Manager, Supplier Quality

Northrop Grumman

. Sets the strategy to drive supplier performance, ensures first time quality, and builds a culture that motivates employees to achieve their highest levels of performance.

Posted 5/15/2026full-timeBaltimore • Maryland • 🇺🇸 United StatesSeniorLead💰 $167,500 - $251,300 per yearWebsite

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Sets the strategy to drive supplier performance, ensures first time quality, and builds a culture that motivates employees to achieve their highest levels of performance.
Frequently interface with Division and BU executives and customer representatives concerning supplier quality risks, mitigation plans, and issue resolution.
Engage in Program Capture and Kickoff activities to identify supplier quality risk in program sourcing plans, influence sourcing strategy to include capable suppliers and to identify risk mitigation strategies to minimize impact of poor supplier quality.
Collaborate with Program Quality to ensure appropriate quality requirements for programs are identified and flowed down to suppliers via purchasing documents.
Work with program personnel to ensure adequate funding is identified for Supplier Quality risk mitigation and product validation activities; monitor Supplier Quality team activities to ensure consistency with spend plan.
Coordinate with SPM Field Quality Engineering team to ensure program risk mitigation strategies are executed in conjunction with key program schedule milestones.
Establish and monitor Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to identify and pursue systemic improvement opportunities.
Use data-driven processes to measure supplier quality performance, mitigation of risk, develop audit plans, Control Plan audits, and to lead continuous improvement processes.
Develop and implement proactive supplier quality initiatives/plans to reduce quality issues at critical suppliers and ensure products are at an appropriate level of producibility to meet cost and schedule targets.
Implement/utilize quality tools and processes, such as: Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (PFMEA), Eight Disciplines (8D), Design for Excellence (DFX), Three Element (3E), Root Cause Corrective Action (RCCA) and Supplier Corrective Actions (SCAR), cause-and-effect diagrams (Fishbone), etc.
Ensure critical suppliers are identified and the appropriate quality performance feedback is measured, accurate and communicated.
Promotes the professional development of the SPM team and fosters a collaborative culture that sustains the momentum around employee engagement and inclusion, affordability, innovation, value growth and continuous improvement.
Participate in supplier on-site reviews, identifying risks and areas of focus for ensuring the confidence in receiving on time conforming material.
Mentor and train a team of supplier quality engineers through their development in driving supplier quality and improved performance.
Work cross functionally between different teams, including category management, operations, mission assurance and engineering in driving accountability and conformance of our suppliers material receipts.

Requirements

What you’ll need

Bachelor's Degree with a minimum of 8 years in Program or Project Management, Quality, Mission Assurance, Manufacturing, Global Supply Chain, Operations, or Engineering OR a Master’s Degree with a minimum of 6 years in Program or Project Management, Quality, Mission Assurance, Manufacturing, Global Supply Chain, Operations, or Engineering.
Minimum of 5 years of experience managing and/or leading teams of people.
Minimum of 1 year experience managing and/or leading a manager of a team of people.
Experience with managing Direct/Indirect budgets, with prior experience as a Cost Account Manager (CAM).
Experience with implementing and utilizing quality tools and processes, such as: Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (PFMEA), Eight Disciplines (8D), Design for Excellence (DFX), Three Element (3E), Root Cause Corrective Action (RCCA) and Supplier Corrective Actions (SCAR), cause-and-effect diagrams (Fishbone), etc.
A minimum of an interim government secret clearance is required to start and to be considered.
US Citizenship required

Benefits

Comp & perks

health insurance coverage
life and disability insurance
savings plan
company paid holidays
paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills & Tools

Program ManagementProject ManagementQuality ManagementManufacturingGlobal Supply ChainOperationsCost Account ManagementSupplier Quality ManagementRisk MitigationContinuous Improvement

Soft Skills

LeadershipTeam ManagementCollaborationEmployee EngagementMentoringCommunicationProblem SolvingStrategic ThinkingMotivationInterpersonal Skills

Certifications

Bachelor's DegreeMaster's DegreeInterim Government Secret Clearance