Manager, Vehicle Controls

Menlo Ventures; Torrance (CA); On-site; USD 193,500 - 236,500; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

99% employer-paid healthcare

14 weeks fully paid parental leave

Generous PTO

Life and disability insurance

Traditional and Roth 401(k) access

$500 annual water fund

$500 professional development reimbursement

Relocation assistance

Job summary

Menlo Ventures in Torrance, California, seeks a Manager, Vehicle Controls to oversee execution and process improvements in vehicle controls systems. This full-time, on-site role involves leading a talented engineering team and ensuring design quality and reliability across systems.

The ideal candidate will possess significant experience in embedded systems and demonstrate strong leadership and communication skills. Competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package included.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of hands-on experience in embedded systems and controls.
• 2+ years of experience leading engineering teams.
• Proven experience shipping complex hardware-integrated systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor a high-performing vehicle controls engineering team.
• Own vehicle-level control architecture from prototype to production.
• Provide technical leadership across various systems.

Skills

Embedded systems experience

Leadership and team management

CAN-based architectures knowledge

System-level tradeoff intuition

Communication skills

Tools

C/C++

MATLAB/Simulink

Debugging tools

Job description

What we’re building

The marine industry supports recreation, global commerce, and national defense. And yet it runs on technology that hasn't meaningfully changed in fifty years. Until now. Arc is on a mission to electrify the marine industry. We're rethinking powertrains, software, and vessel designs from first principles. And we’re already executing. We started with consumers to develop and harden our core technology. We’re now scaling production of our flagship model with new models and sectors on the horizon. Now we’re extending our platform to commercial applications, starting with tugs, ferries, and defense, with > years worth of signed contracts and a pipeline that spans every vessel type on the water.

The technology is proven, the momentum is building, and the opportunity is enormous. The marine industry is going electric and Arc is building the platform that powers it.

Who We're Looking for

As Arc’s Manager, Vehicle Controls, you will own the execution, deployment and process improvements of our vehicle controls systems with a team of talent and skilled Vehicle Controls Engineers. We’re looking for someone fired up by the mission and ready to build. You'll thrive here if you move fast, take ownership, and care about the details.

This is a full-time, on-site role at our Los Angeles headquarters. You’ll report to the Director of Software Engineering and work closely with a lean, high-trust team where everyone’s work matters.

What You'll Do

• Leading, mentoring, and growing a high-performing vehicle controls engineering team, providing technical guidance and career development support.
• Owning the vehicle-level control architecture from prototype through production, ensuring design quality, safety, and reliability across all real-time systems.
• Providing hands-on technical leadership when needed, guiding bring‑up, debugging, validation, and problem‑solving across powertrain, BMS, propulsion, and maneuvering systems.
• Driving the development and validation of control strategies and fault detection/mitigation logic for safety‑critical systems.
• Overseeing structured root cause investigations using data, instrumentation, and experimentation — and ensure learnings are systematically incorporated into the product.
• Owning and continuously improving the team’s validation strategy, including bench testing, HIL infrastructure, and production-level verification.
• Partnering with electrical, firmware, and mechanical teams to lead cross‑domain integration and resolve complex system-level issues.
• Collaborating with service and manufacturing teams to proactively triage controls faults, define service actions, and ensure high uptime across the fleet.
• Providing executive-level updates on team progress, technical risks, and mitigation strategies.
• Contributing to roadmap planning for future vehicle programs, identifying technical risks, staffing needs, and opportunities for innovation in vehicle intelligence and autonomy.
• Fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and cross‑functional collaboration.

Minimum Qualifications

• 5+ years of hands‑on experience in embedded systems, controls, or vehicle electrical integration, with a strong ability to guide and support engineers in troubleshooting and development.
• 2+ years of proven experience leading and managing engineering teams, including mentorship, performance management, and hiring.
• Deep familiarity with CAN-based architectures and network-level debugging tools.
• Demonstrated experience shipping complex hardware-integrated, real-time systems into production.
• Strong intuition for system-level tradeoffs under real-world constraints.
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills with a proven ability to influence cross‑functional stakeholders.

Bonus Qualifications

• Experience with EV or marine electrical and controls architectures.
• Proficiency in C/C++, Rust, Python, or similar languages for embedded or automation development.
• Experience with model-based design or control algorithm development (e.g., MATLAB/Simulink).
• Familiarity with DFMEA, functional safety, or reliability engineering practices.
• Experience building automated validation or HIL infrastructure.
• Comfort working directly with oscilloscopes, data loggers, and ECU flashing tools.
• 3+ years of experience managing technical teams in a manufacturing or production setting.
• Enthusiasm for boating and the water.

What we offer

The base salary for this role is $215,000 annually.

Highly competitive equity grants are included with full time offers. As well as semi-annual bonuses tied to your impact, not just your tenure.

Additionally, Arc offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including:

• Healthcare benefits — 99% employer-paid medical, dental, and vision
• Parental leave — 14 weeks fully paid for birthing and non-birthing parents
• Generous time off — Highly competitive PTO with an opportunity to earn more time with tenure
• Income protection — Life and disability insurance for all employees
• Retirement savings — Traditional and Roth 401(k) access
• Water fund — $500 for you to spend each year to get out on the water, however you choose
• Professional development — $500 annual reimbursement for professional development and a monthly AI stipend
• Safety Support — Annual reimbursement for PPE, ergonomic equipment and anything that ensures we keep our crew safe
• Captain training — Training and access to take Arcboats out with friends and family
• Office perks — Daily lunches, snacks, and good coffee while onsite
• Relocation assistance — Available depending on role eligibility.

Our values

We move with urgency and build with care. We value these five things above all else:

• Ownership over both your work and the company’s success
• Empathy for colleagues and for customers
• Humility in problem solving and collaboration
• Pragmatism for navigating ambiguity quickly and sensibly
• Inclusion of different backgrounds, opinions, cultures, and perspectives.

We want people who share and embody these values. It is vital that our values align – we’d be happy to elaborate on any or all of these during the interview process.

At Arc, we encourage diversity and consider all qualified applicants equally for employment, regardless of background, identity, or status. You’re always welcome to reach out even if you don’t meet many of these qualifications. Passion and aptitude make up for a lot.