System Disruption Manager

Waymo; Tempe (AZ); On-site; USD 159,000 - 196,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual bonus program

Equity incentive plan

Benefits program

Job summary

Waymo is seeking an experienced Incident Commander to lead cross-functional disruption responses and coordinate stakeholders across Legal, Ops, Safety, and Communications. You will guide real-time decisions and ensure robust post-incident learning to improve safety and efficiency.

The role requires 7+ years in incident management, strong technical and leadership skills, and the ability to brief senior executives. A 24/7 on-call rotation is expected, with a focus on 24/7 global coverage.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of direct incident management experience, including as Incident Commander or lead responder.
• Proven ability to apply technical understanding of complex engineering systems to drive incident response and remediation.
• Experience briefing senior executives in real-time on complex incidents, with clear communication across channels.
• Strong stakeholder coordination across Engineering, Legal, Ops, Safety, and Communications.
• Willingness to participate in a 24/7 on-call rotation and support a global follow-the-sun incident response.
• Experience in regulated environments and familiarity with safety-critical systems is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead as Incident Commander during cross-functional disruptions, coordinating stakeholders to resolve events.
• Manage escalations with representation from Legal, Ops, Safety, Policy, and Communications.
• Collaborate with global Operations teams to provide real-time incident support around the clock.
• Drive continuous improvement with thorough incident retrospectives and actionable follow-ups.
• Deliver executive-level analyses and post-incident learnings to inform strategic decisions.

Skills

Incident management

Cross-functional leadership

Executive briefing

Decision making under pressure

Stakeholder coordination

Education

Advanced degree in a relevant field

Tools

NIMS/ICS

ITIL Incident Management

Job description

Waymo is an autonomous driving technology company with the mission to be the world's most trusted driver. Since its start as the Google Self-Driving Car Project in 2009, Waymo has focused on building the Waymo Driver—the World's Most Experienced Driver—to improve access to mobility while saving thousands of lives now lost to traffic crashes. The Waymo Driver powers Waymo's fully autonomous ride‑hail service and can also be applied to a range of vehicle platforms and product use cases. The Waymo Driver has provided over ten million rider‑only trips, enabled by its experience autonomously driving over 100 million miles on public roads and tens of billions in simulation across 15+ U.S. states.

Waymo Operations exists to deliver the Waymo Driver to the world. We are a global team building and scaling the world's first and leading autonomous fleet and operations platform. From component sourcing to end customer management, we enable and create value for Waymo through scaled and orchestrated deployment of the Waymo Driver. At Waymo, we are dedicated to building a culture that promotes collaboration and celebration. We value our team members' unique backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences and support and encourage all team members to share their ideas to help Waymo better serve the communities in which we operate. System Disruption Management, within the Global Operations Center, serves as the control point for disruptions across Waymo, orchestrating operations‑driven cross‑functional coordination to ensure rider safety, fleet resilience, and business performance remain uncompromised as we scale.

This role will report to the Head of System Disruption Management.

You will:

• Lead as the Incident Commander during cross‑functional disruptions—orchestrating response efforts, making decisive real‑time decisions, and coordinating all necessary stakeholders to safely and efficiently resolve events.
• Manage and prioritize escalations—ensuring targeted stakeholder representation (e.g., Legal, Ops, Safety, Policy, & Communications) throughout the incident lifecycle. Develop robust cross‑functional partnerships to proactively understand stakeholder concerns during events and effectively communicate post‑incident outcomes and learning opportunities to a global audience.
• Collaborate closely within global Operations teams—providing critical support and guidance during real‑time incident response to maintain seamless 24/7 coverage.
• Drive continuous improvement—by leading thorough incident retrospectives to accurately document events and identify root causes. Define actionable follow‑ups and track their implementation to continuously enhance safety, efficiency, and overall incident response capabilities for a distributed team, ensuring lessons learned are integrated back into processes.
• Deliver executive‑level communications—on active incidents and present comprehensive analyses of key outcomes, trends, and strategic learnings from past events.

You have:

• 7+ years of direct experience in incident management, having served as an Incident Commander or lead responder for high‑severity, cross‑functional incidents within a complex operational environment.
• Proven technical expertise & cross‑functional leadership, apply technical understanding of complex engineering systems to drive incident response, root cause analysis, and remediation for live operational incidents, coupled with an exceptional ability to build and align diverse stakeholders (e.g., Engineering, Legal, Operations) during critical events.
• Demonstrated capability to remain calm and decisive under pressure, efficiently coordinating response efforts and making sound judgments in rapidly evolving, high‑stakes situations.
• Experience briefing senior executives and leadership, in real‑time, on complex, fast‑moving incidents, articulating technical details, impact, and proposed resolutions clearly and concisely across various communication channels.
• Exceptional attention to detail with a track record of meticulously documenting incident timelines, contributing factors, and post‑incident analysis to drive accurate reporting and continuous improvement. Willingness and ability to participate in a 24/7 on‑call rotation, demonstrating flexibility to cover shifts as part of a global "follow the sun" incident response capability.

We prefer:

• Advanced degree in a relevant field such as Emergency Management, Business, Operations, Law, or a related discipline, demonstrating a deeper theoretical understanding of incident dynamics and organizational response.
• Experience leading crisis and incident response as an Incident Commander in large‑scale or high‑impact environments.
• Proven ability to effectively interact with and/or report to external stakeholders, including law enforcement, regulatory agencies, and legal counsel, during sensitive or high‑profile incidents.
• Experience in highly regulated industries such as Automotive, Maritime, Aviation, or similar sectors, providing familiarity with safety‑critical systems, compliance frameworks, and complex operational procedures.
• Certifications/alignment on relevant incident management best practices and frameworks (e.g., NIMS/ICS, ITIL Incident Management, or similar), indicating a structured approach to incident handling and continuous improvement.
• Experience with event mapping initiatives to enhance incident action planning, ensure congruence with response team actions, and promote stakeholder coordination.

Travel requirements:

• 10%

Waymo employees are also eligible to participate in Waymo's discretionary annual bonus program, equity incentive plan, and generous Company benefits program, subject to eligibility requirements.

Salary Range

$159,000 — $196,000 USD