Head of Central Robot Operations - Dot

DoorDash; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 260,000 - 380,000; Full time

Job summary

DoorDash is seeking a Head of Central Robot Operations to lead the central operations powering autonomous robot delivery at scale from San Francisco. You will build capabilities, governance, and teams to enable safe, reliable, and efficient robot operations across markets.

You will oversee the 24/7 Remote Assistance, mapping, expansion, and infrastructure, partnering with Engineering and Product to analyze data, reduce human intervention, and drive fleet performance.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of leadership experience in large-scale operations
• Proven ability to build and lead cross-functional operations organizations
• Experience managing multiple operational domains such as fleet operations, analytics, and program management

Responsibilities

• Build and scale Central Robot Operations with defined operating model and roadmap
• Own 24/7 Remote Assistance operations including staffing, SLAs and escalation protocols
• Lead mapping operations for HD maps, geofences, routing data and points of interest
• Drive geographic expansion with market launch governance and regulatory readiness
• Own market infrastructure including hubs, depots, charging, parking, maintenance
• Lead planning, analytics, governance, and reporting engine for Robot Operations
• Oversee policy, regulatory engagement and demonstrations with stakeholders
• Build and lead the PMO for Robot Operations
• Foster continuous improvement and alignment with Safety, Engineering, Product, and Market Operations

Skills

Leadership

Robotics/Autonomous systems

Operations management

Strategic planning

Cross-functional leadership

Job description

The Role

As the Head of Central Robot Operations , you will lead the central operations organization that powers autonomous robot delivery at scale. Acting as the operational command center for the business, you will build the capabilities, mechanisms, and teams that enable safe, reliable, and efficient robot operations across every market.

What You Will Do

Build and Scale Central Robot Operations

Define the long-term operating model, organizational structure, and roadmap for Central Robot Operations.

Build scalable mechanisms, operating standards, and governance that enable reliable robot operations across all markets.

Lead a high-performing organization spanning operations, analytics, expansion, mapping, infrastructure, and program management.

Own Remote Assistance Operations

Lead the 24/7 Remote Assistance organization responsible for supporting autonomous robots requiring human intervention.

Define response-time SLAs, workforce planning, staffing models, scheduling, and escalation protocols.

Develop monitoring, telemetry, and operational dashboards that provide real-time visibility into fleet health.

Partner with Engineering and Product to analyze intervention data, eliminate recurring failure modes, and continuously reduce human intervention rates.

Lead Mapping Operations

Own the operational lifecycle of geospatial assets including HD maps, geofences, routing data, and points of interest.

Establish mapping quality standards, QA mechanisms, refresh cycles, and operational readiness processes for new launches.

Balance mapping accuracy with launch velocity while managing internal and external mapping partners.

Drive Geographic Expansion

Develop the playbook for launching new cities, campuses, and operating zones.

Lead market assessment, regulatory readiness, operational planning, and launch governance.

Build repeatable launch mechanisms that enable rapid, high‑quality expansion across multiple geographies.

Coordinate cross‑functional readiness reviews prior to every market launch.

Own Market Infrastructure

Lead strategy and execution for hubs, depots, charging infrastructure, parking locations, maintenance facilities, and operational footprint.

Drive capacity planning, infrastructure utilization, vendor management, and cost optimization.

Ensure operational infrastructure scales ahead of demand while maintaining service reliability.

Lead Strategy & Operations

Build the planning, analytics, governance, and reporting engine for Robot Operations.

Define KPIs, operating metrics, executive dashboards, forecasting models, and business review mechanisms.

Lead annual planning, OKRs, operational reviews, and cross‑functional governance rhythms.

Translate operation al data into strategic recommendations for executive leadership.

Own Policy, Regulatory Engagement & Demonstrations

Partner with Public Policy and Legal teams to support permits, regulatory engagement, compliance initiatives, and government relationships.

Lead operational readiness for demonstrations involving customers, regulators, investors, media, and strategic partners.

Represent Operations during executive briefings and external engagements.

Lead Program Management

Build and lead the Program Management Office (PMO) for Robot Operations.

Drive execution across multiple cross‑functional workstreams through disciplined planning, dependency management, risk mitigation, and governance.

Establish operating cadences including weekly reviews, launch readiness reviews, retrospectives, and executive reporting.

Build Operational Excellence

Develop standardized playbooks, SOPs, operating mechanisms, and continuous improvement programs across all Central Operations functions.

Partner closely with Safety, Engineering, Product, and Market Operations to improve fleet availability, productivity, customer experience, and unit economics.

Foster a culture of operational excellence, ownership, innovation, and customer obsession.

What We're Looking For

15+ years of leadership experience in operations, robotics, autonomous vehicles, logistics, aviation, mobility, or other large-scale operational environments.

Demonstrated success building and leading complex, cross‑functional operations organizations.

Experience managing multiple operational domains such as fleet operations, command centers, infrastructure, mapping, analytics, program management, or expansion.

Strong strategic thinking with the ability to translate ambiguity into scalable operating models.

Experience ope