Lidar Technical Program Manager

Aurora Innovation•Mountain View, CA

8d•$124,000 - $175,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Aurora’s mission is to deliver the benefits of self-driving technology safely, quickly, and broadly. The Aurora Driver will create a new era in mobility and logistics, one that will bring a safer, more efficient, and more accessible future to everyone. At Aurora, you will tackle massively complex problems alongside other passionate, intelligent individuals, growing as an expert while expanding your knowledge. We are seeking a Lidar Technical Program Manager (TPM) to join our Hardware Engineering organization. This role is the ultimate launchpad for an engineering mind building a technical foundation across the Systems Engineering V-Model. Positioned at the critical intersection of Program Management and Systems Engineering, you will gain hands-on experience driving the end-to-end product lifecycle across various levels within our Lidar organization. As a TPM, you will master the foundational pillars of schedule, scope, and budget while serving as the central coordinator for engineering execution. You will translate complex engineering plans into actionable, visual project tracking, ensuring our technical designs seamlessly align with top-level program schedules.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Systems, Aerospace Engineering, or a related technical field.
2-3 years of experience with core engineering principles, the Systems Engineering V-Model, and how a Bill of Materials (BOM) is structured.
Exceptional organizational skills with a proven ability to build structure out of ambiguity, prioritize tasks, and systematically track deliverables.
Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to confidently collaborate with multi-disciplinary teams and interface with engineering leaders to resolve discrepancies.
An analytical approach to tracking technical data, ensuring that engineering plans, changes, and release statuses are meticulously documented.

Nice To Haves

Experience using Jira (or equivalent ticketing systems) to manage engineering sprints, track program milestones, and deconstruct complex goals into actionable deliverables.
Familiarity with Jama (or equivalent tools like DOORS) to coordinate requirements decomposition, baseline tracking, and cross-functional traceability.
2-3 years of exposure to PLM platforms such as Arena (or equivalent) to manage BOM architecture, track build readiness, and support the Engineering Change Order (ECO) workflow.
Experience navigating complex product assemblies and mapping product architecture in 3DEXPERIENCE / 3DX (or equivalent CAD platforms).
2-3 years in a fast-paced hardware development environment (e.g., automotive, robotics, aerospace, or sensor technologies).

Responsibilities

Drive Engineering Schedule & Scope Realization
Translate Engineering to Execution: Support the creation and maintenance of detailed subsystem schedules that feed master program timelines, while actively monitoring for scope creep or early schedule slips.
Bridge the V-Model: Coordinate with cross-functional hardware and software teams to ensure system-level requirements are properly decomposed, mapped, and verified throughout the development lifecycle.
Create Actionable Clarity: Deconstruct high-level engineering milestones into clear, trackable, and actionable tasks/issues in our project management tools to keep day-to-day engineering execution aligned.
Optimize Workflows: Lead continuous improvement initiatives between program management, engineering, and manufacturing to eliminate bottlenecks and scale our Lidar hardware faster.
Master Visual Status & Artifact Tracking
Own the Visual Narrative: Design and maintain intuitive dashboards, progress charts, and status metrics that make complex engineering data and project health clear at a glance.
Drive Gate Readiness: Centralize and track the lifecycle, maturity, and approval of critical systems engineering artifacts—including dFMEAs, Hardware-Software Interface (HSI) documents, and design packages—ensuring they are meticulously prepared for formal program gate reviews.