Lead, TPL –Cost & Governance

Here at Scout Motors, we're carrying forward the heritage of one of the most iconic American vehicles in history. A vehicle dating back to 1960. One that forged the path for future generations of rugged SUVs and trucks and will do so once again. But Scout is more than just a brand, it’s a legacy steeped in a culture of exploration, caretaking, and hard work. The Scout brand is all about respect. Respect for the past and the future by taking an iconic American brand that hasn’t been around for a while, electrifying it, digitizing it, and loading it with American innovation. Respect for communities by creating a company that stands for its people and its customers. Respect for both work and play, with vehicles that are equally at home at a camp site, a job site, or on a Tuesday commute. And respect for our customers by developing two powertrains that meet their requirements — an all-electric powertrain as well as the Harvester™ range extender powertrain which includes a built-in gas-powered generator with an estimated 500 miles of combined range. At Scout Motors, we empower our talented, inclusive, and entrepreneurial teams to innovate. What makes a Scout employee? Someone who is a visionary and a leader, who seeks new paths and shares lessons learned. A knowledgeable doer who collaborates across the company to build better. A go-getter with unrivaled passion. Join us at Scout Motors and be part of shaping the future of transportation. If you're ready to drive change and make history, apply now!What you’ll do At Scout Motors, you don't just design vehicles- you shape the future of the road. Our Engineering team is where bold ideas meet rigorous execution, building machines that are as durable and capable as the people who drive them. You'll work shoulder-to-shoulder with brilliant minds across disciplines, turning complex challenges into elegant, scalable solutions that meet the highest standards of safety, performance, and user experience. This is a place where your fingerprints are found on metal – where what you design gets built, driven, and remembered. If you're hungry to engineer something that matters, Scout Motors is where that ambition finds its highest gear.    In this role, you will lead program execution, issue resolution, and cross-functional alignment across the entire vehicle program, ensuring delivery of complex vehicle systems in line with Scout’s product, timing, quality, and cost targets. You will operate at a vehicle and system integration level, acting as a central driver of transparency, accountability, and structured decision-making across R&D and cross-functional teams.   Become part of an iconic brand that is set to revolutionize the electric pick-up truck & rugged SUV marketplace by achieving the following: Lead the development of bottom‑up cost calculations across vehicle main system teams (MSTs) and departments, ensuring a robust and transparent financial baseline for R&D programs.   Assess and validate the plausibility of budget requests, ensuring alignment between detailed bottom‑up inputs and overall program targets.   Consolidate and communicate approved budgets across MSTs and departments, ensuring clarity of ownership and alignment with program objectives.   Drive cost forecasting activities and track actual spend against approved budgets, ensuring continuous visibility into financial performance.   Perform ongoing budget risk assessments, identifying deviations, trends, and potential overruns based on actuals and forecasts.   Establish and enforce financial governance and accountability, holding MST and functional leaders (including VP-level stakeholders) accountable for budget adherence and financial commitments.   Support resource allocation decisions aligned with project scope, priorities, and timing, ensuring optimal utilization of financial and human resources.   Monitor and track progress against Top Goals and KPIs, ensuring alignment between financial performance and overall program success metrics.   Identify cost-driven risks and trade-offs, supporting data-driven decision-making across engineering, product, and business teams.   Drive cross-functional alignment on financial assumptions, priorities, and recovery actions where budget gaps or risks arise.   Support the preparation of financial reporting, dashboards, and leadership materials for governance forums and executive reviews.   Act as a central coordination point for cost and governance topics, ensuring consistency between planning, execution, and reporting.  Location & Travel Expectations: This role may be based out of the Scout Motors corporate headquarters in Charlotte, NC.  This role requires 4-5 days per week in the office, with regular in-person meetings and events.  Applicants should expect that the role will require the ability to convene with Scout colleagues in person and travel to participate in events on behalf of the company from time to time. Travel: Occasional travel may be required to support program activities, testing, and leadership reviews. Valid drivers license required. What you’ll bring  We expect all Scout employees to have integrity, curiosity, resourcefulness, and strive to exhibit a positive attitude, as well as a growth mindset. You’ll be comfortable with change and flexible in a fast-paced, high-growth environment. You’ll take a collaborative approach to achieve ambitious goals. Here's what else you'll bring:  12+ years of professional experience in the automotive industry, with a focus on program finance, cost engineering, controlling, or program management.   Bachelors in engineering and proven experience developing bottom‑up cost estimates and managing program budgets in a cross-functional environment.   Strong understanding of automotive program financial structures, including budgeting, forecasting, and cost tracking.   Demonstrated ability to assess budget plausibility and challenge assumptions using data-driven analysis.   Experience managing financ