Lead CIC Support Manager
Job Summary
We are seeking an experienced Technical Support Manager to lead the North America Level 2 Technical Support team for GE Vernova's Grid Automation business. This role oversees wireless and optical technical support functions, ensuring high-quality post-sales service for critical industrial networking systems. The manager will foster team development, drive operational performance, and collaborate cross-functionally to improve customer satisfaction.
Responsibilities
- Lead and mentor L2 Technical Support team (Wireless and Optical)
- Oversee case operations and ensure SLA adherence
- Drive continuous improvement in support tools and processes
- Manage senior-level customer escalations and incidents
- Collaborate with Engineering and Product teams on NPI and systemic issues
Required Skills
- Bachelor's in Electrical/Computer Engineering or equivalent
- 5+ years in communications systems or networking
- Leadership experience in technical support environments
- Proficiency in wireless/optical comms (LTE/5G, SONET/SDH, MPLS)
- Experience with Salesforce CRM and performance analytics
Job Details
Key Responsibilities
Leadership & Team Development
- Lead and develop the CIC L2 Technical Support team (Wireless and Optical), fostering collaboration between the Rochester, Vancouver and Markham sites.
- Coach, mentor, and grow technical specialists to enhance product knowledge, troubleshooting discipline, and professional communication.
- Establish team goals aligned with regional and global service objectives, promoting ownership and accountability.
- Conduct regular 1:1s, performance reviews, and knowledge-sharing sessions to sustain engagement and capability growth.
Operational & Technical Excellence
- Oversee day-to-day case operations, ensuring SLA adherence, consistent quality, and proactive issue resolution.
- Drive best-in-class case management practices, leveraging Salesforce (SFDC), Phone System/Voice analytics, and dashboard metrics.
- Coordinate escalations with L3/L4 Engineering and Product Line teams to ensure thorough root-cause analysis and corrective actions.
- Champion continuous improvement in tools, processes, and documentation, including knowledge base content and training assets.
- Guide lab replication and validation activities to accelerate resolution of complex field issues.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Serve as the primary interface between Technical Support, Product Line, and Engineering teams to surface field trends and systemic issues.
- Collaborate with Product Management to influence new product introduction (NPI) readiness, technical documentation, and support enablement.
- Partner with Quality and Commercial Operations to track and communicate customer experience metrics (CEI, CSAT, NPS).
- Contribute to strategic initiatives improving case prioritization, workflow automation (GridBot, Salesforce integration), and regional standardization.
Customer Engagement & Escalations
- Act as a senior escalation point for key customer cases in both Wireless and Optical domains.
- Review and present case summaries, performance metrics, and root-cause findings to internal and external stakeholders.
- Ensure timely and transparent communication to customers during critical or high-impact incidents.
- Promote a strong Voice-of-Customer (VOC) culture, driving systemic changes based on feedback from utilities, partners, and OEM clients.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related technical discipline or equivalent work experience.
- Minimum 5 years of experience in communications systems, networking, or substation automation, including technical support or field operations.
- Proven leadership or supervisory experience within a technical or customer-facing support environment.
- Strong understanding of wireless and optical communications technologies, including IP networking, LTE/5G, SONET/SDH, MPLS-TP, or Ethernet.
- Experience managing distributed teams across multiple sites and remote resources or product lines.
- Demonstrate ability to drive process improvement and deliver measurable performance outcomes.
- Excellent interpersonal, communication, and organizational skills, with the ability to influence across functions and geographies.
Desired Characteristics
- Familiarity with GE Lentronics and GE MDS (or comparable industrial networking and communications systems).
- Working knowledge of Salesforce CRM and customer analytics/reporting tools.
- Certifications such as CCNA, CCNP, or PMP are an asset.
- Strong analytical mindset with the ability to balance technical problem-solving and customer satisfaction.
- Adaptable to changing priorities and comfortable leading through ambiguity.
- Passion for coaching and building high-performing, customer-centric technical teams.
Travel Requirement
- Ability and willingness to travel up to 25% for customer meetings, training, and internal collaboration between Rochester and Markham locations.