Honda Motors

Cost Planning Senior Principal Engineer - Automotive

Honda Motors • $130K — $155K *
US-AnywhereRemote in Raymond, OH
Manufacturing & Automotive
11 - 15 years of experience
Today
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Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in a STEM field (preferably Mechanical, Electrical, Automotive, or Mechatronics)
  • 15+ years in product development, cost planning, and leadership
  • Demonstrable technical expertise in materials, manufacturing processes, and cost drivers
  • Expertise in electrical harnesses, battery management, infotainment systems, or interior lighting
  • Ability to evaluate cost optimization and manufacturability of designs
  • Familiarity with CATIA, Excel, and PowerPoint for analysis
  • Strong communication and facilitation skills in a team environment.

Responsibilities

  • Lead cost optimization discussions and align stakeholders across design and purchasing
  • Assess proposals for strength against alternatives and recommend actions and priorities
  • Guide cost engineers on analysis approaches and maintain commitments
  • Influence decisions with persuasive communications based on cost and value analysis
  • Evaluate designs for cost, investment, manufacturability, and customer perceptions of value
  • Identify business improvement opportunities and prioritize impactful efforts
  • Collaborate with stakeholders to assess proposals' impact on various business metrics.

Benefits

  • Competitive base salary with regional bonuses
  • Manager Lease Car Program covering car, maintenance, and insurance
  • Comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, and vision
  • Paid time off including vacation, holidays, and shutdowns
  • 401K plan with company match and additional contributions
  • Relocation assistance for eligible candidates
  • Tuition assistance and student loan repayment programs.
Full Job Description
Job Purpose

  • To achieve HDMA business targets, it is critically important to determine whether a given part/system design is cost competitive and a reasonable value for the money.
  • The Cost Planning Sr. Principal Engineer serves as a senior technical leader within the assigned category, responsible for evaluating cost competitiveness, guiding proposal direction, and aligning stakeholders to deliver business results.
  • This role exercises independent judgment in assessing cost targets and proposals while recommending direction and escalating final decisions as appropriate.


Key Accountabilities

Technical Leadership, Direction Setting, and Team Guidance:
  • Leverages experience, technical credibility, and business judgment to lead category cost optimization discussions and drive alignment among design, cost, purchasing, and related stakeholders.
  • Assesses the strength of proposals versus alternatives and determines the recommended direction, actions, priorities, and schedule for the Cost Planning team within the assigned category.
  • Provides guidance to cost engineers on analysis approach, issue breakdown, task ownership, and timing in order to maintain commitments and achieve category targets.
  • Influences decisions through clear, persuasive written and verbal communication and through fact-based evaluation of cost, feasibility, competitiveness, and customer value.

Expertise and Strategic Cost Evaluation:
  • Possesses strong knowledge of part design, materials, manufacturing processes, cost drivers, and investment implications within the assigned technical area.
  • Evaluates whether designs are optimized for cost, investment, manufacturability, and customer perception of value, while balancing regulations, market competitiveness, quality, and weight considerations.
  • Identifies opportunity areas, matures proposals for business improvement, and applies broad "big picture" thinking to prioritize efforts that maximize business impact versus required effort.
  • Stays current on emerging technologies, benchmarking insights, and relevant technical or supplier trends to strengthen category strategy and recommendations.


Key Accountabilities (Contd.)

Verification, Judgment, and Recommendation Authority:
  • Evaluates the reasonableness of cost targets, assumptions, VA/VE themes, and cost-down proposals through careful examination of logic, supporting evidence, and implementation feasibility.
  • Determines the appropriate verification path, required resources, and readiness of proposals for next-stage review and approval.
  • Ranks and recommends cost-related items within the category, including timing, technical path, investment implications, and expected business value.
  • Escalates category issues requiring final adjudication, broader business trade-off decisions, or enterprise-level direction to higher leadership as needed.

Correlation, Reporting, and Stakeholder Alignment:
  • Determines that the prepared document for the Cost Evaluation accurately reflects the project status and supports the conclusions being made with sufficient logic and material evidence. Advises the Team on maturation of said materials.
  • Collaborates with Design, Purchasing, suppliers, and other related stakeholders to understand the impact of proposals on quality, ergonomics, maintenance, manufacturability, timing, and other business metrics.
  • Leads Profit Improvement themes including correlation activities by providing technical context, cost perspective, and recommendation rationale.
  • Consults with relevant internal and external partners, including Japan counterparts when applicable, to confirm assumptions and strengthen proposal quality.
  • Assists the Unit & Department Leader in Administrative duties with respect to associate performance, goal setting, mentorship and tracking progress on goals.


Qualifications, Experience, and Skills

  • Minimum education:
    • Must have a Bachelor's level degree in a STEM field of study (preferably Mechcanical / Electrical / Automotive / Mechatronics etc).
  • Minimum work experience:
  • At least 15 years of relevant industry experience in product development, cost planning and technical/team leadership.
  • Demosntrable technical expertise in part, materials and manufacturing process and cost drivers.
  • Must be an expert in at least one or more of these areas - electrical harnesses (wiring connecting the power and signal to components), battery management systems, infotainment systems, interior lighting.
  • Ability to determine if a design is optimized for cost, investment, manufacturability and customer value.
  • Ability to assess proposal feasibility, implementation path and cross functional impact.
  • Working knowledge of CATIA (not expert), Excel, Powerpoint for analysis and reporting.
  • Strong facilitation, consensus-building, and technical communication skills in a fast-paced team environment.
  • Automotive industry experience will be an asset for this role.


Workstyle

  • This is an onsite job. One remote workday per week may be possible with prior departmental approval.


What differentiates Honda and makes us an employer of choice?

Total Rewards:
  • Competitive Base Salary (pay will be based on several variables that include, but not limited to geographic location, work experience, etc.)
  • Regional Bonus (when applicable)
  • Manager Lease Car Program (No Cost - Car, Maintenance, and Insurance included)
  • Industry-leading Benefit Plans (Medical, Dental, Vision, Rx)
  • Paid time off, including vacation, holidays, shutdown
  • Company Paid Short-Term and Long-Term Disability
  • 401K Plan with company match + additional contribution
  • Relocation assistance (if eligible)

Career Growth:
  • Advancement Opportunities
  • Career Mobility
  • Education Reimbursement for Continued learning
  • Training and Development Programs

Additional Offerings:
  • Lifestyle Account
  • Childcare Reimbursement Account
  • Elder Care Support
  • Tuition Assistance & Student Loan Repayment
  • Wellbeing Program
  • Community Service and Engagement Programs
  • Product Programs

About Honda Motors

Honda Motors is a leading manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment. The company was founded in 1948 by Soichiro Honda and has since grown to become one of the largest automotive companies in the world. Honda Motors is known for its innovative designs and commitment to sustainability, with a focus on developing environmentally friendly vehicles. The company operates in over 30 countries and has a strong presence in the United States, Japan, and Europe.
Learn more about Honda Motors
Size
204,035 employees
Market Cap
$41.8 billion
Industry
Manufacturing & Automotive
Net Income
$414.5 billion
Founded
1948
5 Year Trend
+0.8%
Revenue
$13,004.8 billion
NASDAQ
HMC
* Ladders Estimates

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