Head of Quality & Customer Satisfaction

Location: Roma, Italy

In fast changing markets, customers worldwide rely on Thales. Thales is a business where brilliant people from all over the world come together to share ideas and inspire each other. In aerospace, transportation, defence, security and space, our architects design innovative solutions that make our tomorrow's possible.

Roma hosts the commercial offices to be close to Costumer and Public Administration.

We are currently looking for a Head of Quality & Customer Satisfaction Manager to join Thales Italia team, working in the Defense and Civil Market.

He/ She will ensure the Quality of deliverables and compliance with customer requirements and operational performance, while improving Customer Satisfaction and operational maturity. He/she manages the continuous improvement of the functional area to optimize Company competitiveness. He/ she manages the Quality team for his or her area, composed of several local business units.

JOB OBJECTIVES AND KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Will ensure the implementation of processes, practices and specific tools, to make sure the tender or the project life cycle is in line with the Group defined processes (CHORUS) as well as the Customer requirements and international regulations (ISO, AQAP, etc.).
The main mission is to support all organizations in delivering quality and efficiency of the operations all along business life cycles, improving customer satisfaction and developing their operational maturity.

The main responsibilities are to:
• Ensure the quality of all the operations: quality of what is delivered to customers, customer satisfaction, operational efficiency (balance quality versus cost).
• Manage the efficiency of the Quality & Customer Satisfaction organizations and develop people skills to deliver the value expected by the stakeholders and leverage quality as a key step in the career path.
• Manage the Group Management System (Chorus) and its instantiations, ensuring process efficiency, compliance to standards and certifications.
• Provide an objective view of quality to management from both operational and strategic perspectives.
• Execute the Quality and Customer Satisfaction (QCS) performance (OTD, OCD, CoNQ) and transformation plans.
• Drive quality performance and anticipate risk to achieve long-term operational excellence.
• Promote a quality culture to ensure process efficiency and reduce the costs of non-quality.
• Support the organizations in developing their maturity in order to enhance their operational performance.
• Contribute to continuous improvement of practices and capitalization on experience, drive growth in organizational maturity.
• Serve as the voice of the Customer and the main stakeholders (regulations, certification bodies, suppliers, etc.).
• Be a customer ‘’champion’’ and develop everyone’s “quality and customer mindset’’ and to that end, assess regularly the customers’ satisfaction, confidence and loyalty.

Quality Management
• Provide leadership for the QCS organization in accordance with the rules and expectations of the Group’s leadership.

Implement proper application of governance and processes in compliance with the Group’s Quality policy and deploy them consistently across the countries.
• Ensure alert and veto mechanisms are implemented in all countries, manage escalation process as appropriate.
• Represent Thales in the main (for its business) national and international quality organisms, to be part of new norms evolution, to monitor and anticipate new trends and emerging quality norms.
• Coordinate, in cooperation with HR, the management of the QCS resources, including people development. Optimize resource allocation at the region level.
• Coach the QCS resources in the countries of the region to develop maturity of the country organization.

Quality Assurance (QA)
• Guarantee product/project quality and ensure that the level of quality provides value and satisfaction to customers.
• Implement the Group's risk-based quality assurance policy by anticipating, preventing and proactively addressing risks, including quality assurance of suppliers (in coordination with procurement).

Customer Satisfaction:
• Makes the customer's voice heard to ensure long-term customer satisfaction and loyalty to the Group.
• Ensures that the relationship with strategic Group customers on quality issues is managed and that strong, proactive contact is established with the customer to allow for preventive measures designed to ensure customer satisfaction.
Management System/Certifications:
• Ensure that the management system is appropriate, coherent, performant and optimized at the Country level.
• Conduct accreditations and certifications and provide support for the preparatory process, as appropriate.
• Define and manage the policy for auditing processes. Identify and implement synergies at Country level.

DETAILED RESPONSIBILITIES
• Coordination of BL Quality managers allocated in the country (or group of Country). All Quality & Customer Satisfaction staff operating in a BL, Competence Centre, or Function are part of the Quality & Customer Satisfaction Department of the BL and ultimately report to the Country Quality & Customer Satisfaction Manager.
• Ensure the proper implementation of the Thales Quality & Customer Satisfaction policy:
o Define and implement the Q&CS organization and governance, according to the Group organization and governance principles.
o Manage the resources and develop people to deliver the value expected by the stakeholders.
o Develop the maturity of the Q&CS organization, according to the agreed operating model.
o Lead the Quality &Customer Satisfaction performance plan for the Entity, including transformation initiatives and function costs.
o Monitor the added value provided by the function to the stakeholders.
• Provide support to the Process Owner and Managers in “Governance and Organization” matters, ensure validation and publication of the Entity documents according to Group rules.

