Kodiak Robotics, Inc. was founded in 2018 and has become a leader in autonomous ground transportation committed to a safer and more efficient future for all. The company has developed an artificial intelligence (AI) powered technology stack purpose-built for commercial trucking and the public sector. The company delivers freight daily for its customers across the southern United States using its autonomous technology. In 2024, Kodiak became the first known company to publicly announce delivering a driverless semi-truck to a customer. Kodiak is also leveraging its commercial self-driving software to develop, test and deploy autonomous capabilities for the U.S. Department of Defense.
Kodiak is growing its defense portfolio and needs a TPM who can hold multiple programs together simultaneously. You won’t own just one program type—you’ll drive delivery across a diverse set of contracts that range from tactical vehicle autonomy integration (e.g., ROGUE-Fires/NMESIS with the Marine Corps) to autonomous fleet deployment programs for other DoD customers. Each program has different customers, different hardware, and different operational demands.
This is a cross-functional leadership role for someone who thinks in systems and thrives on coordination complexity. You’ll work across hardware, software, safety, and ops sub-teams—aligning schedules, managing dependencies, and driving each program to delivery while maintaining the rigor defense customers expect.
What you’ll do:- Own end-to-end execution across multiple concurrent defense programs—from requirements and hardware design through integration, field testing, and customer delivery or demonstration.
- Serve as the integrating force across sub-program TPMs and engineering teams (hardware, controls, safety, autonomy, ops), ensuring cross-workstream dependencies are visible and resolved.
- Build and maintain integrated program schedules that span procurement, fabrication, integration, field testing, and milestone events across programs with different timelines and customers.
- Lead demo and delivery readiness: define criteria, track open items across all workstreams, and drive closure so the team shows up prepared.
- Drive hardware design reviews and iteration cycles; translate customer requirements into scope, BOMs, build plans, and verification matrices.
- Lead operational planning for field deployments—site standup, vehicle commissioning, logistics, and sustainment support.
- Communicate program status, risks, and decisions to internal leadership and external government customers; travel to field sites as needed for demos and customer events.
- 5+ years in technical program management for hardware-intensive, multi-disciplinary programs in robotics, autonomous vehicles, defense, aerospace, or other safety-critical domains.
- Proven ability to coordinate across concurrent workstreams or multiple programs simultaneously—holding the integrated schedule and surfacing cross-team dependencies.
- Operational planning experience: you’ve stood up assets or teams in new environments and managed field logistics.
- Strong communicator able to translate between engineering teams and government customers.
- Bachelor’s in Industrial Engineering, Systems Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science or a related field.
- US Person (required for ITAR and government program access).
Nice to have:
- Direct experience with DoD programs, government customers, DIU, prime contractors, or defense OEMs.
- Background in fleet management, autonomous vehicle operations, or on-installation logistics.
- Familiarity with MIL-SPEC standards, defense qualification frameworks, or government acquisition (OTA, IDIQ).
- Exposure to tactical vehicle platforms, ruggedized electronics, or ITAR-controlled hardware development.
- Background in functional safety (ISO 26262, MIL-STD-882) or controls systems.
What we offer:
- Competitive compensation package including equity and annual bonuses
- Excellent Medical, Dental, and Vision plans through Kaiser Permanente, Cigna, and MetLife (including a medical plan with infertility benefits)
- MetLife Legal Services, Identity & Fraud Protection, Hospital Indemnity Insurance, Accident Insurance, & Critical Illness Insurance
- Flexible PTO, 10 paid holidays, and generous parental leave policies
- Our office is centrally located in Mountain View, CA
- Office perks: dog-friendly, free catered lunch, a fully stocked kitchen, and free EV charging
- Long Term Disability, Short Term Disability, Life Insurance
- Wellbeing Benefits - Headspace through Cigna, Calm through Kaiser, One Medical, Gympass, Spring Health through Cigna, Rula (mental health navigation)
- Fidelity 401(k)
- Commuter, FSA, Dependent Care FSA, HSA
- Various incentive programs (referral bonuses, patent bonuses, etc.)
The pay range listed below reflects the base salary in our SF/Silicon Valley location, across several internal levels. Actual starting pay will be based on job-related factors including: work location, experience, relevant training, education, skill level and performance during interview. Total compensation at Kodiak includes base pay, equity, bonus and a competitive benefits package
Skills Required
- 3+ years of experience in technical or program management
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical discipline
- Experience managing programs with external customers or government-style delivery expectations
- Strong understanding of software and systems development lifecycles
- Excellent communication skills to align teams
- Interest in defense or government-adjacent applications of autonomous systems
- Experience working with government customers, primes, or defense contractors
Kodiak Robotics Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Kodiak Robotics and has not been reviewed or approved by Kodiak Robotics.
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Fair & Transparent Compensation — Pay is considered market-competitive for core engineering roles, with role postings indicating strong senior bands and offers aligned to autonomy peers. Salary ranges visible on listings reinforce competitiveness for experienced technical hires.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Equity grants are commonly included with standard multi‑year vesting, and listings frequently note salary plus bonus and equity as part of offers. This makes ownership a regular component of total rewards for technical hires.
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Healthcare Strength — Health coverage includes medical, dental, and vision alongside life and short‑/long‑term disability, with FSA/HSA options available. Wellness partners such as mental‑health and primary‑care services are highlighted alongside core plans.
Kodiak Robotics Insights
What We Do
Kodiak Robotics is an autonomous technology company redefining the long-haul trucking industry. We believe self-driving trucks will be the first economically viable application of autonomous vehicle technology. We founded Kodiak in the spring of 2018 to make that belief a reality. Safety is our top priority. We are taking a safe and responsible approach to developing and testing our technology. We are proud to work with some of the best in the business. We’ve built a world class team of technologists from leading autonomous driving programs who know the industry inside and out. Our combined experience and commitment to the vision will allow us to put self-driving technology on the road in the safest and most effective way.
