Senior Manager Robotics Engineering

Caterpillar Inc.; Irving (TX); On-site; USD 173,000 - 259,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision benefits

401(k) savings plans

Health Savings Account (HSA)

Tuition Reimbursement

Incentive bonus

Parental leave

Job summary

Caterpillar Inc. is seeking an Engineering Manager to lead a team of robotics engineers in Dallas and work on the autonomy stack for real-world machines.

You will hire, mentor, and deliver on the roadmap while maintaining high technical standards and staying closely connected to customer needs. You will influence production-quality designs, ensure end-to-end delivery from concept to deployment, and bring deep expertise in perception, planning, and AI to a fast-moving, onsite role at the Irving,

Qualifications

• Proven engineering-management experience in robotics, autonomy, autonomous vehicles, or related field.
• Strong robotics foundation across perception, motion planning, controls, SLAM, and AI.
• Proficient in C++ and Python; ROS experience.
• Experience delivering products end-to-end from idea to production.
• Ability to mentor and grow high-performing teams.
• Willingness to work on-site at Irving, TX.

Responsibilities

• Hire, grow, and lead robotics engineering team in Dallas.
• Maintain hiring bar and craft standards.
• Collaborate with capability stewards and pod leads to staff and deliver the roadmap.
• Provide hands-on guidance on designs and unblock hard technical calls.

Skills

Engineering management

Robotics

Autonomy stack

C++/Python/ROS

Full lifecycle delivery

Team leadership

Field robotics on-site

Talent development

On-site leadership

Tools

ROS

Job description

Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc.

When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other. We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.

Career Area

Engineering

Job Description

Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc.

When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other. We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.

Help Build the Future of Caterpillar –

At Caterpillar, technology always has a purpose, which is to solve our customers’ toughest challenges. Through Cat Technology, we are solving problems by building the intelligence layer that connects machines, data, and people to make jobsites safer, more productive, and more sustainable. By combining deep domain expertise in physical systems with software, connectivity, autonomy, and AI, we deliver solutions that work in the real world—on real jobsites, at global scale.

You’ll build and deploy against one of the most unique data foundations—over 1.6 million connected assets generating real-world data daily. These data and platform capabilities are enabling the development of AI models, edge computing architectures, and software systems that scale across fleets, products, and industries. The result will be a new generation of machines that continuously learn, improve, and deliver performance at scale.

Role Definition

We are building the autonomy stack that lets large off-road machines operate themselves on real customer sites. As Engineering Manager, you will grow and lead a team of robotics engineers in Dallas, own the hiring bar and the craft standard, and keep delivery moving as we scale.

You lead people and stay technically credible — you can go deep with your engineers across robotics, you know what "production-quality" looks like on real hardware, and you keep the team always connected to the needs of the customer.

Responsibilities

• Hire, grow, and lead a team of robotics engineers in Dallas.
• Own the hiring bar, technical craft standards, and team health.
• Partner with capability stewards and pod leads to staff and deliver against the roadmap.
• Stay hands-on enough to guide designs, and unblock the hard technical calls.

Skill Descriptors

• Planning: Tactical, Strategic: Knowledge of effective planning techniques and ability to contribute to operational (short term), tactical (1-2 years) and strategic (3-5 years) planning in support of the overall business plan.
• Technical Excellence: Knowledge of a given technology and various application methods; ability to develop and provide solutions to significant technical challenges.
• Collaborating Globally: Knowledge of effective collaboration techniques and ability to build networks with people from different countries and cultures, think and work with them to bring positive impact and flourishing business results.

Top Candidates Will Have

• Proven engineering-management experience in robotics, autonomy, autonomous vehicles, or a closely related deep-tech domain.
• Strong technical foundation in robotics — credible across the autonomy stack (perception, motion planning, controls, SLAM, AI); you don't need to be the deepest in every area, but you must earn the team's technical respect.
• C++ / Python / ROS background; hands-on enough to review designs and unblock hard problems.
• Full-lifecycle delivery — has led teams that took products from idea to production, not only research or prototypes.
• Builds and grows high-performing teams; owns the hiring bar, mentoring, and career growth.
• Comfortable in a fast-moving, small-pod operating model — leads through outcomes, not process overhead.
• Excited to get out on site with the team and see their code operate on iron — real machines in the real world, not just in the lab.
• Field / real-world robotics or off-road autonomy.
• Standing up or scaling a robotics team at a new or growing site.
• Experience stewarding a stable talent bench and outcome-focused delivery teams.

Additional Details

• This position requires the candidate to work full-time at the Irving, TX office (Dallas)
• Domestic relocation assistance is available for this position.
• Visa sponsorship is NOT available with this position.

Summary Pay Range

$172,630.00 - $258,950.00

Compensation and benefits offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, job level, market location, job-related knowledge, skills, individual performance and experience. Please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Caterpillar.

Benefits

Subject to plan eligibility, terms, and guidelines. This is a summary list of benefits.

• Medical, dental, and vision benefits*
• Paid time off plan (Vacation, Holidays, Volunteer, etc.)*
• 401(k) savings plans*
• Health Savings Account (HSA)*
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)*
• Health Lifestyle Programs*
• Employee Assistance Program*
• Voluntary Benefits and Employee Discounts*
• Career Development*
• Incentive bonus*
• Disability benefits
• Life Insurance
• Parental leave
• Adoption benefits
• Tuition Reimbursement
• These benefits also apply to part-time employees

Posting Dates

Any offer of employment is conditioned upon the successful completion of a drug screen.

Caterpillar is an Equal Opportunity Employer, Including Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities. Qualified applicants of any age are encouraged to apply.

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