Ensure the Chorus Management System, life cycles, processes and practices are properly implemented to ensure compliance to the required standards and regulations, to deliver operational performances and customer satisfaction.
• Have the duty of information and must exercise his role of alert towards the management of its entity, the GBU and the Group Head of Quality & Customer Satisfaction, when needed.
• Have a duty to set quality objectives and assess individual or collective achievements.
• Sets up General Quality Assurance activities to ensure the quality of the Bids, Projects, Products and Services and related operational and support processes in each business is correctly setup and active.
• Ensure that the single organization in each business has the appropriate capabilities (governance and management, resources and competences, processes, practices and tools) to fulfill its missions and meet its objectives, and that these capabilities are properly and sustainably deployed and optimized.
• Ensure that the single organization in each business Enhancing the performance of the operations by developing the quality of solutions and products, reducing operational risks on bids, products and projects.
• Define the assessment strategy and manage the assessment plan on his perimeter in liaison with the BL/Segment quality team in the development of the maturity (including TIMS assessments and follow-up actions) of his organization in line with the target operating model defined for the entity.
• Develop operational quality through transverse quality activities (detection, analysis, prevention, methodologies, support, coaching, lessons learned…).
• Contribute to promoting a culture of quality and to the empowerment of operational teams to take responsibility for managing Quality.
• Ensure the relationship with Customers on Quality matters is organized and properly managed. For all key customers a strong and pro-active customer contact is established to enable preventive measures ensuring customer satisfaction.
• Monitor Customer Satisfaction in liaison with the different stakeholders (KAMs, Sales, Marketing, Bids, Projects, Services, Quality & Customer Satisfaction, …).
o Contribute to the customer satisfaction plan managed by the Group Quality & Customer Satisfaction Directorate.
o Ensure customer complaints are properly managed: Provide a POC (Point of Contact) into the organization in case of complaints as well as supporting field data analysis and providing valuable feedback towards the customer as well as inside the organization.
o Gather Customer feedback (complaints, congratulations and any another feedback including Customer/User experience) from different sources and share the information with the appropriate stakeholders.
o Stimulate actions to improve customer satisfaction and loyalty.
o Ensure action plan are implemented at the relevant level and provide support when necessary to address customer complaints, issues and expectations.
o Liaise with Ambition Boost actors to ensure strategic initiatives are embedded to address the challenges related to customer satisfaction and loyalty.
o Provide analysis of various customer feedback to the Management and stakeholders,
o Develop customer mindset within the organization, thru communications, on-boarding initiatives, training, and promote all kind of actions on the field.
• Supply the data resulting from audits, return and customer complaints, alert and veto right, to ensure the reporting and to prevent the risks.
• Support and verify tailoring activities of Thales practices and their result in the relevant existing documentation.

Define and drive the Country Quality Management Review by collecting of all KPI and relevant action in order to improve the global quality at all level of the organizations.
• ensure and coordinate all necessary activities related to the ISO 9001 and AS9100 certifications as well as the AQAP 2110/2210 adherence/accreditation, coordinating with certification body and relevant Auditor.
• Complies with auditing plan and conduct audits to the projects then follow up the Non-Conformity raised in the Audit since closure out.

SKILLS, EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS
This position requires a strong commitment to excellence in quality and governance and outstanding leadership, communication and analytical skills.
• Quality Experience (Quality Assurance, Management System, Customer Satisfaction, Continuous Improvement, Organization & Governance) for 5 years at least.
• Experience in Quality in the following area: Electronics/Aerospace /Systems Integration in Defence and Civil context.
• Education/Qualifications University degree (Engineering or technical disciplines) or equivalent (Electronic is preferential). Non-graduate candidates will also be considered but with a strong and proven experience as well as an excellent knowledge quality management and management and coordination activities
• Management experience (hierarchical, cross-functional, project mode, etc.)
• Operational/discipline experience (Project, Engineering, Industry, Procurement)
• Good interpersonal and communication skills
• Budgeting, tracking and reporting
• Strong time management and organizational skills Knowledge of Quality Tool like Plan/ Quality Inspection & Test Plan also in line with the governance assurance AQAP
• Process Analysis and Improvement
• ISO 9001 / AS9100 and AQAP 2110 knowledge
• ISO 9001 Certified Auditor
• Key attitudes: Result/Customer Orientation, Self-motivation, Critical Thinking, Flexibility and high capacity to work within multicultural teams
• Ability to speak fluently in English
It is also considered a plus the following:
• the knowledge of other Quality Standards and Lean Principle and Management (applicable to Industry and Projects)

Experience in business analysis
• Recognized success in delivering enterprise systems, improving business processes and changing corporate culture
• Experience in service delivery, particularly in managing complex programs
• Management of multidisciplinary project teams
• International experience/knowledge outside Italy

At Thales we provide CAREERS and not only jobs. With Thales employing 80,000 employees in 68 countries our mobility policy enables thousands of employees each year to develop their careers at home and abroad, in their existing areas of expertise or by branching out into new fields. Together we believe that embracing flexibility is a smarter way of working. Great journeys start here, apply now!