Senior Project Manager (Technical)

Startup Atlas; Vlaams-Brabant; Hybrid; EUR 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible hours

Remote options where appropriate

Job summary

Swave Photonics, a Leuven-based fabless semiconductor company, is seeking a Technical Project Manager to lead the technical execution of AR projects, aligning silicon, optics, and software teams. You will drive milestones, manage dependencies, and report to the VP of Engineering.

You will coordinate domain leads and external partners, using Jira and dashboards to track progress, mitigate risks, and ensure timely delivery in a hybrid work setting.

Qualifications

• 5-8+ years of experience in technical project management, engineering lead, or similar role in high-tech hardware environments.
• Technical expertise in semiconductors, chip design, photonics/optics/holography, AR/consumer electronics, or processor architectures.
• Demonstrated experience coordinating cross-functional engineering teams to successful delivery.
• Excellent communication skills: explain technical plans, status, and issues clearly to technical teams and leadership.

Responsibilities

• Project execution & technical coordination across domain leads, maintaining living project schedules and technical specifications.
• Follow up on key technical milestones, ensuring clarity on objectives and timelines for engineering teams.
• Proactively manage technical dependencies and interfaces within the overall project schedule.
• Coordinate with external partners to align delivery schedules and technical requirements.
• Provide regular status updates and reporting on project health to VP of Engineering and domain leads.

Skills

Technical project management

Cross-functional coordination

Strategic communication

Hands-on engineering background

Tools

Jira

Job description

Swave Photonics develops chipsets to deliver reality-first spatial computing powered by AI. The company's Holographic eXtended Reality (HXR) display technology is the first to achieve true holography by sculpting lightwaves into natural, high-resolution images. The proprietary technology will allow for compact form factors with a natural viewing experience.

As a Technical Project Manager at Swave, you are the technical nexus between engineering vision and delivery, ensuring detailed engineering work remains on track, managing technical dependencies, and facilitating communication across domain leads and external partners. You will drive the technical execution of groundbreaking AR projects, focusing on delivery of complex engineering projects from silicon and optics to software.

Job Description

Project Management - Project Management /Full-time /Hybrid

Drive the technical execution of groundbreaking AR projects.

Are you a hands-on engineer with a passion for project delivery? At Swave, you'll take a critical role in the development of our disruptive AR display technology by focusing on the technical execution and delivery of complex engineering projects, from silicon and optics to software. In this role, you'll be a core driver of technical delivery, ensuring that key milestones are met on time and to specification, reporting directly to the VP of Engineering.

Role Overview: Your impact as Technical Project Manager

As a Technical Project Manager at Swave, you are the technical nexus between engineering vision and delivery. You ensure the detailed engineering work remains on track, manage technical dependencies, and facilitate communication across domain leads and external partners.

Responsibilities:

Project execution & technical coordination

Work with domain leads to maintain detailed, living project schedules, resource plans, and technical specifications for assigned projects.

Follow up on the execution of key technical milestones, ensuring engineering teams have clarity on objectives and timelines.

Proactively manage all technical dependencies and interfaces, ensuring their clear alignment and integration within the overall project schedule.

Coordinate with external technical partners to align on delivery schedules and technical requirements.

Visibility & risk management

Provide regular, concise status updates and reporting on project health to the VP of Engineering and domain leads.

Identify technical risks and bottlenecks early, propose clear mitigation strategies, and accelerate critical issues as needed.

Maintain accurate project tracking, utilizing appropriate methods (waterfall or iterative) for the technical context.

You act as an owner and key user of our project management tools f.e. Jira and reporting dashboards.

Process & alignment

Own the implementation of lightweight, practical project management practices within the engineering team.

Contribute to a culture of accountability and effective cross-functional technical collaboration.

Reporting: This role reports directly to the VP of Engineering.

About Swave: Innovating AR from the ground up

We are a fabless semiconductor company headquartered in Leuven, Belgium, with a growing presence in the US. Backed by seasoned leaders and a team of passionate engineers, we're pioneering holographic technology at the intersection of optics, semiconductors, and systems design.

At Swave, you'll find:

A culture built on authenticity, trust, and openness.A small but ambitious team with a bias for action.An environment where creativity and purpose drive everything we do.Space to take ownership, experiment, and see your ideas come life.

Requirements: What you bring

We're looking for someone with strong technical grounding and hands-on project management skills.

You recognize yourself in this profile:

5-8+ years of experience in technical project management, engineering lead, or a similar role within high-tech hardware environments.

Technical expertise in one or more domains: semiconductors, chip design, photonics/optics/holography, AR/consumer electronics, or processor architectures.

Demonstrated experience in driving the delivery of complex technical projects, particularly integrating waterfall-heavy technical streams (e.g. IC design) with more iterative development (software, tools).

A proven track record of coordinating cross-functional engineering teams to successful delivery.

Excellent communication skills: able to explain technical plans, status, and issues clearly to both technical teams and leadership.

We are only considering candidates who possess the existing right to work in Belgium; single permit sponsorship is not available for this position.

World-Class Characteristics

Technical Driver: Focuses relentlessly on technical delivery, ensuring all engineering streams converge for product milestones.

Trusted Partner: Works with technical leads and engineers to remove roadblocks and drive execution.

Pragmatic: Implements necessary rigor to ensure success without unnecessary administrative overhead.

Credible: Strong enough technically to command respect and challenge assumptions constructively.

Calm Coordinator: Maintains clarity and focus in complex, high-pressure technical environments.

What we offer

We believe the best work happens when people feel valued and inspired. That's why we offer a competitive salary package tailored to your skills, expertise, and impact.

At Swave, you'll work at the cutting edge of optics and semiconductors, where every technical success drives adoption of technology that changes the world. We know life doesn't fit neatly into a 9-to-5 schedule, so we put results before hours - with flexibility and remote options where it makes sense. Our headquarters in Leuven, a city alive with technology, culture, and creativity, provides the perfect backdrop for innovation and connection.

Most importantly, you'll be part of an informal and supportive team where authenticity matters. Here, you can bring your true self to work, share your ideas openly, and celebrate successes together.

Location: This role is based in Belgium - Leuven