Engineering Program Manager - Robotics

Watney; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Watney Robotics is seeking an Engineering Program Manager to lead hardware programs that train our robots. You will own schedules, budgets, and cross‑functional delivery, guiding initiatives from first build to validation and deployment.

This 0‑to‑1 role requires credibility with engineers, the discipline to create processes where none exist, and the vision to scale from prototyping to manufacturing. You’ll collaborate across hardware, software, and operations to accelerate field-ready robotics.

Qualifications

• Experience running hardware programs at scale, with 0-to-1 cycles.
• Ability to coordinate across hardware, software, and operations.
• Technical credibility with engineers and stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Own schedule, budget, and cross-functional delivery for hardware programs.
• Take a program from first build to validated, with no existing process.
• Work directly with engineers designing and building hardware to earn their respect.
• Grow into owning robot build and manufacturing programs as they need one.

Skills

Hardware program management

Cross-functional coordination

Budgeting & scheduling

Robotics domain knowledge

Job description

Our Mission

Expand human ambition in the physical world.

Critical infrastructure is constrained by labor shortages, hazardous working conditions, and operational complexity. Watney builds and deploys autonomous robotic systems that increase the speed and capacity of buildout, starting with data centers.

About the Role

At Watney, the Engineering Program Manager owns the hardware programs that teach our robots new tasks - the fixtures and rigs that generate the training data behind robot autonomy.

This is a 0-to-1 role, and every program you run touches the robot itself. You build the schedule, the budget, and the cross-functional coordination starting with the first task.

What You'll Do

• Own schedule, budget, and cross-functional delivery for the hardware programs that teach robots new tasks.

• Take a program from first build to validated, with no existing process to lean on.

• Work directly with the engineers designing and building the hardware - enough to earn their respect, not to do their job.

• Grow into owning robot build and manufacturing programs as they need one.

You May Be a Good Fit If You:

• Have run a hardware program at a large company through at least one 0-to-1 cycle.

• Are technical enough that engineers trust your calls, without needing to design the hardware yourself.

• Took what a big company taught you and proved it at a small one.

• Are comfortable owning a program before anyone has defined what "done" looks like.

We’re committed to building a diverse, inclusive team. At Watney Robotics, we welcome people of all backgrounds and identities, and we make hiring decisions based on skills, experience, and potential. If you’re passionate about robotics but don’t meet every requirement, we still encourage you to apply!

Curious to learn more?

Follow us here onXandLinkedIn