Director of Hardware Engineering (Dropbox)

Zipline; San Francisco (CA); Sur place; USD 190 000 - 270 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

Zipline is seeking a Senior Hardware Leader to drive the Dropbox hardware system from architecture through design, validation, launch, and scalable deployment. You will own hardware execution across ME, EE, test, and technicians, while guiding system-level tradeoffs for throughput, safety, and cost.

You will collaborate with firmware, autonomy, RF, cloud, and operations to deliver deployments at partner sites.

Qualifications

• Experience with electromechanical products involving motion, sensing, harnessing, safety interlocks, environmental exposure, and production validation.
• Strong product judgment around user experience, reliability, manufacturability, serviceability, and cost, not just first-article performance.
• Demonstrated ability to manage hardware development from architecture through builds, test, supplier engagement, manufacturing handoff, and field support.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary hardware teams and challenging world-class engineers to deliver high-quality results within fast product cycles.
• Ability to operate across engineering, manufacturing, supply chain, operations, regulatory, and leadership stakeholders.
• Clear written and verbal communication around technical risk, decision logs, trade studies, and launch readiness.

Responsabilités

• Lead mechanical, electrical, test, and technician teams from architecture through design, validation, launch, and deployment.
• Own Dropbox hardware execution across ME, EE, test, technician work, integration, validation, and release readiness.
• Lead system-level architecture tradeoffs across throughput, reliability, safety, installability, manufacturability, serviceability, regulatory impact, and cost per site.
• Drive hardware path from prototype to production-intent design including mechanisms, enclosure, sensing, harnessing, power, electronics, and test coverage.
• Build the hardware team’s operating system: priorities, staffing, design gates, review cadence, and escalation paths.
• Manage technical risk across moving mechanisms, dynamic harnesses, motor/sensor architecture, and field service.
• Partner with firmware, autonomy, RF, cloud, operations, manufacturing, supply chain, regulatory, and customer-facing teams to enable deployments at partner sites.
• Create durable validation evidence for mechanical safety, electrical safety, environmental robustness, and site compatibility.

Connaissances

Hardware leadership

System architecture

Mechanical & electrical engineering

Test & validation

Cross-functional collaboration

Communication

Risk management

Team building

Description du poste

• Dropbox is Zipline’s ground-side hardware system for autonomous package loading, storage, transfer, and pickup
• It combines mechatronics, electrical systems, sensing, test infrastructure, field reliability, manufacturability, and site deployment constraints into one customer facing product
• This role reports to the Chief Hardware Officer and will lead the mechanical, electrical, test, and technician teams responsible for taking this first of its kind product from architecture through design, validation, launch, and scalable deployment
• Own Dropbox hardware execution across ME, EE, test, technician work, integration, validation, and release readiness
• Lead system-level architecture tradeoffs across throughput, reliability, safety, installability, manufacturability, serviceability, regulatory impact, and cost per deployed site
• Drive the hardware path from prototype through production-intent design, including mechanisms, enclosure, sensing, harnessing, power, electronics, and test coverage
• Build the hardware team’s operating system: priorities, staffing, technical reviews, issue triage, design gates, DVP&R, build planning, and escalation paths
• Manage technical risk across moving mechanisms, dynamic harnesses, motor/sensor architecture, package handoff, public-facing safety, environmental exposure, and field service
• Partner with firmware, autonomy, RF, cloud, operations, manufacturing, supply chain, regulatory, and customer-facing teams to make Dropbox deployable at real partner sites
• Create durable validation evidence for mechanical safety, electrical safety, environmental robustness, package quality, site compatibility, and operational reliability
• Lead root-cause analysis and corrective action for design, test, production, and field issues
• Hire, coach, and manage a world class multidisciplinary team of mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, test engineers, and technicians
• Make clear decisions when the team must trade speed, robustness, complexity, cost, and future extensibility

Experience with electromechanical products involving motion, sensing, harnessing, safety interlocks, environmental exposure, and production validationStrong product judgment around user experience, reliability, manufacturability, serviceability, and cost, not just first-article performanceDemonstrated ability to manage hardware development from architecture through builds, test, supplier engagement, manufacturing handoff, and field supportYou know have demonstrated experience leading multidisciplinary hardware teams, challenging world class engineers to do the best work of their lives through fast product development cyclesComfort operating across engineering, manufacturing, supply chain, operations, regulatory, and leadership stakeholdersClear written and verbal communication, especially around technical risk, decision logs, trade studies, and launch readinessBias toward evidence: test data, prototyping, design reviews, failure analysis, and explicit acceptance criteriaAbility to build team structure, clarify ownership, and turn ambiguous technical work into executable plansOutstanding mechanical and electrical system judgment, with enough depth to challenge architecture, test plans, and failure-mode assumptions