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Autonomous Vehicles, Robotics, Automotive, Technology

Senior Manager/Director, Cartography

Foster City, CAHybridFull TimeDirectorPosted 5 days agoVisa sponsorship available

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Required skills

  • cartography
  • GIS
  • HD mapping
  • geospatial
  • multiple teams
  • distributed teams
  • contractors
  • external vendors
  • process definition
  • quality metrics

Nice to have

  • autonomous vehicles
  • robotaxi
  • robotics
  • QGIS
  • ArcGIS
  • map formats

Role summary

Zoox is seeking a Senior Manager/Director of Cartography to lead the creation, maintenance, and validation of high-definition maps essential for their autonomous robotaxi service. This role involves managing multiple teams, including in-house cartographers and external vendors, and collaborating with Autonomy, Mapping Software, Safety, and Operations. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in cartography, GIS, or HD mapping, with a proven track record in managing large-scale map production programs, defining processes, and establishing quality metrics. Strong leadership and communication skills are crucial for presenting to senior stakeholders and driving operational rigor.

Zoox is building a fully autonomous, purpose-built robotaxi, and high-definition maps are a foundational input to how our vehicles perceive, predict, and plan. As Senior Manager / Director, Cartography, you will lead the organization responsible for creating, maintaining, and validating the HD maps that enable Zoox to launch and scale service across new cities and operational design domains (ODDs). You will manage multiple teams, including in-house cartographers and contractor/vendor mapping teams, and partner closely with Autonomy, Mapping Software, Safety, and Operations to deliver accurate, fresh, and safety-validated maps on schedule.

In this role, you will:

  • Lead and grow multiple cartography teams, including managers, senior cartographers, and contractor/vendor mapping teams.
  • Own HD map creation and annotation for new ODDs, driving throughput, quality, and cost to meet launch timelines.
  • Own map maintenance and change detection processes to keep maps fresh as road networks, construction, and infrastructure change.
  • Define and enforce map QA and validation standards, quality gates, and map release processes in partnership with Safety and Autonomy.
  • Set a unified, prioritized roadmap balancing new-city expansion, map freshness, and quality improvements.
  • Manage vendor relationships, including onboarding, training, capacity planning, SLAs, and quality audits.
  • Partner with Mapping Software and ML teams to define tooling and automation requirements that improve cartographer productivity.
  • Establish metrics and reporting on map quality, coverage, throughput, and turnaround time, and present progress to senior leadership.

    • Qualifications

  • 8+ years of experience in cartography, GIS, HD mapping, or a related geospatial field, including 3+ years managing managers and/or multiple teams.
  • Deep understanding of HD map content (lane geometry, topology, traffic controls, semantics) and annotation workflows.
  • Experience running large-scale map production, maintenance, and QA programs.
  • Proven experience managing distributed teams, including contractors or external vendors.
  • Track record of defining process, quality metrics, and operational rigor at scale.
  • Strong cross-functional leadership and communication skills, including presenting to senior stakeholders.

    • Bonus Qualifications

  • HD mapping experience in autonomous vehicles or robotics.
  • Hands-on experience with GIS/geospatial tooling (e.g., QGIS, ArcGIS) and map formats.
  • Experience with ML-assisted map generation, automated change detection, or annotation automation.
  • Background working in a safety-critical environment.
    • Ready to apply?
    You'll be redirected to Zoox's application page.

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