Data Infrastructure Operations Manager (Starlink)

SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES CORP; Sunnyvale (CA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 185,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock options

401(k) retirement plan

Medical, vision & dental coverage

Paid time off

Job summary

SpaceX is seeking a Data Infrastructure Operations Manager (Starlink) in Sunnyvale, CA, to lead end-to-end strategy, sourcing, and delivery for major data taxonomy categories. You will drive supplier relationships, negotiate high-impact deals, and ensure high-quality datasets for AI model training and validation.

The role requires 5+ years of experience in relevant fields, strong project management skills, and the ability to scale processes.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in related fields such as hardware, engineering, procurement, supply chain, or strategy and operations.
• Strong project management, communication, and organizational skills.
• Experience with data analysis, data visualization, and financial analysis is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Negotiate deals with key suppliers and partners.
• Align sourcing strategy with engineering, quality, and performance requirements.
• Track deal status, approvals, and execution risks; ensure timely delivery.
• Continuously improve, standardize, and scale sourcing processes and tools.
• Build a pipeline of exclusive and proprietary datasets.
• Provide inputs on upcoming orders based on capacity, quality, and pricing.
• Maintain spend discipline; allocate budget to high-impact datasets.
• Set target pricing and develop metrics for quality, delivery, and performance.
• Communicate proactively with internal and external partners.

Skills

Self-starting

Project management

Data analysis

Data visualization

Financial analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Data Infrastructure Operations Manager (Starlink)

Sunnyvale, CA

SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

DATA INFRASTRUCTURE OPERATIONS MANAGER (STARLINK)

The Infrastructure Operations team is responsible for the end-to-end management of suppliers, costs, and delivery of high-quality human-generated data, including annotations, evaluations, and specialized research datasets that power the training, validation, and continuous improvement of our AI models. We're seeking talented, high-ownership individuals to grow and expand our global supplier network while ensuring the consistent, high-quality delivery of critical datasets. Individuals in this role are creative, fast problem-solvers who seek on challenges outside their comfort zone and can iterate and adapt at the rapid pace of the AI industry. As a Data Infrastructure Operations Manager, you will own end-to-end strategy, sourcing, and delivery for a major data taxonomy category (e.g., agentic tool use, coding, etc.) to drive high-signal datasets that improve model performance. You will be responsible for driving to acquisition and delivery targets for this category.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Negotiate creative, flexible, and commercially effective deals with key suppliers and partners
• Align sourcing strategy with engineering, quality, and performance requirements across priority areas
• Track deal status, approvals, and execution risks while driving suppliers toward timely and reliable delivery
• Continuously improve, standardize, and scale sourcing processes, workflows, tools, and planning systems
• Build a strong pipeline of exclusive and proprietary enterprise datasets
• Provide valuable inputs on upcoming orders based on supplier capacity, quality, and pricing
• Maintain rigorous spend discipline, committing budget only to datasets that meaningfully improve model performance
• Set target pricing, analyze supplier spend and trends, and develop metrics for quality, delivery, and performance
• Manage clear, proactive communication with both internal stakeholders and external partners

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• 5+ years of experience and a bachelor’s degree, or equivalent experience working in one or more of the following fields:
  • Hardware or product management
  • Engineering
  • Procurement
  • Supply chain management
  • Strategy and operations
  • Technology

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Self-starting, able to identify areas for improvement with minimal direction
• Experience in managing technical or construction projects from beginning to end
• Ability to tackle complex and ambiguous problems
• Excellent project management, communication, and organizational skills
• Experience or interest in data analysis, data visualization, and/or financial analysis
• Demonstrates commitment to SpaceX’s goals of reusability, renewability, and sustainability

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be willing to work long hours and occasional weekends when necessary to support launch and critical project timelines

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:

Pay Range: Level 3: $130,000.00 - $185,000.00

Your actual level and base salary will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: job-related knowledge and skills, education, and experience.

Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package at SpaceX. You may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of company stock or long-term cash awards, as well as potential discretionary bonuses and the ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You will also receive access to comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, paid parental leave, and various other discounts and perks. You may also accrue 3 weeks of paid vacation and will be eligible for 10 or more paid holidays per year. Employees accrue paid sick leave pursuant to Company policy which satisfies or exceeds the accrual, carryover, and use requirements of the law.

• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here .

SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SpaceX is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX’s affirmative action plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out [e-mail].