Senior Manager/ Director, Technical Program Management - AI Research

Socket.dev; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 273,000; Full time

Job summary

Salesforce is seeking a Technical Program Manager to lead AI research and cross‑functional product programs in California. You will drive alignment across product, research, and tech teams, reporting to executives and guiding large-scale initiatives.

The role requires strong cross-functional leadership, data-driven decision making, and excellent communication. Occasional travel to Palo Alto and global collaboration are expected as programs scale.

Qualifications

• 10–15 years overall with at least 7 years leading large enterprise programs.
• Experience in a research, AI/ML, or technology organization is preferred.
• Strong executive communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• Ability to derive insights from data and manage complex programs.
• Exposure to AI tools is a plus.
• Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering or related field.

Responsibilities

• Lead cross-functional programs across product and AI research teams.
• Align scope, release planning, and teams to business goals.
• Drive weekly reviews with stakeholders and executive updates.
• Develop partnerships with key stakeholders and management.
• Identify and remove obstacles to meet program milestones.
• Provide monthly program reviews and sprint progress.
• Foster a collaborative environment and strategic organizational impact.

Skills

Program management

Cross-functional leadership

Executive communication

Data-driven analysis

AI/ML knowledge

Agile methodologies

Strategic planning

Stakeholder management

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Engineering or related field

Job description

Job Category

Program & Project Management

Job Details

About Salesforce

Salesforce is the #1 AI CRM, where humans with agents drive customer success together. Here, ambition meets action. Tech meets trust. And innovation isn’t a buzzword — it’s a way of life. The world of work as we know it is changing and we're looking for Trailblazers who are passionate about bettering business and the world through AI, driving innovation, and keeping Salesforce's core values at the heart of it all.

Ready to level-up your career at the company leading workforce transformation in the agentic era? You’re in the right place! Agentforce is the future of AI, and you are the future of Salesforce.

Team and Role Overview

Salesforce AI Research discovers new research problems, develops novel models, and bridges the gap between groundbreaking theory and customer-facing reality. We are dedicated to a high-impact research model that provides the best of both worlds: the ability to advance the state-of-the-art in AI and the opportunity to see that work operate at massive, real-world scale within the world's #1 AI CRM.

Technical Program Managers (TPMs) play a critical role in leading large-scale, cross-functional initiatives within our Technology & Products organizations. TPMs supervise programs from beginning to end, ensuring a better workflow and more effective communication. They work closely with executives and key company stakeholders to drive critical programs across the company.

Responsibilities

• Lead programs by achieving alignment on program scope, release planning, as well as aligning one or more teams on vision, business goals, creating program structure, and securing cross-functional alignment.
• Drive weekly product review meetings with key stakeholders for each program to help make key decisions, remove obstacles, and address key program issues. Be the key driver to ensure business goals are met and drive the strategic vision of each program.
• Develop strong partnerships with key functional stakeholders to drive focus on business goals. Be a trusted partner for executive management to ensure program success.
• Drive workgroup alignment meetings to address tactical release issues, dependencies, team status, production issues, metrics review, milestones, etc. (cross functional - Product Owners, AI Researchers, TechOps, Release Eng, Capacity, Functional Managers, Release Management).
• Provide visibility to program status (issues, risks, metrics, etc.) on an ongoing basis through push status reporting (to all stakeholders, team members, and interested parties).
• Manage "program/feature" dependencies across multiple teams, scrum teams, functions, divisions, and stakeholders.
• Anticipate and remove obstacles with a sense of urgency that slow down or prevent project teams from delivering on project goals.
• Provide monthly program reviews and updates at sprint reviews (deep dive into current state of project goals, risks, escalations).
• Create a collaborative environment that fosters creativity, innovation, and learning.
• Be a catalyst within the organization, someone who can help advance our Product & Technology strategy globally and drive others in the organization to change.

Minimum Requirements

• Overall professional experience of 10 to 15 years with at least 7+ years of recent professional work experience leading large enterprise product programs.
• Experience in a research, AI/ML, or technology organization required; knowledge of AI concepts and research culture is a significant advantage
• Outstanding organizational, communication, and relationship building skills conducive to driving consensus; able to work well in a cross-functional, executive level environment, comfortable giving and preparing exec level presentations
• Excellent analytical and problem solving skills with a history of hands–on, detail orientation.
• Ability to derive insights from data, expert at using project management and data analysis tools
• Ability to establish credibility and rapport with senior executives and technical and non–technical team members alike.
• Ability to master technical subjects and technologies relevant to the program.
• Ability to successfully partner with all functions across the entire company and across multiple time zones, and strong time management, analysis, and planning skills.
• Exposure to working with AI tools like Claude/Cursor is a plus
• Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering, or related disciplines or equivalent experience in technical leadership roles. Management Degrees preferred

Work Hours & Travel

• This role will support teams in Singapore and California. Candidates must be able to work outside of standard work hours multiple days per week. Flexibility in the evenings is a must.
• Travel 4x per year to Palo Alto for in-person meetings
• Ability to travel internationally if required for the scope of managed programs

Unleash Your Potential

When you join Salesforce, you’ll be limitless in all areas of your life. Our benefits and resources support you to find balance and be your best, and our AI agents accelerate your impact so you can do your best. Together, we’ll bring the power of Agentforce to organizations of all sizes and deliver amazing experiences that customers love.

Accommodations

If you need a reasonable accommodation during the application or the recruiting process, please submit a request via this Accommodations Request Form.

Posting Statement

Salesforce is an equal opportunity employer and maintains a policy of non-discrimination with all employees and applicants for employment. What does that mean exactly? It means that at Salesforce, we believe in equality for all. And we believe we can lead the path to equality in part by creating a workplace that’s inclusive, and free from discrimination. Know your rights: workplace discrimination is illegal. Any employee or potential employee will be assessed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications – without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression or identity, transgender status, age, disability, veteran or marital status, political viewpoint, or other classifications protected by law. This policy applies to current and prospective employees, no matter where they are in their Salesforce employment journey. It also applies to recruiting, hiring, job assignment, compensation, promotion, benefits, training, assessment of job performance, discipline, termination, and everything in between. Recruiting, hiring, and promotion decisions at Salesforce are fair and based on merit. The same goes for compensation, benefits, promotions, transfers, reduction in workforce, recall, training, and education.

In the United States, compensation offered will be determined by factors such as location, job level, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Certain roles may be eligible for incentive compensation, equity, and benefits. Salesforce offers a variety of benefits to help you live well including: time off programs, medical, dental, vision, mental health support, paid parental leave, life and disability insurance, 401(k), and an employee stock purchasing program. More details about company benefits can be found at the following link: https://www.salesforcebenefits.com. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance and the Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring, Salesforce will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records. At Salesforce, we believe in equitable compensation practices that reflect the dynamic nature of labor markets across various regions. The typical base salary range for this position is $150,100 - $273,000 annually. In select cities within the San Francisco and New York City metropolitan area, the base salary range for this role is $180,200 - $298,400 annually.The range represents base salary only, and does not include company bonus, incentive for sales roles, equity or benefits, as applicable.