Manager, Automation Controls Engineering (Battery)

Rivian is on a mission to keep the world adventurous forever. This goes for the emissions-free Electric Adventure Vehicles we build, and the curious, courageous souls we seek to attract. 

As a company, we constantly challenge what’s possible, never simply accepting what has always been done. We reframe old problems, seek new solutions and operate comfortably in areas that are unknown. Our backgrounds are diverse, but our team shares a love of the outdoors and a desire to protect it for future generations. 

The Manager, Automation Controls Engineering – Equipment Engineering, leads day to day efforts of our Equipment Engineering controls team in the Battery manufacturing shop across all production shifts. The role is located in Normal, IL. The position reports directly to the Director, Engineering and Maintenance.

• Managing the day-to-day operations of a team of automation engineers that support production and improvements to hardware and software involved in the manufacturing processes.

• Lead teams that maintain, modify, and properly version control equipment programs, configuration files, and documentation as changes are implemented. This includes but is not limited to hardware, electrical, safety, pneumatic, network, PLC, HMI, Vision, Robot, SCADA, and MES. 

• Serve as authority on technical issues and make difficult trade-offs between key program benchmarks.

• Respond to escalations for critical production downtimes across shifts and reallocate resources as needed and support on technical gaps

• Assist with RFQ preparation and review vendor proposals for manufacturing automation equipment ranging in size from single work cells to entire lines. 

• Lead equipment buy-offs at Rivian’s factory in Normal, IL for FAT, SAT, and safety. 

• Guide the development of controls standards and specifications by feeding back lessons-learned and gaps from each project to ensure that future projects will run smoother. 

• Partner with maintenance and process engineering to drive continuous improvement of the production lines by reducing cycle time, reducing downtime, increasing availability, and improving quality. 

• Add or remove network devices from the equipment as needed, updating network switch configurations as needed. 

• Lead emphasis writing code that is organized, structured, documented, maintainable and reusable. 

• Troubleshoot, improve, and add features to HMIs to make them more user-friendly, intuitive and suitable for operating and troubleshooting equipment.

• Implement and make modifications to MES logic for production and performance management in the PLCs and HMIs. 

• Ensure proper implementation of and modifications to (ANSI/RIA15.06/OSHA compliant) control reliable safety systems for safeguarding robots, gantries, conveyors, and other high volume manufacturing equipment.

• Support in the development and upskilling of the team to close identified technical gaps and improve team performance

• BS/MS Electrical Engineering (or equivalent – Majors in: Controls and Computer Control Systems, Mechatronic Engineering, Automation Engineering, etc.

• Experience managing teams of Controls Automation Engineers

• Skilled with Vendor and Project Management tools (JIRA, Confluence)

• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills

• Demonstrate composure and leadership by example in challenging situations - ability to drive complex projects to successful implementation while keeping cross functional teams focused and motivated

• Ability to lead and follow appropriately – balance ownership and delegation across teams of focusing leaders and decision makers on technology trends, tools, and strategies

• Expert with common controls hardware components used in high-volume manufacturing. 

• Hands-on experience integrating high volume manufacturing equipment. 

• In-depth knowledge of Safety standards (ANSI/RIA15.06, OSHA). 

• Experience leading safety design reviews and validating equipment safeties during buy-off. 

• In-depth knowledge of Electrical Standards (NFPA79, National Electric Code, UL508A). 

• Experience developing electrical schematics using EPLAN, AutoCAD Electrical, or similar. 

• Advanced proficiency programming industrial equipment using various IEC 61131-3 languages.

• writing standard and safety PLC projects from scratch for high-volume manufacturing equipment using Rockwell and Beckhoff PLCs. 

• Experience creating HMI projects from scratch for high-volume manufacturing equipment using FactoryTalk View, WinCC, Ignition or TwinCAT HMI.

• Experience setting up, programming, and troubleshooting industrial 6-axis robots such as Fanuc, ABB, Kawasaki, etc.

• Experience designing topologies for and troubleshooting common fieldbus networks such as Ethernet/IP, EtherCAT, or Profinet.

• Experience interfacing manufacturing equipment with Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES).

The salary range for this role is $125,800-$157,200 for Illinois based applicants. This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, specific competencies, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, shift, and organizational needs.

The successful candidate may be eligible for annual performance bonus and equity awards.

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.

You can apply for this role through careers.rivian.com (or through internal-careers-rivian.icims.com if you are a current employee). This job is not expected to be closed any sooner than September 30, 2026.

Equal Opportunity

Rivian is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local fair employment practices laws. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information or characteristics, physical or mental disability, marital/domestic partner status, age, military/veteran status, medical condition, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Rivian is committed to ensuring that our hiring process is accessible for persons with disabilities. If you have a disability or limitation, such as those covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, that requires accommodations to assist you in the search and application process, please email us at  View email address on ev.careers .

Candidate Data Privacy and Technology

Rivian may collect, use and disclose your personal information or personal data (within the meaning of the applicable data protection laws) when you apply for employment and/or participate in our recruitment processes (“Candidate Personal Data”). This data includes contact, demographic, communications, educational, professional, employment, social media/website, network/device, recruiting system usage/interaction, security and preference information. Rivian may use your Candidate Personal Data for the purposes of (i) tracking interactions with our recruiting system; (ii) carrying out, analyzing and improving our application and recruitment process, including assessing you and your application and conducting employment, background and reference checks; (iii) establishing an employment relationship or entering into an employment contract with you; (iv) complying with our legal, regulatory and corporate governance obligations; (v) recordkeeping; (vi) ensuring network and information security and preventing fraud; and (vii) as otherwise required or permitted by applicable law.

Rivian may share your Candidate Personal Data with (i) internal personnel who have a need to know such information in order to perform their duties, including individuals on our People Team, Finance, Legal, and the team(s) with the position(s) for which you are applying; (ii) Rivian affiliates; and (iii) Rivian’s service providers, including providers of background checks, staffing services, and cloud services.

Rivian may transfer or store internationally your Candidate Personal Data, including to or in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the European Union and in the cloud, and this data may be subject to the laws and accessible to the courts, law enforcement and national security authorities of such jurisdictions. 

How We Use AI in Our Hiring Process: To ensure transparency, we want candidates to know that Rivian uses iCIMS Talent Cloud Artificial Intelligence (TCAI) and AI-enabled tools to assist with screening, reviewing, organizing and highlighting profiles and applications that match the key requirements for each role.

AI does not make hiring decisions: Qualified candidate applications are reviewed by a member of our team, and all decisions throughout the process are made by humans. We use AI to support efficiency and consistency, not to replace human judgment. We are committed to a fair, thoughtful, and equitable experience for every candidate.

Participation in AI profile matching is entirely voluntary. If you prefer that your profile not be used in this process, you can opt out at any time. Opting out means your profile will be excluded from automated matching and will not be surfaced for additional roles through this system. Your current application remains active and will not be affected in any way.

Please note that we are currently not accepting applications from third party application services.