Staff Technical Program Manager, Audio & Infotainment
Role summary
Rivian is seeking a Staff Technical Program Manager for its Infotainment Hardware team. This role involves end-to-end program management for infotainment hardware systems, including displays, audio, amplification, and connectivity. You will collaborate with hardware engineering, embedded software, UI/UX, and studio teams to drive alignment from concept through launch. Key responsibilities include owning the program plan, managing cross-functional teams, resolving technical issues, mitigating risks, and ensuring timely delivery of world-class infotainment experiences across vehicle programs. The ideal candidate has 8+ years of experience in technical program management or systems engineering within complex product environments.
Rivian is seeking a Technical Program Manager, Infotainment to join the Electrical Hardware TPM organization. In this role, you will own end-to-end program management for Rivian's infotainment hardware systems — spanning display, audio, amplification, connectivity, and the software interfaces that bring them to life. You will sit at the intersection of hardware engineering, embedded software, UI/UX design, and studio/experience teams, driving alignment from concept through launch.
This is a high-ownership, high-visibility role. You will be the connective tissue between EEHW, Autonomy SW, UI/UX, Studio, Purchasing, and Validation teams — managing program risk, resolving cross-functional blockers, and ensuring infotainment hardware delivers a world-class experience on schedule.
- Own the infotainment hardware program plan — scope, schedule, milestones, dependencies, and risk across all vehicle programs (R2, future platforms).
- Lead cross-functional PDT (Product Development Team) meetings spanning EEHW, SW, UI/UX, Studio, Purchasing, and Validation; drive agenda, decisions, and action tracking.
- Manage resolution of Rivian concerns (RCs), design verification issues, and supplier escalations related to infotainment HW (amplifiers, displays, speakers, connectivity modules, audio processing ECUs).
- Partner with Autonomy SW and embedded software teams to align HW/SW interface requirements, ECU feature timelines, and validation readiness.
- Collaborate with Studio and UI/UX teams on design reviews, sound identity approvals, and human-machine interface (HMI) hardware validation.
- Drive audio system development milestones — tuning readiness, subjective evaluation gates, AVAS/chime sign-offs, and supplier DVP alignment.
- Maintain program health dashboards and proactively surface risks to EEHW TPM leadership and program leadership stakeholders.
- Support build event readiness (MVB, DVB, SB) by coordinating hardware availability, software feature completeness, and validation coverage for infotainment systems.
- Track open items across supplier technical syncs and engineering reviews; own closure to committed timelines.
- Contribute to TPM operating model improvements — meeting cadences, reporting structures, and team onboarding.
- Required
- 8+ years of experience in technical program management, systems engineering, or hardware development in a complex, fast-paced product environment (automotive, consumer electronics, or adjacent).
- Proven track record of managing cross-functional hardware programs from development through production.
- Strong command of program management fundamentals: risk management, milestone tracking, dependency mapping, and escalation frameworks.
- Experience managing supplier relationships and third-party technical engagements (design reviews, DVP sign-offs, issue resolution).
- Excellent communication skills — written, verbal, and visual — with the ability to tailor messaging for both technical and executive audiences.
- Comfortable operating in ambiguity; able to drive structure and clarity without full context defined.
- Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Systems Engineering, or related technical field.
- Preferred
- Familiarity with the audio tuning process — including subjective evaluation workflows, acoustic DSP tuning cycles, amplifier characterization, and coordination between hardware and tuning engineers.
- Experience working with Studio and/or UI/UX teams on integrated product reviews, design sign-offs, and HMI/sound identity alignment — understanding how aesthetic and experience requirements translate into hardware constraints.
- Embedded software background with hands-on SW development experience or deep program management experience in embedded SW environments — familiarity with ECU software architecture, SW feature integration processes, OTA considerations, and HW/SW interface management.
- Automotive infotainment domain knowledge — amplifiers, display systems, AVAS/chime systems, or audio processing hardware.
- Experience managing programs in a Tier 1 supplier or OEM environment with JV or multi-party development structures.
- Familiarity with JIRA, Confluence, and program tracking in Agile/hybrid development environments.
- Master's degree in a relevant technical discipline.