Staff Technical Program Manager, Software Engineering

Mainspring Energy•Menlo Park, CA

1d•Onsite

About The Position

Mainspring is revolutionizing energy generation. As the Staff Technical Program Manager for Software Engineering, you are the operational catalyst for our most critical software initiatives. Operating as the 'Chief of Staff' for execution, you translate high-level strategy into high-velocity delivery. You bridge the gap between long-lead hardware cycles and agile software development, optimizing the operational workflows that allow our teams to scale. You don’t just manage the roadmap; you drive execution, adjudicate technical trade-offs, and hold the organization accountable to our most ambitious company goals.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or an equivalent technical field
10+ years of experience in technical program management, specifically within hardware/software integrated environments (e.g., energy, robotics, mechatronics)
Ability to understand technical debates between Electrical, Software, and Controls engineers well enough to adjudicate priority and technical trade-offs
Proven expertise in managing projects throughout the entire SDLC, including investigation, design, execution, and delivery to market.
Ability to manage the feedback loop between development and real-world performance
Act as the single point of accountability for delivery decisions, executive reporting, and cross-team communication. You are responsible for aligning diverse functional groups to ensure the program meets its commitments.
Demonstrated capability as a change agent, identifying and delivering process changes that accelerate time-to-market while driving organizational consistency and efficiency.
Exceptional executive presence; capable of moving seamlessly between high-level roadmap presentations and deep-dive bug triage with engineering teams.
Experience partnering with DevOps/Release Management functions to transition validated code into deployment pipelines.
Deep familiarity with software development processes and proficiency in project management tools (e.g., Gantt charts, risk matrices, Smartsheet, Jira)
Strong track record of managing complex, cross-functional projects with the ability to maintain a big-picture focus and provide clear, well-structured, and concise communication tailored to each stakeholder audience.

Responsibilities

Own the program end-to-end, from concept to validation readiness.
Build and maintain the integrated master schedule, ensuring software deliverables synchronize with hardware/EE long-lead time dependencies.
Challenge organizational assumptions, set resource requirements, and remain fully accountable for executing on company goals and the product roadmap.
Work directly with engineering teams to develop comprehensive project schedules, define clear milestones, identify and mitigate risks, and manage budgets.
Champion a culture of high-velocity execution by establishing and enforcing scalable engineering workflows.
Partner with engineering leadership to drive bug triage, validation planning, and Engineering Change (EC) management, ensuring our processes accelerate development and protect delivery timelines.
Partner directly with engineering leadership to drive solutions and navigate shifting priorities.
Manage the critical path where disciplines intersect (e.g., firmware, controls, hardware), proactively resolving dependencies and keeping teams aligned across internal and external stakeholders.
Serve as the "Single Source of Truth."
Provide leadership with unvarnished, data-driven visibility into program health (RYG status, burn-down, and blocker lists).
Track "Say/Do" ratios to improve forecasting accuracy and proactively communicate trade-offs, risks, and strategic recommendations at the executive level.