Technical Program Manager, Robotics and Drones

Senior Technical Program Manager, Robotics & Drones Aptiv is a global technology company with 200,000 specialists in 48 countries. We develop software and hardware for autonomous driving, advanced driver-assistance systems, connected vehicles and smart cities, partnering with major car manufacturers. Our robotics and drones activities focus on autonomy and AI/ML technologies for Industrial Robots (AMRs, Robotic Arms, Humanoids) and for Commercial/Defense Drones. We are seeking a Technical Program Manager (TPM) to drive cross-functional execution at the intersection of Product and Engineering. You will convert product goals into executable plans, align hardware and software teams, and ensure predictable delivery from concept through pilot and production. You will own program structure, milestone planning, risk management, and stakeholder communication while helping the team scale a disciplined operating cadence for a fast-growing robotics business. Key Responsibilities Program Planning & Execution Define the program breakdown structure across hardware and software development, integration, validation, and deployment workstreams, and assign ownership across engineering teams. Build and maintain integrated program plans with scope, deliverables, milestones, dependencies, resource assumptions, and critical path visibility aligned to product roadmap and customer commitments. Translate product and customer requirements into execution plans with clear entry/exit criteria, development priorities, and release readiness gates. Drive on-time, at-cost, and high-quality delivery of assigned programs, proactively identifying schedule risks, tradeoffs, and mitigation actions. Cross-Functional Technical Leadership Facilitate strategic and technical discussions across Product Management and Engineering teams to ensure alignment on scope and execution. Partner with Sensors and Compute product leaders to ensure all engineering work aligns with platform strategy, product roadmap, and reuse objectives across robotics programs. Support feasibility assessments for new features, customer requests, and platform enhancements, including implications for architecture, timing, resource needs, development cost, manufacturability, and performance. Coordinate engineering staffing needs with functional managers and technical leads to balance priorities across multiple programs. Program Governance & Risk Management Drive the program operating cadence across sprint reviews, milestone reviews, risk reviews, change control, and executive updates. Establish disciplined meeting structures, agendas, and action tracking to improve accountability and execution velocity across teams. Communicate clear program status to senior leadership and cross-functional stakeholders, including progress, risks, recovery plans, key decisions, and business impact. Maintain Jira dashboards and related reporting tools to track feature readiness, sprint health, defect trends, issue closure, dependencies, and key engineering milestones. Manage scope changes, engineering change requests, and SOW updates, with clear assessment of impacts to schedule, cost, quality, and deliverables. Proactively identify cross-functional dependencies, lead issue triage and root-cause resolution planning. Own product related resource allocation, including staffing and materials, and forecasting. Basic Qualifications Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Robotics, Computer Science, Systems Engineering, or a related technical field. 8+ years of experience in technical program management, systems engineering, product development, or a related role in robotics, automotive, embedded systems, or other complex technical environments. Proven track record of managing complex cross-functional programs involving both hardware and software deliverables. Strong working knowledge of product development lifecycles, release planning, integration, and validation processes. Experience with Agile development practices and program tracking tools such as Jira. Strong analytical, problem-solving, and organizational skills, with the ability to manage ambiguity and drive decisions. Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, including the ability to synthesize technical detail into executive-ready updates. Demonstrated ability to coordinate multiple teams toward a common mission and hold teams accountable to commitments. Preferred Qualifications Experience with AMRs, drones, industrial automation, ADAS, autonomous systems, or other safety- and reliability-critical products. Familiarity with robotics software stacks, perception systems, sensors, embedded compute platforms, or edge AI deployment workflows. Experience managing customer-facing development programs, pilots, or launches with external partners or OEMs. Exposure to regulated or standards-driven environments, including functional safety or industrial safety frameworks. PMP, Agile, Scrum, or similar program/project management certification. It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability. Salary Range: $170k - $200k Privacy Notice - Active Candidates: Aptiv is an equal employment opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability status, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law. #J-18808-Ljbffr Aptiv