Senior / Staff Technical Program Manager, Flight Research Software

XWING; Santa Cruz (CA); On-site; USD 173,400 - 238,400; Full time

Job summary

Joby Aviation's Flight Research team seeks a Staff Technical Program Manager to own software execution across autonomy and flight software development. You will drive planning across multiple workstreams, ensuring alignment with flight test campaigns and program milestones.

You will translate high-level objectives into executable plans, manage dependencies, and keep teams focused on the highest-value work while maintaining risk-aware execution in a fast-moving environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or related technical field.
• 8+ years in a Technical Program Manager, Technical Project Manager, or senior technical leadership role on software-intensive systems.
• Hands-on software development background or demonstrated depth in software architecture, implementation workflows, and technical risk assessment.
• Proven ability to understand complex software systems, ask high-quality technical questions, and reason about architecture, interfaces, integration, and release risk.
• Experience driving technical execution in hardware-integrated or embedded systems environments where software delivery is coupled to physical test milestones.
• Strong organizational skills with a track record of managing integrated programs across multiple concurrent technical workstreams.
• Clear, direct communicator able to translate technical plans, risks, and trade-offs for both engineering teams and program stakeholders.
• Comfortable operating in fast-moving environments where requirements and program needs evolve quickly.
• Proficiency with program management and collaboration tools such as Jira, ClickUp, Smartsheet, or similar.

Responsibilities

• Own the integrated software execution plan across programs, maintaining a clear view of workstreams, dependencies, milestones, technical risks, and critical path.
• Partner with software engineering leads to decompose high-level program objectives into actionable engineering work with clear priorities, owners, and acceptance criteria.
• Drive planning and prioritization across GNC, flight software, embedded systems, simulation, GCS, and test infrastructure teams.
• Apply technical judgment to identify unrealistic plans, missing dependencies, ambiguous requirements, and integration risks before they become blockers.
• Define and continuously improve lightweight program management processes adapted to the team's pace and needs, increasing execution velocity without adding overhead.
• Track and communicate schedule risks, blockers, and technical trade-offs to engineering leadership and program management. Surface problems early and own resolution.
• Manage cross-team dependencies at the boundary between software development, hardware, systems engineering, and flight test.
• Lead the software design-implementation-release lifecycle in collaboration with engineering leads, including design reviews, implementation sequencing, integration readiness, and release planning.
• Own flight test campaign planning from the software side, ensuring deliverables are technically scoped, scheduled, tested, and tracked against test objectives.
• Keep the team organized around priorities, commitments, decision records, and follow-through so engineers can execute with clarity.

Skills

Software architecture understanding

Technical questioning

Cross-functional leadership

Organizational skills

Communication

Jira/ClickUp/Smartsheet

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering/CS

Tools

Jira

ClickUp

Smartsheet

Job description

Senior / Staff Technical Program Manager, Flight Research Software

Job Locations US-CA-Santa Cruz

ID 2026-5088

Category Flight Research

Type Regular Full-Time

Company Overview

Joby Flight Research designs, develops, and flight-tests novel aircraft using a software-first autonomy approach. We build and deploy autonomy, perception, planning, and radar systems across conventional, electric, and hydrogen-electric aircraft in both CTOL and VTOL configurations.

Overview

Joby Aviation's Flight Research team is looking for a Staff Technical Program Manager to own software execution across our autonomy and flight software development portfolio. You will drive planning and delivery across multiple concurrent workstreams, including flight controls, mission management, embedded systems, simulation, ground control station software, and test infrastructure, ensuring the team is focused on the highest-value work and delivering software tied to flight test campaigns and program milestones.

We are a small, close-knit team building software that flies on novel fly-by-wire aircraft. The role requires a technically grounded TPM who can operate with confidence in an environment where priorities shift based on evolving program needs. You will work closely with engineering, flight test, and program leads to translate high-level objectives into executable plans, maintain clarity around dependencies and risks, and keep a talented software team moving with purpose.

Responsibilities

• Own the integrated software execution plan across programs, maintaining a clear view of workstreams, dependencies, milestones, technical risks, and critical path.
• Partner with software engineering leads to decompose high-level program objectives into actionable engineering work with clear priorities, owners, and acceptance criteria.
• Drive planning and prioritization across GNC, flight software, embedded systems, simulation, GCS, and test infrastructure teams.
• Apply technical judgment to identify unrealistic plans, missing dependencies, ambiguous requirements, and integration risks before they become blockers.
• Define and continuously improve lightweight program management processes adapted to the team's pace and needs, increasing execution velocity without adding overhead.
• Track and communicate schedule risks, blockers, and technical trade-offs to engineering leadership and program management. Surface problems early and own resolution.
• Manage cross-team dependencies at the boundary between software development, hardware, systems engineering, and flight test.
• Lead the software design-implementation-release lifecycle in collaboration with engineering leads, including design reviews, implementation sequencing, integration readiness, and release planning.
• Own flight test campaign planning from the software side, ensuring deliverables are technically scoped, scheduled, tested, and tracked against test objectives.
• Keep the team organized around priorities, commitments, decision records, and follow-through so engineers can execute with clarity.

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or related technical field.
• 8+ years in a Technical Program Manager, Technical Project Manager, or senior technical leadership role on software-intensive systems.
• Hands-on software development background or demonstrated depth in software architecture, implementation workflows, and technical risk assessment.
• Proven ability to understand complex software systems, ask high-quality technical questions, and reason about architecture, interfaces, integration, and release risk.
• Experience driving technical execution in hardware-integrated or embedded systems environments where software delivery is coupled to physical test milestones.
• Strong organizational skills with a track record of managing integrated programs across multiple concurrent technical workstreams.
• Clear, direct communicator able to translate technical plans, risks, and trade-offs for both engineering teams and program stakeholders.
• Comfortable operating in fast-moving environments where requirements and program needs evolve quickly.
• Proficiency with program management and collaboration tools such as Jira, ClickUp, Smartsheet, or similar.

This position must meet US export control compliance requirements, therefore a candidate must qualify as a “US Person” as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.15. “US Person” includes US Citizens, lawful permanent residents, refugees, or asylees.

Desired

• Aerospace, defense, or robotics industry experience.
• Experience supporting flight test programs or hardware development programs with tightly coupled software deliverables.
• Prior experience as a software engineer, technical lead, systems engineer, project engineer, or integration engineer on a software-intensive system.
• Familiarity with software configuration management and release processes for safety-critical or embedded systems.
• Understanding of GNC, flight software, embedded systems, build systems, simulation, and modern software development processes.
• Familiarity with systems engineering processes, including requirements management, V&V planning, traceability, and interface definition.
• Experience managing cross-site technical execution or coordinating between engineering and flight test at different locations

Compensation at Joby is a combination of base pay and Restricted Stock Units (RSUs). The target base pay for this position is $173,400 - $238,400/yr. The compensation package will be determined by job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.

Joby also offers a comprehensive benefits package, including paid time off, healthcare benefits, a 401(k) plan with a company match, an employee stock purchase plan (ESPP), short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, and more.

Additional Information

Joby Aviation is an equal opportunity employer.