Quality Manager

Reporting to: Director of Manufacturing Operations

Department: Operations

Location: Full-time onsite in Littleton, Colorado with up to 20% international travel

Direct Reports: None

About Emporia

Emporia is an energy management technology company revolutionizing home energy by making energy efficiency accessible to all homeowners helping to save up to 50% on their utility bills. Our product lineup includes EV chargers, smart home energy monitors, smart plugs, home battery systems, and an integrative app that allows for seamless energy management. By reducing energy waste and saving customers money, we’re helping create a healthier planet and a brighter future.
For more information, visit emporiaenergy.com. 

Mission and Vision

Emporia was founded in 2018 with a clear purpose to revolutionize home energy, generate tangible customer savings, and accelerate the transition to a lower carbon future. We are striving to become the world's leading home energy management platform and build the largest virtual power plant.

Values:

• Customers First: We deliver exceptional service with empathy and responsiveness, building lasting trust in every interaction.
• Own the Outcome: We think like owners, taking responsibility for results and holding ourselves and each other accountable.
• Win Together: We succeed together through honesty, humility and humanity.
• Grit Gets it Done: We work hard, stay passionate, and persevere through challenges.
• Better Every Day: We challenge the status quo, take smart risks and aim to improve 1% every day.

About the Role

Emporia Energy is seeking an experienced and self-directed Quality Manager to own and elevate quality systems, supplier performance, and supply chain continuity across our hardware product portfolio. This is a senior individual contributor role requiring someone who can operate with a high degree of autonomy, build structure where it does not yet exist, and drive meaningful outcomes without requiring close direction. The ideal candidate brings deep experience with consumer electronics contract manufacturing—particularly with overseas partners—and has a track record of establishing rigorous quality and supply chain processes in a fast-moving, startup-like environment. You will work cross-functionally with Engineering, Operations, Compliance, Product, and our contract manufacturing partners to ensure that Emporia products are manufactured to specification, that supply continuity is proactively maintained, and that our quality and operational systems continuously improve.

Responsibilities

Quality & Compliance

• Lead and execute CM factory audits and product quality audits; develop corrective action plans and track resolution to closure.
• Own Emporia’s RMA and warranty process from end to end—analyze return data, identify systemic failure modes, work with Engineering and the CM to implement corrective actions, and report trends to leadership.
• Partner with Emporia’s compliance team to ensure all products and contract manufacturing facilities meet UL and other applicable regulatory standards; manage compliance audit schedules and remediation activities.
• Review technical production drawings, BOMs, data sheets, and manufacturing documentation for accuracy, completeness, and consistency prior to production release.
• Contribute to continuous improvement of Emporia’s document control and change control processes (ECOs, MCOs, deviations) in coordination with Emporia Document Control Manager and PLM systems.
• Drive quality accountability with contract manufacturers: establish clear quality metrics, conduct regular performance reviews, and ensure supplier-originated issues are properly attributed and resolved.
• Serve as Emporia's internal audit owner — maintaining the readiness of development processes, quality systems, and supporting documentation to withstand scrutiny from prospective partners, customers, or certification bodies, and leading the response to any audit findings.

Supplier Performance & Supply Chain

• Own and continuously improve Emporia’s Supplier Quality Manual. 
• Conduct structured supplier performance reviews and evaluations; maintain supplier scorecards and drive continuous improvement across the supply base.
• Proactively monitor the supply chain for component EOL risks, single-source dependencies, allocation constraints, and other factors that could disrupt production; develop and present mitigation strategies to leadership.
• Surface cost-down and CTQ component improvement opportunities and ensure process consistency across change control, supplier qualification, and CM-side validation — providing structured oversight too the internal and external project team accountable for executing each change end-to-end.
• Work with Engineering and Planning to assess impact of product changes on the supply chain, including component phase-in/phase-out planning and E&O risk management.

Process Development & PDLC

• Support continuous improvement of Emporia’s Product Development Life Cycle (PDLC) process by developing and refining templates, checklists, and other tools aligned to phase-gate milestones (EVT, DVT, PVT, MP). 
• Identify gaps in existing operational processes and independently design and implement improvements; proactively surface issues and solutions without waiting to be directed.
• Create and maintain quality and supply chain reporting for leadership, including supplier scorecards, warranty trend reports, audit findings, and supply risk summaries.
• As a startup, this role requires flexibility and a “wear many hats” mindset—this description does not capture all assignments.

Required Skills & Qualifications

• BS or higher in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing & Operations Engineering, Supply Chain, or equivalent experience.
• 7+ years of experience in quality, supply chain, or operations roles within the consumer electronics industry or similarly regulated environments.
• Self-directed and highly autonomous—able to establish priorities, create structure, and drive results without requiring close oversight.
• Exceptional written and verbal communicator who leads with the bottom line — able to distill complex quality and supply chain issues into clear, concise takeaways for cross-functional teams and senior leadership.
• Experience with PFMEA, control plans, and manufacturing quality systems such as ISO9001 or IATF16949
• Demonstrated experience owning factory and product audits, supplier performance programs, and quality management systems (QMS) in a contract manufacturing environment.
• Catches what others miss — typos, BOM discrepancies, and the one data point that doesn't belong. (Yes, there's an error in this posting. Did you find it?)
• Direct experience working with international contract manufacturers and ODM/JDM partners.
• Familiarity with UL certification processes and factory compliance requirements.
• Experience with RMA/warranty analysis and driving systematic corrective actions.
• Comfort working with PLM systems for BOM, ECO, and change management (e.g., Arena or equivalent).
• A genuine human being who brings energy and humor to the workplace — we take the mission seriously, but not ourselves.
• Experience with Google Workspace, Jira, and Confluence.  
• Ability to travel internationally approximately 10-20% of the time.

What We Offer

💰 Compensation:  The expected base salary range is $150,000-$175,000, plus stock options, however the offered salary may be higher or lower than the above range depending on numerous factors including, but not limited to work experience, skills and internal equity considerations. The base salary is not inclusive of benefits or other incentives.

🏥 Benefits: medical/dental/vision insurance, 401(k), employee stock option program, paid holidays plus unlimited PTO, discounts on Emporia products and partner offerings.

📈 Career Growth: Be part of a fast-growing company at the forefront of home energy innovation.

Emporia Energy is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, ancestry, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, religion, age, disability, gender identity, results of genetic testing, service in the military, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local laws. We will make reasonable accommodations for any qualified applicant with a disability, provided that the individual is otherwise qualified to safely perform the essential functions of the job with or without accommodation and that the accommodation would not impose an undue hardship on the operation of our business. Please let us know if you believe you require reasonable accommodation, or if you would like assistance to complete an application or to participate in an interview at the company.

A cover letter and resume are required to be considered for this position.

New employees will be required to successfully complete a background check.

Any communication to applicants relating to the Emporia Energy hiring process will only come from email addresses with the domains emporiaenergy.com or [email protected]. If in the course of the application or hiring process with Emporia Energy you are contacted through another domain, are requested to provide banking or other sensitive information, or you note any other suspicious activity, please contact [email protected].