Program Manager - Reality Labs Network Infrastructure

TekWissen•Menlo Park, CA

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Network Infrastructure & Lab Services team delivers network engineering and DevOps solutions for device farms and cellular testing infrastructure. We support 8,000+ devices across multiple global locations, enabling hardware validation and software testing for XR headsets, smart glasses, wearables, and next-generation AR devices. Our scope spans two major workstreams: ● Cellular Labs (Cell): Scaling public and private cellular networks (4G/5G) in device farm environments for next-gen wearable devices. This includes RF chamber networking, small-cell core infrastructure (gNB/eNB), device modem provisioning, and integration with automated test frameworks and CI/CD pipelines. ● DevInfra: Supporting the broader device farm network infrastructure - VLAN architecture, remote access solutions, IP management services, DNS automation, monitoring/observability, and lifecycle management for lab equipment across multiple tiers of locations. As a Program Manager for the RL pod, you will drive planning, execution, and delivery for network infrastructure programs supporting Reality Labs. You are the connective tissue between engineering, DevInfra partners, wearables stakeholders, and cross-functional teams. You run war rooms, chase deliverables, keep trackers current, and make sure nothing slips. What you will do is run rooms full of engineers - and you need enough domain fluency to ask the right questions, call out when an answer doesn't add up, assess realistic timelines, and drive decisions when the path forward isn't obvious.

Requirements

3+ years of experience in program or project management in a technology or infrastructure environment
Proven ability to run recurring coordination forums (war rooms, standups, syncs) and drive accountability for action items
Strong task management skills - experience with structured backlog management, sprint planning, and delivery tracking
Ability to work across multiple concurrent workstreams with competing priorities and shifting timelines
Clear written and verbal communication - can translate between technical teams and leadership audiences
Comfort operating in ambiguity - able to build structure where none exists and chase answers without being told
Experience coordinating with vendors, partners, or managed service providers
Comfort navigating hardware lab environments - has walked lab floors, understands what racks and RF chambers are, and can hold conversations about physical infrastructure without needing everything explained
Experience with project tracking tools (Jira, Asana, Smartsheet, or equivalent)
Self-starter mentality - proactively identifies gaps, follows up without prompting, and drives closure
Cellular fundamentals: Know what 4G LTE, 5G NR SA/NSA, and NR-RedCap are and how they differ. Understand what frequency bands mean in a lab context. Recognize what RSRP/RSRQ/SINR numbers tell you about signal health so you can assess severity when engineers report issues.
Device & modem basics: Understand what modem provisioning and attach/detach cycles are. Be able to ask the right questions to distinguish whether a failure is network-side, device-side, or firmware-side - so you route it to the right team
Lab hardware: Know what RF chambers, shield boxes, rack infrastructure, PoE, and cabling do. Understand physical constraints so you can assess realistic timelines for deployments and break/fix work.
CI/CD concepts: Understand the difference between blocking and non-blocking test gates. Know what a flaky test costs in engineering velocity. Be able to drive priority conversations about which tests should gate releases.
Infrastructure services: Understand what DNS automation, IP management, VLAN allocation, and config push pipelines accomplish. Be able to properly size these items in sprint planning and recognize scope creep when an engineer says "this is a small change."
Networking basics: Follow meeting discussions about VLANs, routing, IP addressing, and proxy issues without needing a translator. Assess whether a reported network blocker is a 1-hour fix or a multi-day effort.

Nice To Haves

Experience in lab infrastructure, device testing, or hardware validation environments
Hands-on exposure to cellular technologies (LTE/5G lab setups, RF testing, small-cell/callbox platforms like Amarisoft, Keysight, or R&S)
Familiarity with DevOps workflows (CI/CD pipelines, deployment automation, monitoring/alerting tools like Grafana, Prometheus, PagerDuty)
Experience with OKR frameworks and sprint-based delivery reporting
Background supporting hardware R&D, data center, or network engineering teams
Understanding of managed services delivery models and SLA/SLO tracking
Experience working with cellular platform vendors - understanding support models, licensing constraints, and upgrade cycles
Experience with cross-regional coordination (NA, EMEA, APAC lab sites)
PMP, PgMP, or equivalent certification (nice to have, not required)

Responsibilities

Own end-to-end program management for Cellular and DevInfra initiatives, from scoping through delivery
During heavy periods, ability to run Cell War Rooms (3x/week) and cross-team DevInfra syncs - drive agendas, capture action items, follow up relentlessly
Coordinate cellular infrastructure scale-out (rack deployments, RF chamber installations, multi-site expansion)
Track cross-team deliverables across engineering, wearables, and operations with clear ownership and timelines
Serve as primary PM interface between the RL pod and DevInfra partners (Device Farm Ops, Operations Tooling, Farm Design teams)
Align priorities with wearables leadership on cellular lab roadmap and capacity planning
Provide clear status updates to leadership via monthly/quarterly reporting cycles
Translate technical blockers into actionable escalation paths - triage whether issues are network-side, device-side, or infrastructure-side
Manage sprint planning and task hygiene within a points-based delivery model
Create, size, assign, and track tasks with proper categorization and tagging
Maintain structured backlogs for cellular deployments, DevInfra improvements, and operational support requests
Drive task completion within sprint boundaries - flag undersized work early, manage rollups for small items
Understand which cellular tests gate which releases (blocking vs. non-blocking lanes) and drive prioritization when gates are failing or incomplete
Recognize when flaky tests are blocking engineering velocity and escalate to the right owners
Track test coverage milestones across bands, RATs, and device variants - know what's covered and what gaps remain
Align automation priorities between cellular engineering and DevInfra tooling teams - drive trade-off conversations and unblock dependencies
Maintain visibility into device farm health metrics (VLAN capacity, throughput, power, inventory) and know when numbers signal a problem worth escalating
Drive break/fix accountability and SLA adherence - ensure the right engineer is on it and timelines are met
Lead incident reviews and post-mortems: ask the questions that surface root cause, assign follow-ups, and track remediation
Own vendor relationships (cellular platform providers, callbox vendors, carrier partners) - drive contract conversations, escalate support issues, and track licensing/upgrade timelines
Build and maintain program trackers, dashboards, and reporting for Cell and DevInfra workstreams
Drive continuous improvement in deployment efficiency and lab uptime
Document standard operating procedures for cellular lab bring-up, maintenance, and expansion
Support KPI/OKR development and tracking for pod delivery commitments