAP, DFMEA, DVP&R, engineering change management, and ISO 26262 activities when applicable.

Make and communicate sound engineering and business tradeoffs involving product performance, quality, cost, timing, resources, and risk; escalate material issues early with facts and recovery actions.

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES Strong knowledge of automotive product-development processes and tools, including APQP, PPAP, DFMEA, DVP&R, requirements management, design reviews, validation, engineering change management, and structured problem solving.

Working knowledge of multidisciplinary automotive components or systems that integrate mechanical, electrical, electronic, magnetic, software, and manufacturing-process elements.

Ability to lead engineers and technical teams through clear direction, coaching, prioritization, delegation, performance feedback, and accountability.

Strong systems thinking and technical judgment, with the ability to evaluate interfaces, failure modes, product risks, and tradeoffs across performance, quality, cost, timing, and resources.

Ability to lead customer-facing technical discussions, translate customer needs into actionable engineering requirements, and communicate complex issues clearly to technical and business audiences.

Strong cross-functional collaboration, influence, conflict-resolution, and decision-making skills.

Ability to…