Digital Analytics & IIoT Manager

Location: Walker, MI

Time Type: Full time

Job Description

Who We Are: Challenge Manufacturing’s mission is to manufacture with operational excellence by empowering our employee-owners. As a leading tier 1 supplier of complex metal assemblies for the global automotive industry, we drive innovative solutions for future mobility. We believe the best ideas come from individual unique perspectives. These ideas combined with the teamwork of industry leaders allow us to accomplish any challenge. Our team members take pride in the work we do and embody our core values of safety, ownership, and teamwork every day; they are the true driving force in our operations.

Challenge is proud to be one of the largest employee-owned automotive companies in North America. One of the many benefits of joining the Challenge team is the ESOP program. This program allows Challenge to give shares of the Company to all employee-owners annually. These shares are an additional retirement benefit that will continue to grow during your time at Challenge. Being part of an ESOP means our employee-owners share in Challenge’s success!

Challenge is #QualityDriven and #PeoplePowered!

Position Summary

The Manager, Digital Solutions & Development leads the team responsible for enterprise application development, Azure DevOps governance, software delivery practices, Microsoft Fabric administration, Power BI governance, and digital solution delivery across the Operational Technology organization. This is a player-coach leadership role responsible for establishing development standards, governing Azure DevOps, driving DevSecOps maturity, and delivering scalable, secure, and supportable digital solutions.

The role leads a team of developers while partnering closely with OT Automation, SMS/MES, IT, and business stakeholders to support Challenge Manufacturing's digital transformation initiatives.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, coach, and develop a team of software developers, BI developers, and future data architecture resources.
• Own Azure DevOps administration, governance, standards, and adoption across Operational Technology teams.
• Establish and govern Git workflows, repositories, branching strategies, pull request standards, CI/CD pipelines, and release processes.
• Develop and maintain software development lifecycle (SDLC) and DevSecOps standards that ensure quality, security, and traceability.
• Lead development of internal web applications, business tools, reporting platforms, and digital solutions.
• Oversee API-based integrations between manufacturing, business, and third-party systems.
• Govern Microsoft Fabric and Power BI platforms, including standards, lifecycle management, security, and supportability.
• Drive development governance, architecture reviews, and technical quality across all team deliverables.
• Establish standards for application architecture, documentation, testing, deployment, and support.
• Partner with OT Automation, SMS/MES, IT, and business stakeholders to translate requirements into scalable digital solutions.
• Manage development backlogs, priorities, resource allocation, and delivery commitments.
• Support data governance, access control, audit readiness, and compliance requirements including IATF and ISO standards.
• Monitor and improve development performance through deployment metrics, platform adoption, solution quality, and user satisfaction.
• Manage vendor relationships and third-party technical integrations.
• Foster a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, innovation, and operational excellence.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Software Engineering, Engineering, or related field, or equivalent experience.
• 3+ years of people leadership experience leading software development or technical teams.
• Strong experience with Azure DevOps administration, Git workflows, CI/CD pipelines, SDLC, and DevSecOps practices.
• Experience leading development of web applications, enterprise solutions, integrations, or digital products.
• Experience establishing development governance, coding standards, release management processes, and technical best practices.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Fabric, Power BI, SQL, APIs, and modern application architectures.
• Manufacturing industry experience with familiarity in MES, Ignition, IIoT, and Operational Technology environments.

Preferred Qualifications

• Previous experience as a software developer, technical lead, architect, or development manager.
• Azure DevOps Administrator certification or equivalent practical experience.
• Experience implementing enterprise DevOps governance programs.
• Experience leading Microsoft Fabric or enterprise analytics platforms.
• Experience supporting multi-site manufacturing operations.
• Experience with ISO, IATF, IEC 62443, or similar governance/compliance frameworks.
• Experience driving digital transformation initiatives in manufacturing environments.