Title:  IT Solution Leader

Job Purpose

We are looking for an experienced Solution Leader with strong functional expertise in Product Lifecycle Management, Product Data Management, Service Engineering, and Spare Parts processes within the automotive or manufacturing domain.

The successful candidate will act as a key interface between business stakeholders, Product Owners, end users, and technical teams, translating business needs into clear functional requirements and supporting solutions across development, testing, deployment, and runtime operations.

The role requires a strong understanding of the Technology, Service Engineering and Spare Parts application landscape, combined with excellent analytical, stakeholder management, documentation, and communication capabilities.

Experience

• Minimum 8 to 10+ years of relevant professional experience in PLM/PDM, Business Analysis, Service Engineering, or related functional roles.
• Demonstrated experience working with PLM/PDM solutions in complex automotive or manufacturing environments.

• Experience managing end-to-end OEM IT processes and leading IT support teams to deliver reliable runtime operations.

• Experience working with global and cross-functional business and IT teams with strong ITIL knowledge.

Key Responsibilities

Business Analysis & Requirements Management

• Engage with business stakeholders and end users to understand business needs, operational challenges, and improvement opportunities.
• Gather, analyze, document, and manage functional and non-functional requirements related to PLM/PDM and Service Engineering.
• Translate business requirements into clear functional specifications for technical and development teams.
• Perform Gap Analysis and Impact Analysis for new requirements, enhancements, and application changes.
• Facilitate discussions between business and technical stakeholders to ensure a common understanding of requirements, priorities, and expected outcomes.
• Work closely with the Product Owner to support end-to-end application delivery and operations.

PLM/SLM /PDM & Engineering Processes

• Provide functional expertise across PLM/SLM/PDM processes, Product Change Management, CAD, Service Engineering, Spare Parts Information, and Spare Parts Engineering.
• Support requirements and business processes spanning engineering and downstream Service/Aftermarket solutions.
• Collaborate with PLM/PDM technical teams to clarify business requirements and support solution implementation.
• Maintain a high-level understanding of PLM/PDM administration, including application configuration, server environments, and license management.

Service Engineering & Spare Parts

• Work closely with stakeholders across:
• Service Engineering
• Spare Parts Information
• Spare Parts Engineering
• Understand business processes and application dependencies across these areas.
• Support functional improvements and application changes that enhance business operations and user experience.
• Provide functional support for business-critical Service Engineering and Spare Parts applications.

Application Landscape

Hands-on working knowledge and experience with the following applications is mandatory:

• KOLA
• EDB
• VIPS
• POSS
• DSP

The candidate should be able to understand business processes supported by these applications and work effectively with business users and technical teams across requirements, enhancements, testing, UAT, and runtime support.

Functional Testing & UAT

• Define functional test scenarios and prepare comprehensive test cases.
• Perform and support functional testing of PLM/PDM, CAD, and related business applications.
• Coordinate User Acceptance Testing (UAT) with relevant business stakeholders.
• Support defect analysis, functional clarification, retesting, and validation.
• Ensure delivered functionality meets agreed business requirements and acceptance criteria.

Application & Runtime Support

• Work closely with end users, business stakeholders, and technical teams to support day-to-day application operations.
• Provide functional analysis and clarification for application incidents and operational issues.
• Support effective handover of application enhancements and project deliveries into runtime operations.
• Identify opportunities for continuous improvement in applications, processes, documentation, and user support.

Knowledge Management & User Enablement

• Develop and maintain high-quality functional and business documentation.
• Prepare knowledge articles, user guides, training documentation, presentations, and instructional materials, including videos where appropriate.
• Facilitate effective knowledge transfer between business, functional, and technical teams.
• Contribute to maintaining accurate and reusable application knowledge.

Agile Delivery

• Work effectively within an Agile delivery environment.
• Participate in requirement refinement, planning, development, testing, and delivery activities.
• Collaborate closely with Product Owners, technical teams, business stakeholders, and end users throughout the delivery lifecycle.

Mandatory Skills & Experience

The successful candidate should demonstrate:

• Minimum 8 to 10+ years of relevant PLM/SLM/PDM and Business Analysis experience
• Strong PLM/PDM functional knowledge
• Ownership mindset to lead the team
• Product Change Management experience
• Service Engineering experience.
• Spare Parts Information experience
• Spare Parts Engineering experience
• Working knowledge of KOLA, EDB, VIPS, POSS, and DSP
• Experience with a major PLM/PDM platform such as PTC Windchill, ENOVIA, Siemens Teamcenter, or equivalent
• Functional understanding of CAD applications
• Business requirements gathering and functional specification development
• Gap and Impact Analysis
• Non-functional requirements analysis
• Functional testing and test-case preparation
• UAT planning, coordination, and support
• Application/runtime support experience
• Agile delivery experience
• Strong documentation and knowledge-management capabilities
• Strong stakeholder management, communication, and presentation skills
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and other Microsoft Office tools
• Ability to work effectively in complex, cross-functional, and global environments

Language Requirement

• Strong professional communication capability in English and Japanese

Good-to-Have Skills

The following experience will be considered an advantage:

• Siemens NX CAD
• Siemens Teamcenter
• Variant Management, including product configuration and complex product structures
• Experience within the automotive or manufacturing industry
• Experience related to embedded systems
• Microsoft SharePoint
• Azure or AWS cloud technologies
• DevSecOps concepts and tools
• Azure DevOps
• Data visualization and reporting tools such as Power BI or Qlik Sense

Key Competencies

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Customer and user-focused mindset
• Ability to translate complex business requirements into clear functional requirements.
• Effective communication across business and technical stakeholders
• Strong collaboration and interpersonal skills
• High attention to quality and detail
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a complex environment.
• Proactive and purposeful approach
• Strong ownership and accountability
• Ability to collaborate effectively across cultures, functions, and geographical locations.