Automation Manager

Job Overview

The Automation Manager will be responsible for developing and leading the strategic planning and execution of Engineering Automation across the Medical Business Unit, with the ideal candidate based at the Suzhou, China site. This pivotal leadership role will drive cutting-edge automation solutions across engineering, manufacturing, and business processes, while establishing global standards and scalable platforms that improve safety, quality, cost, productivity, speed, and manufacturing consistency.

The successful candidate will deploy a roadmap aligned with manufacturing, product, and commercial teams, embedding automation and digital technologies early in product development, NPD, and NPI. The role will build and lead a regional automation team, develop a strong local vendor network, and launch automation solutions developed with local SMEs and vendors across the U.S., LATAM, EMEA, and China.

Job Requirements

• Develop and execute the automation technology roadmap for manufacturing process development, capacity expansion, product launches, and continuous improvement initiatives aligned with TE Medical strategy deployment, Voice of Process, and Voice of Customer.
• Lead the regional automation team in China and act as a thought leader for TE Medical's global digital and automation transformation.
• Design, implement, and scale novel automation solutions for complex automated systems, including equipment automation, controls, robotics, vision, data acquisition, process automation, and Robotic Process Automation where appropriate.
• Embed automation and digital technologies early in Product Development, NPD, and NPI to enable Design for Manufacturability, scalability, validation readiness, and global standardisation.
• Manage automation projects from concept and feasibility through design, build, integration, commissioning, qualification, validation, production handover, and global replication.
• Build and manage a high-performing local automation vendor ecosystem to accelerate capital deployment, improve technical execution, strengthen cost competitiveness, and support compliant medical device manufacturing.
• Partner with local SMEs, vendors, manufacturing engineering, product development, quality, operations, procurement, EHS, and global automation stakeholders to develop scalable platforms and launch them across the U.S., LATAM, EMEA, and China.
• Establish global standards and platforms for automation and engineering processes across TE Medical, including standardised equipment methodologies, validation expectations, controls practices, documentation, maintainability, and lifecycle support.
• Maintain financial accountability for automation organisational activities, capital project execution, expected deliverables, and measurable outcomes.
• Develop the team's technical and leadership capabilities, create a clear succession pathway, and coach engineers from shop-floor support through strategic stakeholder communication.
• Implement and track metrics and KPIs to measure automation effectiveness, including safety, quality, cost, productivity, equipment reliability, project cycle time, adoption, and business impact.
• Communicate automation strategies, progress, risks, resource needs, and business impact to senior leadership and key stakeholders.
• Ensure a consistent and compliant approach to Safety, Quality, Regulatory, GMP, and Validation standards across automation programmes.

What your background should look like

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related technical field; Master's degree or MBA preferred.
• Extensive automation experience, with a minimum of 15 years, including progressive responsibility in automation engineering, automation leadership, or manufacturing engineering transformation.
• Extensive experience working with local automation vendors in the medical device manufacturing industry, including supplier capability assessment, technical specification, design review, project execution, FAT/SAT, qualification, escalation, and performance accountability.
• Fluent in both English and Chinese, with the ability to lead technical, commercial, supplier, and executive-level discussions in both languages.
• Experience managing global automation projects and cross-functional stakeholders across engineering, manufacturing, quality, operations, product development, procurement, finance, and senior leadership.
• Proven track record launching automation solutions developed with local SMEs and vendors across the U.S., LATAM, EMEA, and China.
• Ability to manage competing priorities, constrained resources, project risks, vendor dependencies, technical ambiguity, and urgent business needs while executing with speed.
• Experience with automation process development, equipment qualification, quality validations, and production readiness in medical device manufacturing environments.
• Experience influencing at all levels of management and across business units, including the ability to communicate strategy, risk, trade-offs, and execution plans clearly.
• Proven experience leading and transforming Engineering functions, automation organisations, operations teams, or value-stream technical capabilities across multiple sites.
• Strong knowledge of Statistical Process Control, Design of Experiments, process capability, manufacturing yield improvement, and data-driven problem solving.
• Strong leadership capability with the ability to think strategically, execute tactically, motivate teams, measure work, coach talent, and deliver results.
• Willingness to travel for about 30-40% of the time to other regions within the business unit, including overnight stays, as required by project launches, supplier reviews, and global deployment needs.

Competencies