Technical Program Manager - Hardware Systems

About the Job

Hardware Team: The Hardware Team at Field AI develops perception and compute payloads that power autonomous robotics systems in complex real-world environments. We work across sensing systems, embedded compute, electrical systems, and mechanical integration, owning the full lifecycle from development through production and field deployment.

We are seeking a Technical Program Manager (TPM) to support the planning, execution, and delivery of hardware programs across our robotics platforms. The ideal candidate is highly organized, technically sound, and eager to operate at the intersection of engineering, operations, and product development. You will work closely with cross-functional teams to track progress, manage schedules, identify risks, and ensure alignment across hardware, software, and operations.

This role requires strong communication skills, attention to detail, and the ability to thrive in a fast‑paced environment.

• Timeline Management: Support program timelines, milestones, and deliverables across hardware development efforts.
• Progress Tracking: Track progress against plans, identify gaps, and help drive teams toward execution.
• Roadmap Development: Assist in building and maintaining program schedules and development roadmaps.

• Engineering Team Coordination: Coordinate efforts within the hardware across electrical, mechanical, and embedded systems to ensure alignment. Organize design reviews (PDR/CDR) to ensure teams stay on track.
• Cross-Functional Alignment: Ensure strategic alignment across teams including engineering, field ops, product, and business.
• Meeting Facilitation: Facilitate meetings, track action items, and ensure follow-through across teams.
• Blocker Resolution: Resolve blockers by connecting the right stakeholders and driving decisions.

• Risk Identification: Identify program risks and elevate issues early with clear communication.
• Mitigation Planning: Maintain risk trackers and support mitigation planning with engineering teams.
• Status Transparency: Help ensure transparency around program status and challenges.

• Status Updates: Prepare clear, concise updates on program status, risks, and key decisions.
• Stakeholder Communication: Communicate effectively with stakeholders at multiple levels of the organization.
• Executive Reporting: Support executive-level reporting with structured, data-driven insights.

• Build Coordination: Support prototype builds and development cycles by coordinating schedules and resources.
• Progress Monitoring: Assist with tracking component readiness, build progress, and issue resolution.
• Supply Chain: Develop and maintain a resilient supply chain by evaluating vendor options, coordinating with suppliers, and working with contract manufacturers.

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business Administration, Operations Management, or a related field.
• Experience Level: 1–6 years of experience in program management, engineering, operations, or related roles.
• Tracking: Demonstrated experience tracking project activities and deliverables. Strong analytical capabilities, with experience tracking KPIs. Using tools such as Jira.
• Cross-Functional Communication/Alignment: Experience facilitating alignment between XF teams both internally and externally.
• Entrepreneurial Spirit: Ability to thrive in a fast‑paced, ambiguous, and high‑growth startup environment.
• Technical Acumen: Basic technical understanding of hardware systems or engineering workflows.

• Robotics: Experience working on hardware or robotics programs.
• Hardware Lifecycle: Familiarity with product development life cycles or NPI processes.
• Validation: Experience driving alignment for validation/qualification requirements for prototype development or changes to existing products.
• Strong Technical Acumen: Technical ability to engage with electrical, mechanical, sensing and compute teams and understand system-level trade-offs.
• Mass Production: Experience in scaling hardware systems from prototype to…