Director Industrial Engineering

Description

The Director of Engineering is a senior executive leadership role responsible for defining, scaling, and leading the overall engineering strategy for CLX Engineering across Controls, , SCADA, Electrical Design, Field Engineering, and future technical disciplines. This role serves as the highest operational engineering authority within the organization and is responsible for aligning engineering execution with company growth objectives, operational excellence, customer success, technical innovation, and long-term organizational scalability.

This position is a strategic step above the Engineering Manager role and is focused less on day-to-day tactical execution and more on organizational leadership, department maturity, engineering vision, workforce planning, technical governance, and cross-functional business alignment. The Director of Engineering is responsible for building and developing engineering leadership teams, driving standardization across all engineering functions, and ensuring CLX Engineering maintains a scalable, high-performing technical organization capable of supporting aggressive growth and complex automation programs.

The Director of Engineering partners closely with Executive Leadership, Operations, PMO, Software, Manufacturing, R&D, Sales, and Customers to ensure engineering resources, systems, standards, and technical capabilities align with both current operational demands and future company initiatives.

Responsibilities:

Executive Engineering Leadership

• Serve as the senior operational leader for all engineering functions across the organization, providing strategic direction, organizational oversight, and technical leadership.
• Lead, mentor, and develop Engineering Managers, Sr. Engineering Managers, technical leads, and future engineering leadership personnel.
• Build and sustain a high-performance engineering culture focused on accountability, innovation, collaboration, operational discipline, craftsmanship, and continuous improvement.
• Drive organizational structure planning, workforce scaling strategies, succession planning, and leadership pipeline development across engineering departments.
• Establish department KPIs, performance expectations, operational metrics, and engineering maturity initiatives aligned with company growth objectives.
• Participate in executive planning discussions regarding staffing, forecasting, operational capacity, customer commitments, and long-term business strategy.

Engineering Strategy & Organizational Development

• Define and maintain the engineering roadmap supporting CLX Engineering’s long-term operational and technical vision.
• Standardize engineering execution methodologies across Controls Engineering, SCADA, CAD, Electrical Design, and Field Operations.
• Drive engineering scalability initiatives including process development, workflow optimization, technical governance, and knowledge management systems.
• Lead initiatives focused on engineering efficiency, resource utilization, technical consistency, and reduction of operational risk.
• Evaluate and implement new technologies, engineering tools, platforms, and standards to improve execution quality and operational readiness.
• Partner with executive leadership to identify future service offerings, technical capabilities, and market expansion opportunities.

Technical Governance & Operational Oversight

• Maintain executive oversight of engineering quality, technical standards, design consistency, programming methodologies, testing procedures, and commissioning readiness.
• Ensure engineering deliverables meet customer expectations, internal quality standards, operational requirements, and project schedules.
• Oversee development and maintenance of company engineering standards including PLC standards, HMI standards, SCADA frameworks, electrical design practices, documentation standards, and commissioning procedures.
• Establish engineering review processes, risk mitigation practices, escalation procedures, and technical approval structures.
• Support high-risk projects, critical customer escalations, and complex technical initiatives requiring executive engineering leadership.
• Ensure engineering organizations maintain operational readiness through SOPs, training systems, documentation frameworks, dashboards, and standardized workflows.

Cross-Functional Leadership & Business Alignment

• Partner with PMO, Operations, Manufacturing, Software, R&D, Sales, and Executive Leadership to align engineering priorities with company objectives.
• Support business development efforts by providing engineering insight during customer meetings, proposal development, technical reviews, and strategic pursuits.
• Participate in executive reviews involving project health, operational risks, staffing constraints, customer concerns, and delivery performance.
• Collaborate with leadership teams to improve project execution models, field deployment readiness, customer communication, and operational accountability.
• Ensure engineering departments remain aligned with financial objectives, scheduling commitments, operational capacity, and long-term organizational goals.

Leadership Development & Workforce Planning

• Drive recruitment strategies, technical hiring standards, organizational development plans, and engineering workforce expansion initiatives.
• Partner with HR and leadership teams to define engineering career paths, leadership progression models, and technical competency frameworks.
• Ensure onboarding, mentorship, technical development, and leadership training programs support long-term organizational growth.
• Develop future engineering leaders capable of scaling with the organization as CLX Engineering continues to expand.
• Lead performance management processes for engineering leadership staff, including coaching, corrective action, promotions, and succession planning.

Continuous Improvement & Knowledge Management

• Champion a culture of continuous improvement across all engineering functions.
• Lead lessons-learned initiatives, operational debriefs, technical reviews, and engineering process refinement efforts.
• Support development of internal engineering knowledge bases, implementation guides, training systems, and reusable engineering assets.
• Drive standardization and documentation initiatives that improve repeatability, scalability, and operational efficiency.
• Ensure institutional knowledge is captured and transferred effectively across teams and future engineering leaders.

Travel & Additional Responsibilities

• Travel as required to customer sites, operational facilities, commissioning activities, leadership meetings, or strategic initiatives.
• Support critical customer engagements and high-priority operational initiatives as needed.
• Perform additional leadership responsibilities aligned with organizational growth and strategic direction.

Requirements

What We're Looking For (Required Skills):

• A proven engineering leader who has successfully built and led high-performing teams.
• Someone who can balance technical excellence, operational execution, and people development.
• Experience scaling engineering organizations, processes, and standards in a growing business.
• Strong knowledge of industrial automation, controls systems, and engineering project delivery.
• A collaborative leader who builds trust, develops talent, and drives accountability.
• A strategic thinker who can align engineering priorities with business objectives.

Bonus Points If You Have:

• Experience in airport systems, baggage handling, logistics, or large-scale automation projects.
• An advanced technical or business degree.
• Experience helping a growing organization scale engineering capabilities and leadership capacity.

You should be proficient in:

• Troubleshooting Skills
• Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
• Troubleshooting Industrial Automation Equipment
• Process Engineering
• Electrical / Electronic Systems
• High-level Operations Analysis
• Budgeting / Forecasting Experience
• Root Cause Analysis
• Process Development

Machines & technologies you'll use:

• Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs)
• RFID Systems
• Industrial Controls (Allen Bradley, Omron, Siemens, Schneider Electric)
• SCADA
• Variable Frequency Drives (VFD)
• CAD Software (AutoCAD)
• Programmable Logic Controller (PLC)
• HMI
• Servo Motors
• Industrial Robot