Technical Program Manager Intern (Summer 2027)

Zipline; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 47,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

Zipline in South San Francisco or Dallas is seeking Summer 2027 interns for full‑time, in‑person roles supporting drone and ground infrastructure work. You will help design, build, and test hardware while owning milestones in a fast, cross‑functional environment.

Applicants should have at least the second year of a Mechanical or Mechatronics Engineering degree; Masters or PhD students are also eligible. US work eligibility is required and the role is based in‑person in SSF or Dallas.

Qualifications

• Strong technical background in hardware design or embedded systems.
• Enrollment in Mechanical or Mechatronics Engineering program, at least second year.
• US work eligibility required for internship.

Responsibilities

• Support design, build, and test of drones and ground infrastructure.
• Drive milestones and cross‑functional coordination across teams.
• Organize and participate in meetings with cross‑functional groups.
• Assist with prototype activities and test campaigns.

Skills

Strong technical background

Mechanical or Mechatronics focus

Excellent communication

In-person collaboration

Education

Second year of undergraduate studies in Mechanical or Mechatronics Engineering

Masters or PhD candidates eligible

Job description

• Zipline’s Program Management team is responsible for ensuring that Zipline achieves our company goals on time and on budget. Our PMs are embedded across our 6 hardware teams and work directly with engineers of many disciplines to design, build, and test our drones and ground infrastructure. Program managers define their team’s priorities and drive execution of key milestones in a constantly changing environment
• Understand and mitigate technical and program risks to keep Zipline’s future programs on track. Drive decision making and trade off studies
• Define program timelines, milestones and critical path
• Manage and support cross-functional teams across electrical and mechanical engineering, design validation, and embedded software domains to build and execute a plan to develop new hardware
• Drive prototype and test activities to validate next generation hardware designs
• Report program updates to leadership
• Manage new infrastructure builds for our test campaigns and track hardware sample allocations
• Organize and facilitate meetings with cross-functional teams
• Work closely with cross-functional groups to track incoming parts and quality
• Manage upcoming hardware changes to meet company targets
• Our internships are full‑time positions, in‑person at our South San Francisco or Dallas office. We will host our Summer 2027 interns from May/June - August/September

Extreme ownership and a bias for actionEnthusiasm for collaborating in a fast paced and highly cross‑functional environmentMust be eligible to work in the USAbility to drive clarity amidst chaos and ambiguityDemonstrated skill in aligning priorities, coordinating timelines, and leading complex scope, resource, and schedule tradesStrong technical backgroundAbility to pick up technical concepts rapidlyExcellent communication skills and the ability to explain challenges and solutions to fellow engineers and non‑engineers alikeMust be able to work in person at Zipline’s South San Francisco office 5 days a weekMust have at least completed the second year of your undergraduate studies or equivalent in Mechanical or Mechatronics Engineering. Masters and PhD students are also eligible