Principal/Staff Technical Program Manager, Engineering

Simbe Robotics•San Francisco, CA

11h•$165,000 - $230,000

About The Position

Simbe is hiring a Technical Program Manager to coordinate complex, cross-functional programs across its autonomous retail robotics system. The role connects hardware decisions, robot software, AI and computer vision, cloud and data platforms, and retailer-facing reporting to ensure launches and deployments work reliably in real stores. The position owns cross-functional schedules for major programs, including new Tally generation launches, fleet-wide software and hardware migrations, and large retail rollouts with fixed external dates. It defines integration checkpoints, completion criteria, ownership, and responses to schedule slippage across hardware-to-ROS integration, on-robot computer-vision model deployment, cloud-side model updates and data flows, and backend reporting. The Technical Program Manager owns deployment readiness through the transition from engineering build to stable operation in stores. The role also establishes dependency mapping, a cross-functional review cadence, and technically grounded risk visibility. It is intended for someone with hands-on experience building, integrating, or debugging complex products spanning physical hardware and robotics software, who can use technical insight and collaborative problem-solving to drive decisions without directly managing participating engineers. The role drives execution but does not own the technical roadmap or architecture decisions.

Requirements

Hands-on technical experience personally building, integrating, or debugging a complex product spanning physical hardware and robotics software.
Depth in at least one of hardware/robotics software (ROS or comparable middleware) or cloud/data platforms, with real fluency across the other areas.
Ability to drive discussions and decisions among engineers who do not report to you, using technical insight and collaborative problem-solving.
Track record delivering programs where hardware or software slippage had real-world consequences, such as customer sites, deployed fleets, or fixed external dates.

Responsibilities

Own cross-functional schedules for high-stakes programs, including new Tally generation launches, fleet-wide software and hardware migrations, and large retail rollouts with fixed external dates.
Define integration checkpoints, completion criteria, ownership, and responses to slippage across hardware-to-ROS, on-robot CV models, cloud model updates and data pipelines, and backend-to-retailer reporting.
Own end-to-end deployment readiness and the handoff from engineering build to field deployment, ensuring programs are live and stable in stores.
Map dependencies and maintain a cross-functional review cadence and a technically defensible top-risks list.
Within the first 30 days, build a dependency graph across hardware, embedded software, cloud/data platforms, and AI/CV for the two highest-priority programs.
Within the first 30 days, identify and document the top risks to the nearest hard external date and establish a lightweight cross-functional review cadence with input from each function.
Drive cross-functional execution and guide decisions and estimates through technical insight and collaborative problem-solving, without owning the technical roadmap or architecture decisions.
Build systems and cadence that reduce reliance on a small number of people going above and beyond, while avoiding process that slows delivery.