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Ford Motor Company · 1 day ago

ADAS Strategy Director

Dearborn, MI

Full-time

Hybrid

Director/Executive

10+ years exp

Ford Motor Company is transforming the transportation industry and is seeking an ADAS Strategy Director to lead the global ADAS strategy within the Technology Strategy organization. This role involves defining Ford's ADAS technology platforms, managing the ADAS investment portfolio, and conducting competitive intelligence to ensure Ford remains at the forefront of ADAS technology.

AutomotiveAutonomous VehiclesManufacturingTransportation

No H1B

U.S. Citizen Only

Responsibilities

Own Ford’s global ADAS strategy

Work closely with subject-matter experts and executive leadership to synthesize industry trends, portfolio needs, and corporate objectives into a forward-looking ADAS strategy that keeps Ford at the leading edge

Define future ADAS experiences and enabling technology

Partner with engineering, product, and digital teams to define and refine key future ADAS customer experiences

Define the required compute platforms, sensing configurations, and software enablers to deliver those experiences

Manage ADAS complexity across the portfolio

Establish and maintain a “menu” of ADAS system configurations with engineering

Collaborate with technology platform and vehicle program teams to develop offering strategies for each vehicle program and region

Evaluate complexity-driving requests through a cost–benefit lens and drive decisions to closure

Manage the ADAS investment portfolio within the technology cycle plan

Ensure sufficient funding to achieve ADAS objectives, supported by accurate and traceable modeling of resource requirements

Raise new cycle-plan funding requests and identify opportunities for spending reduction when needed

Lead competitive intelligence, benchmarking, and external scanning for ADAS

Maintain a constantly refreshed, data-driven view of the ADAS industry, including competitive trends and threats, emerging technologies, and cost-reduction opportunities

Leverage supplier engagements, industry consortiums, competitive tear-downs, public announcements, analyst research, and major tech/industry events to inform Ford’s ADAS strategy and roadmaps

Translate external insights into clear recommendations on ADAS platforms, features, and investments

Co-lead Technology Strategy organization initiatives

Co-lead technology unit papers and High Priority Studies alongside matched-pair partners in the Technology Strategy organization

Ensure ADAS initiatives meet deliverable requirements and business case targets for uMR, uPS, and uPSC milestones

Maintain ADAS technology and business health databases

Own and curate databases tracking ADAS technology proliferation, feature take-rates, and platform usage across the Ford portfolio

Provide a clear source of truth on ADAS business health and deployment status

Support the Unified Backlog process

Review ADAS-related new demand requests for business value and technical feasibility

Work cross-functionally with product, engineering, and TPM to secure commitments for high-value initiatives

Collaborate across the global enterprise

Partner with stakeholders across product development, digital product, technology platforms, integrated services, marketing, finance, vehicle programs, and regional teams

Qualification

ADAS strategyAutomotive technologyTechnical leadershipBusiness analysisSensing technologiesEmbedded vehicle architecturesProduct managementCross-functional collaborationCommunication skillsTeam leadership

Required

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Business, or a related field

10+ years of leadership experience in the automotive technology space, delivering multiple complex initiatives in cross-functional environments

Experience translating technical initiatives into business and profitability analyses to ensure efficient capital allocation

Strong oral and written communication skills, with demonstrated ability to influence and collaborate in diverse, cross-functional environments

Proven team-leadership experience, including working directly with senior and executive leadership

Preferred

Master's degree in Engineering or an MBA

Direct experience with ADAS technologies, including sensing (radars, cameras, ultrasonics), ADAS-specialized compute, and motion-control interfaces

Direct experience leading strategic initiatives and technology unit and/or vehicle program milestones

Highly technical background and demonstrated experience in the domains of the ADAS features being developed

Experience with embedded vehicle architectures—ideally Ford's FNVx architecture—including roadmaps, constraints, and integration for highly complex and distributed systems/features on- and off-board

Experience developing diagrams and visual frameworks to communicate complex concepts

Experience in product or technical program management for complex systems, or leading engineering feature delivery

Hyper-collaborative, team-centric leadership style that encourages and partners with teams and leaders at all levels to advance the integration of digital experiences

Strong executive presence and leadership skills—the ability to drive discussions, provide clear direction, and update senior leaders succinctly

Tenacity and comfort working in evolving states of ambiguity