Director of Deployment

Robust.ai•San Carlos, CA

20d•$170,000 - $210,000

About The Position

Robust AI is a fast-growing, early-stage startup founded in 2019 by an unsurpassed team of veterans in robotics, AI, and business. We are a collaborative group with a wide range of backgrounds and perspectives, seeking talented individuals who are just as excited about robotics and AI as we are! Help us redefine the very foundation of robotics and build robots that are smart, collaborative, robust, safe, flexible, and genuinely autonomous. As the Director of Deployment, you will lead the planning and execution of customer deployments for Robust AIâs warehouse robotic systems. You will own deployment outcomes from pre-launch planning through go-live and stabilization, building the systems, playbooks, and metrics that make deployment more repeatable as we scale. This is a high-visibility role reporting to the VP of Customer Success & Commercial Operations and working closely with Sales, Product, Engineering, Hardware, Fleet Operations, and Customer teams. This role is ideal for an individual-leader-builder: someone who can personally drive complex deployments while also creating the structure, operating cadence, and deployment playbook that a growing organization needs. You are someone who is comfortable working in an early-stage startup environment, can pivot effectively, and can build clarity in ambiguous situations.

Requirements

BS in Business Administration, Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, or related field and at least 8 years of related work experience
Strong knowledge and understanding of distribution and fulfillment operations
Proven experience leading complex deployments, implementations, or operational launches involving hardware, software, and customer workflows
Ability to communicate technical/complex information both verbally and in writing
Self-motivated and able to solve problems independently and in customer settings
Strong communication skills to collaborate effectively with internal and external teams
Knowledge of and interest in diverse technical topics, including software, hardware, and robotics
Strong project and program management skills, including risk management, issue resolution, and stakeholder coordination
Strong leadership and relationship-building skills
Ability to perform multiple tasks concurrently and respond to pressure situations effectively
Able to travel on short notice up to 80% of the time within the United States for customer launches and onsite support

Responsibilities

Own successful deployment execution across new customer launches and expansion sites
Build and operationalize the standard deployment lifecycle, including kickoff, site readiness, training, launch planning, go-live, stabilization, and internal handoff
Create and maintain the deployment playbook, tools, templates, and SOPs needed to improve deployment consistency and speed
Partner with Sales and Solutions teams to support pre-deployment planning, customer readiness assessment, and launch scoping
Work cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, Hardware, and Fleet teams to identify and remove deployment blockers
Lead site readiness reviews with customers across operations, training, facilities, staffing, and IT/networking requirements
Establish and report on key deployment metrics, including deployment timelines, launch quality, site readiness, and stabilization performance
Drive deployment issue escalation, risk management, and post-launch retrospectives
Prepare status reports by gathering, analyzing, and summarizing relevant information
Build the foundation for a growing deployment organization, including role definition, operating rhythms, and management of future deployment hires
Travel frequently to customer sites and support critical launches in the field