Technical Program Manager

Technical Program Manager (Network Infrastructure)

San Diego, CA (Hybrid – Minimum 3 Days Onsite) Contract | 6 Months Pay Rate: $78/hour (W2) Industry: Autonomous Mobility / Advanced Transportation Technology

About the Role

A leading company in the autonomous mobility space is seeking an experienced Technical Program Manager to lead the development and execution of critical communication systems supporting autonomous vehicle operations.

This role focuses on the infrastructure and teleoperation technologies that enable reliable remote assistance for autonomous vehicles operating in complex urban environments. The ideal candidate will bring strong technical expertise, outstanding program management capabilities, and experience driving large-scale, cross-functional engineering initiatives in fast-paced environments.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end execution of large-scale technical programs from planning through delivery.
• Partner with senior engineering and product leaders to drive roadmap planning, prioritization, and resource alignment.
• Manage programs related to:
  • Teleoperation systems
  • Communication infrastructure
  • Networking technologies
  • Distributed systems
  • Cloud-based platforms supporting autonomous vehicle operations
• Coordinate dependencies across multiple engineering teams and external stakeholders.
• Identify and mitigate program risks, execution blockers, and technical trade-offs.
• Develop and improve program management processes, frameworks, and operational best practices.
• Participate in technical architecture reviews and scoping discussions to evaluate feasibility, sequencing, and delivery risks.
• Translate complex technical concepts into clear business impact and actionable insights for executive stakeholders.
• Support engineering teams with data-driven execution, operational rigor, and continuous improvement initiatives.

Required Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in Technical Program Management delivering large-scale engineering initiatives.
• Strong experience managing complex, multi-team software programs across the full SDLC.
• Deep understanding of infrastructure, platform, networking, or distributed systems.
• Ability to engage in technical discussions involving system architecture, scalability, and technical risk assessment.
• Proven ability to influence cross-functional teams and senior stakeholders without direct authority.
• Experience operating effectively in fast-moving, highly ambiguous environments.
• Strong organizational, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Familiarity with AI tools and understanding of agentic AI models and AI chatbot-driven workflows.

Technical Skills

Experience or knowledge in the following areas is highly preferred:

Wireless & Connectivity Technologies

• 4G / 5G
• Multi-WAN Load Balancing

Networking Technologies

• UDP/TCP
• NAT Traversal
• Network Security (mTLS, secure communication protocols)

Data & Cloud Infrastructure

• Kafka / KafkaJS
• Protobuf Serialization
• AWS Cloud Infrastructure
• API Gateways
• Distributed Systems Concepts

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working in autonomous mobility, robotics, transportation technology, or large-scale platform engineering environments.
• Familiarity with cloud platforms such as AWS, GCP, or Azure.
• Prior software engineering or highly technical background.
• PMP, PgMP, Agile, or Scrum certifications are a plus.
• Strong analytical, troubleshooting, and problem-solving capabilities.

Why Apply?

• Opportunity to work on cutting-edge autonomous mobility technologies.
• High-impact role supporting mission-critical systems.
• Collaborative environment with strong engineering leadership.
• Competitive hourly compensation.
• Chance to contribute to the future of transportation and intelligent systems.