Lead Program Manager, Early Program Development

Rivian; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 154,000 - 192,500; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) Plan

Employee Stock Purchase Program

Paid vacation

Paid sick leave

Insurance benefits

Job summary

Rivian is seeking a Technical Program Manager to bridge high-level product strategy and engineering execution within the Strategy & Planning team. You will lead cross-functional technical and business integration of new programs from concept through Concept Freeze, tackling hard problems and coordinating with engineering, operations, manufacturing, strategy, finance, and supply chain.

In this role you will conduct deep dives, build decision frameworks, and guide trade-offs to move a program

Qualifications

• 4–7+ years of experience in Technical Program Management, Product Development or Industrial Engineering in hardware-heavy industries.
• Strong technical literacy to evaluate architecture and manufacturing trade-offs.
• Proficient in building structured decision frameworks and trade-off matrices.
• Ability to handle financial modeling.
• Strong communication skills for executive reviews.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate cross-functionally to establish benchmarks, pricing studies, and volume sensitivities for early-stage programs.
• Identify and gather insights on key positioning elements and features that drive program volume and price targets.
• Manage the program business case inputs, including BOM COGS, non‑BOM costs (conversion, logistics, warranty), and investment envelopes.
• Lead deep dives with Advanced Product Development teams to develop early concepts.
• Facilitate cross-functional studies to identify mission-critical "one-way door" decisions, ensuring rapid iteration and data-driven technical direction.
• Build and maintain trade-off matrices and decision frameworks to resolve disconnects between product feature objectives and financial/technical constraints.
• Partner with Manufacturing Engineering, Procurement, and Logistics to develop operational strategies that support the product definition.
• Translate program cost targets into clear operational objectives for manufacturing footprint, logistics, and supply chain.
• Execute ad hoc technical and business analyses to support leadership decision-making, including value stream mapping, cash cycle, and make-vs-buy studies.

Skills

Technical Program Management

Hardware engineering understanding

Financial modeling

Cross-functional collaboration

Strategic thinking

Job description

About Rivian

Rivianis on a mission to keep the world adventurous forever. This goes for the emissions‑free Electric Adventure Vehicles we build, and the curious, courageous souls we seek to attract.

As a company, we constantly challenge what’s possible, never simply accepting what has always been done. We reframe old problems, seek new solutions and operate comfortably in areas that are unknown. Our backgrounds are diverse, but our team shares a love of the outdoors and a desire to protect it for future generations.

Role Summary

This role sits within the Strategy & Planning team and is responsible for bridging the gap between high‑level product strategy and engineering execution. In this position, you will lead the cross‑functional technical and business integration of new programs from initial concept through Concept Freeze. You will lead technical deep dives, trade‑off analyses, and operational strategies to move a product from concept to production‑ready development. You will work on difficult problems without a clear answer and interact with multiple functions including engineering, operations, manufacturing, strategy, finance, supply chain, and more.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate cross‑functionally to establish competitive benchmarks, pricing studies, and volume sensitivities for early‑stage programs.
• Identify and gather insights on key positioning elements and features that drive program volume and price targets.
• Manage the program business case inputs, including tracking BOM COGS, non‑BOM costs (conversion, logistics, warranty), and investment envelopes.
• Lead deep dives with Advanced Product Development teams to develop early concepts.
• Facilitate cross‑functional studies to identify mission‑critical "one‑way door" decisions, ensuring rapid iteration and data‑driven technical direction.
• Build and maintain trade‑off matrices and decision frameworks to resolve disconnects between product feature objectives and financial/technical constraints.
• Partner with Manufacturing Engineering, Procurement, and Logistics to develop operational strategies that support the product definition.
• Translate program cost targets into clear operational objectives for manufacturing footprint, logistics, and supply chain.
• Execute ad hoc technical and business analyses to support leadership decision‑making, including value stream mapping, cash cycle, and make‑vs‑buy studies.

Qualifications

• Passionate about business execution and interest in solving difficult and ambiguous problems.
• 4‑7+ years of experience in Technical Program Management, Product Development or Industrial Engineering in a hardware‑intensive industry (Automotive, Aerospace, or Energy).
• Strong technical literacy; ability to speak the language of engineering and manufacturing to evaluate architecture and complexity trade‑offs.
• Proficient in building structured decision frameworks and trade‑off matrices to solve complex, ambiguous problems.
• Ability to handle financial modeling.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to synthesize technical deep dives into clear recommendations for executive reviews.

Pay Disclosure

The salary range for this role is $154,000-192,500 for Southern California based applicants. This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, specific competencies, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, shift, and organizational needs.

The successful candidate may be eligible for annual performance bonus and equity awards.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits for full‑time and part‑time employees, their spouse or domestic partner, and children up to age 26, including but not limited to paid vacation, paid sick leave, and a competitive portfolio of insurance benefits including life, medical, dental, vision, short‑term disability insurance, and long‑term disability insurance to eligible employees. You may also have the opportunity to participate in Rivian’s 401(k) Plan and Employee Stock Purchase Program if you meet certain eligibility requirements. Full‑time employee coverage is effective on their first day of employment. Part‑time employee coverage is effective the first of the month following 90 days of employment. More information about benefits is available at rivianbenefits.com.

Equal Opportunity

Rivian is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local fair employment practices laws. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information or characteristics, physical or mental disability, marital/domestic partner status, age, military/veteran status, medical condition, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Rivian is committed to ensuring that our hiring process is accessible for persons with disabilities. If you have a disability or limitation, such as those covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, that requires accommodations to assist you in the search and application process, please email us at [e-mail].

Candidate Data Privacy

Rivian may collect, use and disclose your personal information or personal data (within the meaning of the applicable data protection laws) when you apply for employment and/or participate in our recruitment processes (“Candidate Personal Data”). This data includes contact, demographic, communications, educational, professional, employment, social media/website, network/device, recruiting system usage/interaction, security and preference information. Rivian may use your Candidate Personal Data for the purposes of (i) tracking interactions with our recruiting system; (ii) carrying out, analyzing and improving our application and recruitment process, including assessing you and your application and conducting employment, background and reference checks; (iii) establishing an employment relationship or entering into an employment contract with you; (iv) complying with our legal, regulatory and corporate governance obligations; (v) recordkeeping; (vi) ensuring network and information security and preventing fraud; and (vii) as otherwise required or permitted by applicable law.

Rivian may share your Candidate Personal Data with (i) internal personnel who have a need to know such information in order to perform their duties, including individuals on our People Team, Finance, Legal, and the team(s) for which you are applying; (ii) Rivian affiliates; and (iii) Rivian’s service providers, including providers of background checks, staffing services, and cloud services.

Rivian may transfer or store internationally your Candidate Personal Data, including to or in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the European Union and in the cloud, and this data may be subject to the laws and accessible to the courts, law enforcement and national security authorities of such jurisdictions.

Please note that we are currently not accepting applications from third party application services.