Sr. Technical Program Manager, Containment Lead - Plant Quality

Rivian•Normal, IL

14d•Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Technical Program Manager, Containment Lead – Plant Quality serves as the technical eyes and ears of containment execution inside the plant, ensuring proposed containment strategies are practical, complete, and executable across End-of-Line, Yard, and Pre-Delivery workflows. This role partners closely with Quality Engineering, Containment Operations, and issue owners to evaluate containment plans against the CMTE minimum-requirements gate (CA released, PPAP/SPPAP complete, remedy instructions validated, parts clean and available, manufacturing clean point secured, affected population predefined, Concern Registry created), identify risks and gaps, and elevate concerns when a strategy may not fully support successful field execution. This individual brings strong technical and operational understanding of Quality Hold, Yard Containment, and Pre-Delivery Service Action workflows to ensure frontline teams (FIL, Careline, EOL) have the tools, procedures, and support needed to execute containment actions effectively.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or equivalent
6+ years of experience in manufacturing quality, quality engineering, or related technical roles in an automotive or high-volume manufacturing environment
Prior hands-on technical experience required; direct experience with End-of-Line, Careline, or Yard operations preferred
Strong technical aptitude with the ability to assess repair feasibility, procedure quality, and field execution risk
Demonstrated experience working cross-functionally with Manufacturing, Quality Engineering, Supplier Quality, and Service Quality teams
Strong collaboration skills with the ability to influence and align stakeholders across multiple functions
Ability to translate complex technical details into clear, actionable information for non-technical program managers and operational teams
Working knowledge of Rivian's CMTE process (Quality Hold, Yard Containment, Pre-Delivery Service Action) and the Concern Registry / ICA-PCA framework
Experience identifying process gaps and driving practical improvements in repair strategy and operational execution
Ability to stand or sit for 8–12 hours per day
Ability to operate effectively in a demanding, fast-paced environment with a high degree of ownership and accountability

Responsibilities

Oversee containment activities in the plant, including timelines, strategies, progress, and needed decisions for each containment event (Quality Hold, Yard Containment, Pre-Delivery Service Action)
Support analysis and development of containment execution strategy, including assessment of repair location (End of Line vs. Yard vs. Service Center), labor, tooling, and resource requirements to determine the best path forward
Support the creation, development, and documentation of repair procedures for pre-delivery and yard containments, ensuring remedy instructions are validated before release to frontline teams
Own tracking of the CMTE minimum-requirements checklist (CA status, PPAP/SPPAP completion, parts availability, clean point, affected population, Concern Registry) and flag gaps to the Issue Conductor and cross-functional team before execution begins
Analyze trending quality issues across FIL, Careline, and EOL to determine appropriate actions, including initiating a containment or escalating into the Concern Registry
Provide technical guidance and support for Engineering Investigations tied to containment events as needed
Partner with Quality Engineering, Containment Operations, and issue owners to develop, refine, and present containment strategies to plant leadership
Serve as the technical liaison for plant containment across cross-functional teams (Quality Engineering, Service Quality, Field Quality & Reliability, Manufacturing Engineering)
Identify risks, gaps, and execution concerns within proposed containment repair procedures before they reach the floor
Evaluate containment proposals to confirm execution plans are technically sound and operationally realistic for FIL, Careline, and Yard teams
Identify opportunities to reduce repair time, lower complexity, and improve containment execution efficiency in the plant
Provide recommendations on whether containment repairs should be completed at End of Line, in the Yard, or at Pre-Delivery, based on execution feasibility and business impact
Help ensure plant teams have the documentation, technical direction, and operational readiness needed to execute containment actions successfully, including coordination with the RRR ("Triple R") process for component-level containment