Manager, Vehicle Controls

Arc Boat Company•Torrance, CA

5d•Onsite

About The Position

Arc is on a mission to electrify the marine industry by rethinking powertrains, software, and vessel designs. The company has proven its technology with consumers and is now scaling production and extending its platform to commercial applications. Arc has secured significant contracts and has a strong pipeline across various vessel types. The company is seeking a Manager, Vehicle Controls to lead the execution, deployment, and process improvements of their vehicle controls systems. This role requires a candidate who is passionate about the mission, moves fast, takes ownership, and cares about details. It is a full-time, on-site position at their Los Angeles headquarters, reporting to the Director of Software Engineering.

Requirements

5+ years of hands-on experience in embedded systems, controls, or vehicle electrical integration, with a strong ability to guide and support engineers in troubleshooting and development.
2+ years of proven experience leading and managing engineering teams, including mentorship, performance management, and hiring.
Deep familiarity with CAN-based architectures and network-level debugging tools.
Demonstrated experience shipping complex hardware-integrated, real-time systems into production.
Strong intuition for system-level tradeoffs under real-world constraints.
Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills with a proven ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders.

Nice To Haves

Experience with EV or marine electrical and controls architectures.
Proficiency in C/C++, Rust, Python, or similar languages for embedded or automation development.
Experience with model-based design or control algorithm development (e.g., MATLAB/Simulink).
Familiarity with DFMEA, functional safety, or reliability engineering practices.
Experience building automated validation or HIL infrastructure.
Comfort working directly with oscilloscopes, data loggers, and ECU flashing tools.
3+ years of experience managing technical teams in a manufacturing or production setting.
Enthusiasm for boating and the water.

Responsibilities

Leading, mentoring, and growing a high-performing vehicle controls engineering team, providing technical guidance and career development support.
Owning the vehicle-level control architecture from prototype through production, ensuring design quality, safety, and reliability across all real-time systems.
Providing hands-on technical leadership when needed, guiding bring-up, debugging, validation, and problem-solving across powertrain, BMS, propulsion, and maneuvering systems.
Driving the development and validation of control strategies and fault detection/mitigation logic for safety-critical systems.
Overseeing structured root cause investigations using data, instrumentation, and experimentation — and ensure learnings are systematically incorporated into the product.
Owning and continuously improving the team’s validation strategy, including bench testing, HIL infrastructure, and production-level verification.
Partnering with electrical, firmware, and mechanical teams to lead cross-domain integration and resolve complex system-level issues.
Collaborating with service and manufacturing teams to proactively triage controls faults, define service actions, and ensure high uptime across the fleet.
Providing executive-level updates on team progress, technical risks, and mitigation strategies.
Contributing to roadmap planning for future vehicle programs, identifying technical risks, staffing needs, and opportunities for innovation in vehicle intelligence and autonomy.
Fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and cross-functional collaboration.

Benefits

Highly competitive equity grants
Semi-annual bonuses tied to impact
99% employer-paid medical, dental, and vision
14 weeks fully paid parental leave for birthing and non-birthing parents
Highly competitive PTO with an opportunity to earn more time with tenure
Life and disability insurance for all employees
Traditional and Roth 401(k) access
$500 for you to spend each year to get out on the water, however you choose
$500 annual reimbursement for professional development
Monthly AI stipend
Annual reimbursement for PPE, ergonomic equipment and anything that ensures we keep our crew safe
Training and access to take Arcboats out with friends and family
Daily lunches, snacks, and good coffee while onsite
Relocation assistance (depending on role eligibility)