Director - Electrolyzer Testing

Key Responsibilities

1. Test Strategy & Execution

• Define and execute testing protocols with scientific rigor: establish electrochemistry-grounded hypotheses, design tests to validate or refute them, and quantify all findings (degradation rates, failure mechanisms, performance bounds) while documenting analytical-technique limitations.
• Use DFMEA (Design Failure Mode and Effects Analysis) as the primary framework for test plan development, ensuring every failure mode has a detection method and test protocol that validates the reliability roadmap.
• Document all test decisions with scientific and cost rationale, avoiding trial-and-error.

2. Infrastructure & Lab Management

• Oversee design, procurement, and scaling of testing facilities and test benches (hardware, electrical, fluidic, and safety systems).
• Establish testing facility operational targets: uptime, data quality, cost per test hour, and capability maturity.
• Ensure all safety aspects are considered during procurement and deployment of testing equipment.

3. Data & Diagnostics

• Implement and manage advanced diagnostics—Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) and Cell Voltage Monitoring (CVM)—to analyze performance and map degradation.
• Establish data-quality standards and ensure test data feeds structured analysis pipelines for reliability and design teams.

4. Failure Analysis & Root Cause

• Lead root-cause analysis (RCA) and post-mortem investigations on test articles to identify failure modes and improve stack design.
• Translate test findings into actionable engineering conclusions with documented hypothesis validation.

5. Team Leadership & Development

• Build and mentor a high-performing team of engineers and scientists specializing in electrochemical testing and diagnostics.
• Build a team culture of quantified reasoning, structured technical discourse, and ownership accountability.
• Establish regular technical deep-dive forums where hypotheses are tested, data interpreted rigorously, and design implications debated openly.

6. Communication & Technical Rigor

• Lead structured technical discussions with clear agendas, documented outcomes, and full team participation.
• Set a regular cadence: staff meetings focused on technical deep dives (not status updates); cross-functional syncs with R&D, Manufacturing, and Product; and DFMEA/PFMEA reviews in structured forums.
• Communicate technical decisions and rationale in writing so the team sees the reasoning and can provide input.
• Communicate timelines with specific dates and contingencies, not vague terms like soon, ASAP, or next month.

7. Ownership & Accountability

• Own all aspects of your domain—infrastructure, timelines, staffing, and budgets—with full transparency about achievements and setbacks.
• Communicate with conviction backed by data; when challenges arise, escalate early with clear context rather than hoping to catch up later.
• Model the principle: We will not just do our best, we will get things done.

8. Timeline Management & Execution

• Set realistic timelines with built-in contingency, substantiating any schedule changes with root-cause analysis.
• Track action items rigorously and escalate proactively when setbacks occur or resources are needed.

9. Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with the Stack Reliability Director on test findings and design implications. Sync regularly with R&D on test requirements, Manufacturing on production readiness, and Product on roadmap alignment.
• Present all findings in structured technical forums with quantified data, not in side conversations.
• Feed diagnostics and test data to the Reliability team for RCA and design feedback.

10. Economic Awareness & Cost Transparency

• Integrate cost and lifecycle economic analysis into technical decisions.
• When proposing infrastructure, facility scaling, or component upgrades, include component-level cost breakdowns and sensitivity analyses.
• Ensure $/performance metrics include unit-cost context to prevent misinterpretation if supplier pricing changes.

Required Qualifications

• B.Tech/M.Tech in Chemical, Materials Science, Metallurgy or Electrochemistry, with 13+ years in electrolyzer stack, battery or fuel cell testing.
• Deep expertise in electrochemistry, characterization techniques (CV, LSV, EIS), testing protocols, safety, and regulatory compliance for electrolyzer/battery systems.
• Proven track record directing engineering teams, interfacing with cross-functional R&D, and managing test-lab budgets.
• Strong data analysis skills, proficiency with reliability tools and statistical software (Minitab, JMP, or equivalent).
• Exceptional communication, leadership, and organizational skills.
• Sound judgment on the limits of diagnostic and characterization tools—avoiding over-interpretation beyond their technical scope.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience building and scaling testing facilities from concept through operational maturity.
• Track record of systematizing team processes and driving measurable improvements.
• Evidence of teaching others scientific reasoning and hypothesis-driven engineering, not just managing tasks.
• Experience with DFMEA and PFMEA methodologies applied to test strategy development.
• Familiarity with renewable energy or electrochemical energy storage systems.

Leadership Philosophy & Cultural Fit

This role requires comfort with:

• Quantified decision-making: decisions backed by data, not opinions.
• Structured communication: technical rigor in staff meetings, written rationale for changes.
• Ownership accountability: transparent reporting of both progress and setbacks.
• Avoiding hope-based planning: planning contingencies, escalating early, not assuming success.
• Continuous scientific learning: staying current on electrochemistry, diagnostics, and failure mechanisms specific to PEM electrolyzers.

This role will not be successful if the candidate:

• Prefers best effort over systematic, accountable delivery, or communicates vaguely on timelines.
• Treats technical deep dives as status meetings, or avoids escalating problems until they become critical.
• Resists decisions on incomplete information, or defaults to trial-and-error over hypothesis-driven engineering.

Success Metrics (18-Month Horizon)

• Qualification plan completed on schedule with documented scientific basis and RCA traceability.
• Facility maturity: >90% uptime, ≥95% data quality, cost per test hour on target.
• Team capability: all reports can independently design test protocols with scientific hypotheses and DFMEA integration.
• RCA closure rate: >85% of design changes traced to root cause; zero high-safety incidents, all protocols audited annually.