The Senior Principal Engineer of Autonomous Factory & Strategy is a high-impact, senior technical leadership role (equivalent to a Senior Director level) responsible for shaping and executing the global BE vision for autonomous factories. This role will define the long‑term strategy, drive cross‑functional ideation, develop the Autonomous Factory roadmap, and ensure initiatives deliver measurable business value, productivity, and Autonomous Level targets. This includes ensuring the successful translation of cutting-edge software & hardware related autonomous technologies into tangible business value. This role will partner closely with BE (Backend) operations sites, engineering, operations, industrial engineering, operations planning, etc., and external technology partners to accelerate the BE’s journey toward a fully autonomous factory. This is a highly visible, strategic leadership role requiring exceptional communication and presentation skills, strong business acumen, and a proven ability to collaborate with senior leaders across a large, matrixed organization. This role offers a unique opportunity for a seasoned technology leader to shape the future of manufacturing by blending technical depth with strategic vision. As Senior Principal Engineer for Autonomous Factory Strategy, you will play a pivotal role in transforming our operations, guiding our teams toward a new era of intelligent, autonomous manufacturing, and delivering significant business impact in the process.

Your Role

Key responsibilities in your new role

Technical Strategic Leadership:

• Work with cross-functional global team to develop and own the BE-wide multi-year Autonomous Factory Roadmap & Strategy, aligning with BE’s goals and long-term operational aspirations
• Identify industry trends, emerging technologies, and innovation opportunities that can accelerate autonomy and productivity to support ideation
• Lead strategic planning cycles, ensuring roadmap and initiatives are prioritized and aligned to business value creation
• Oversee major technical programs and pilot projects, ensuring that design and architecture are scalable, secure, and aligned with both operational requirements and strategic objectives

Roadmap & Portfolio Management:

• Build, manage, and continuously evolve the multi-year autonomous factory roadmap, including digitalization, automation, and operational capability milestones
• Lead the creation and evolution of a big picture multi-year roadmap for autonomous factory initiatives, outlining key technical milestones and platform developments
• Translate strategic objectives into structured programs with clear outcomes, KPIs, and measurable ROI
• Partner with program managers, engineering teams, site leaders, IT, Tech leaders, data/AI teams, and plant leaders to ensure roadmap execution

Innovation & Ideation:

• Champion a culture of innovation in manufacturing technology. Spearhead cross-functional ideation workshops and cross-functional innovation sessions to explore new automation use cases, autonomous systems, autonomous factory capabilities, and next-generation autonomous solutions
• Create and maintain a funnel of high-value opportunities that support scaling towards autonomous operations
• Evaluate and rapidly prototype emerging technologies – such as intelligent robotics, autonomous systems, and self-healing systems to assess their potential and accelerate adoption in our factories

Business Value Creation:

• Ensure all autonomous factory initiatives are grounded in strongbusiness cases (with investment recommendations) and deliver measurable value
• Work closely with operations and site leaders to identify high-impact opportunities where autonomous and advanced technology can drive improvements in safety, quality, efficiency, decarbonization, and cost reduction
• Develop clear metrics and KPIs to track the performance and ROI and adjust strategies to maximize business outcomes
• Translate complex technical concepts into clear, compelling presentations that articulate how proposed solutions will solve real business problems and create competitive advantage

Executive Communication & Influence:

• Serve as a key advisor to leadership on autonomous factory transformation and also act as a bridge between technical community and leadership. Influence decision-making by communicating technical vision, trade-offs, risks, and opportunities in business terms
• Lead technical discussions and executive briefings, providing thought leadership on autonomous factory and ensuring stakeholder buy-in for key initiatives
• Prepare and deliver high-impact presentations, strategic updates, and executive briefings
• Communicate complex technical concepts in clear, concise business language

Cross-Functional Collaboration:

• Build strong relationships across manufacturing, engineering, IT/OT,data & AI, supply chain, Operation Planning, Engineering, IT, DMS, finance, and digital transformation teams
• Collaborate with senior leaders and stakeholders across manufacturing, operations, IT/OT, R&D, supply chain, and other departments to align autonomous factory plans with broader strategies
• Influence and align stakeholders across regions and functional domains in a large matrix organization
• Foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement
• Communicate and govern autonomous factory best practices for autonomous systems, advanced robotics, supplier strategy, dataarchitecture, and software development

Your Profile

Qualifications and skills to help you succeed

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Computer Science, Business, or any equivalent course
• Minimum 10 years of experience in manufacturing transformation, digital manufacturing, automation, Industry 4.0, or equivalent fields withstrong track record in large-scale technical projects that delivered automation and digital transformation in a factory or industrial setting
• Proven experience leading strategy development and multi-year roadmaps at scale. Demonstrated ability to develop long-term technology roadmaps and innovation portfolios that align with business strategy.
• Skilled at conducting technology assessments, ROI analysis, and building business cases for investment in new initiatives
• Strong business acumen with a track record of delivering quantifiable business value
• Exceptional communication, presentation, and executive influence skills
• Proven experience working with or leading teams in large, global matrix organizations including influencing and aligning cross-functional teams and senior stakeholders
• Ability to drive consensus, alignment,and inspire confidence at all organizational levels
• Strong applied knowledge of advanced manufacturing technologies, including automation systems, robotics, AI/ML, IoT platforms, and factory systems
• Familiarity with technologies like digital twin simulation, factory systems (e.g. MCS, PLC, LLC, MOC, RTD, Scheduler,etc), IT/OT integration, and cloud-edge computing in a production environment
• Exceptional communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Proven ability to articulate complex technical concepts to non-technical audiences and to represent technical initiatives in executive forums
• Comfortable delivering high-impact presentations, technical briefs, and strategy updates to senior leadership and external partners
• Ability to navigate ambiguity, drive clarity, and lead through change

Personal Attributes:

• Strategic thinker - Able to balance long-term vision and near-term execution
• Strategic Innovator - Visionary mindset with a passion for innovationin manufacturing technology. Able to anticipate industry trends and proactively shape strategies that keep the organization at the fore front of autonomous production
• Technical Thought Leader - Deeply technical and hands-on, with a strong problem-solving orientation
• Recognized as a subject-matter expert who stays current on emerging technologies and drives technical excellence
• Influential Communicator - Persuasive and articulate communicator who can inspire trust and rally others around a technical vision. Adept at storytelling with data and influencing. Strong storyteller with theability to inspire and align diverse audiences
• Collaborative Partner - Highly collaborative and effective at building partnerships in a complex, matrixed organization. Thrives on working with diverse teams and values input from operations, business, and engineering stakeholders alike
• Results-Driven & Adaptable - Outcome-focused leader who balances bold,long-term innovation with pragmatic execution. Comfortable navigating ambiguity and change, with resilience and adaptability to drive progress in a fast-evolving technology landscape
• Ambitious, Bold, Curious, innovative, and comfortable challenging the status quo
• Results-driven with a passion for transforming manufacturing through technology

#WeAreIn for driving decarbonization and digitalization.
As a global leader in semiconductor solutions in power systems and IoT, Infineon enables game-changing solutions for green and efficient energy, clean and safe mobility, as well as smart and secure IoT. Together, we drive innovation and customer success, while caring for our people and empowering them to reach ambitious goals. Be a part of making life easier, safer and greener.
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