Sr. Program Manager, Field Service Product Quality and Readiness

Rivian • Atlanta, GA

1d • $131,200 - $207,030

About The Position

At Rivian, handing over the keys isn't just a transaction; it is the start of an adventure. As the Program Manager, Field Service, Product Quality & Readiness, you own the operating system that ensures every vehicle — whether heading to its first owner or returning to Rivian for its next chapter — meets the highest standard of readiness.
You operate at the critical junction where the factory ends and the customer journey begins. Your mission is twofold: architect the intelligent, scalable systems that perform the final validation of new vehicles before they reach a customer's driveway, and build the reconditioning and remarketing infrastructure that will define Rivian's pre-owned business as the fleet matures.
This is a role that spans the full vehicle lifecycle. On one end, you own the pre-delivery inspection process — designing quality gates, capturing high-fidelity data to drive systemic improvements upstream with Manufacturing and Engineering, and driving rigorous operational execution to ensure vehicle presentation is immaculate. On the other end, you own the service organization's remarketing strategy — building the reconditioning pipeline, designing lease return inspection processes, and scaling upgrade installation capabilities that turn returning vehicles into a revenue engine.
You report directly to the Senior Director of Field Service Operations and partner deeply with Sales, Delivery, and Remarketing to ensure that Field Service is not just a repair operation, but a strategic enabler of the entire vehicle ownership lifecycle.

Requirements

• 8+ years of experience in Program Management, Product Quality, Process Engineering, or Operations within a complex hardware-intensive industry such as automotive, aerospace, or advanced manufacturing.
• Cross-Domain Fluency: A demonstrated ability to operate across organizational boundaries — you've built programs that required partnership with manufacturing, commercial, and field operations teams simultaneously. You are comfortable influencing without authority across functions that don't report to you.
• Customer Obsession: A track record of connecting technical processes to customer outcomes. You understand that "Quality" is defined by the user experience, not just the spec sheet — and you've built systems that enforce that standard at scale.
• Operational Rigor: Experience defining and deploying Standard Operating Procedures for field or factory teams. You understand that while the factory builds the product, the field team delivers the experience, and you know how to drive compliance in product presentation, quality, and cleanliness.
• Systems Thinking at Scale: Proven experience defining, deploying, and owning technical systems and data pipelines — specifically around quality control, inspection workflows, or diagnostic tooling. You've built systems that turn high-volume operational data into closed-loop quality improvements.
• Executive Communication: Exceptional ability to synthesize complex operational realities into clear, strategic narratives for senior leadership. You can stand in front of a VP and explain why a quality trend matters, what you're doing about it, and what investment decision is needed — with confidence and precision.
• The Operator-Engineer Mindset: You are equal parts operator — focused on execution, logistics, and people — and engineer — focused on systems, optimization, and tools. You've spent time on the floor and in the data.

Responsibilities

• Own Product Quality & Vehicle Readiness
• Architect the Pre-Delivery Operating System: Define and continuously improve the end-to-end process from vehicle arrival through delivery-ready status — spanning pre-delivery inspection, final quality checklist, and containment management. Your systems determine whether every vehicle meets the standard.
• Drive Quality as a Closed-Loop System: Build the data infrastructure and feedback mechanisms that connect field quality observations back to Manufacturing and Engineering. Transform pre-delivery inspection data into actionable upstream quality improvements, reducing defects at the source rather than catching them in the field.
• Lead New Platform Readiness: Own the quality and readiness strategy for new vehicle platform launches. Define the pre-delivery inspection protocols, train field teams on new platform-specific quality standards, and ensure the readiness pipeline can absorb increased volume and complexity during ramp periods.
• Own Vehicle Readiness Metrics: Define, track, and drive improvement across vehicle readiness indicators — including inspection throughput, dwell time, defect rates, and delivery-ready conversion. Build reporting systems that give operations leadership real-time visibility into the readiness pipeline.
• Build and Execute the Remarketing Strategy for Service
• Design the Reconditioning Pipeline: Architect the service organization's reconditioning capability to support Rivian's growing pre-owned business. Define capacity requirements, quality standards and throughput targets.
• Stand Up Lease Return Infrastructure: Build the end-to-end process for on-site lease return inspections at Service Centers.
• Own Vehicle Upgrade Installations: Define and scale the process for post-return vehicle upgrades — including performance configurations and feature enablement.
• Partner with Remarketing on Volume Planning: Work closely with the Remarketing team to translate their demand forecasts into service capacity plans. Ensure the field network is prepared for volume inflections — including the lease return wave anticipated as the R1 fleet matures.
• Drive Cross-Functional Partnership & Influence
• Partner with Sales and Delivery to Improve the Handoff: Own the integration between Field Service vehicle readiness and the commercial organization's delivery execution. Drive improvements in the pre-delivery to delivery handoff that reduce friction, eliminate last-mile quality escapes, and improve the customer's first ownership moment.
• Influence Senior Leadership on Quality and Readiness Strategy: Synthesize field quality data, remarketing readiness status, and delivery improvement opportunities into clear strategic narratives for senior leadership. Surface risks early and influence investment decisions that affect the quality experience across the vehicle lifecycle.
• Build the Bridge Between Factory and Field: Serve as the connective tissue between Manufacturing, Engineering, and Field Service on product quality. Ensure that field-observed quality trends drive systemic changes upstream, and that upstream product changes are reflected in field readiness processes.

Benefits

• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits for full-time and part-time employees, their spouse or domestic partner, and children up to age 26, including but not limited to paid vacation, paid sick leave, and a competitive portfolio of insurance benefits including life, medical, dental, vision, short-term disability insurance, and long-term disability insurance to eligible employees.
• You may also have the opportunity to participate in Rivian’s 401(k) Plan and Employee Stock Purchase Program if you meet certain eligibility requirements.
• Full-time employee coverage is effective on their first day of employment.
• Part-time employee coverage is effective the first of the month following 90 days of employment.
• More information about benefits is available at rivianbenefits.com.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed