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.
This role will report to a Manager of Hardware Reliability Engineering.
You will:
- Lead the reliability program for a Waymo hardware product area (e.g. LiDAR) across its full lifecycle from early development and prototyping, through EVT - DVT - PVT - production ramp and field deployment
- Define and improve reliability processes, including risk analyses (DFMEA, FTA), design verification, test and failure analysis, and cross-functional optimizations
- Work closely with US-based and international CMs, ODMs and Tier-1s to develop reliability test and validation programs that meet Waymo’s standards of reliability
- Develop, communicate, and maintain long-term reliability roadmaps and strategies for your product area. Work collaboratively with TPMs to build reliability schedules and take responsibility for all deliverables while updating senior engineering leadership
- Provide technical evaluations and strategic recommendations on designs, processes, materials and vendor selection to teams within the Waymo Engineering, and navigate complex vendor relationships
- Manage program-level risks related to complex, multi-dimensional reliability issues and play a key role in mitigate those risks
You have:
- Master’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Material Science, or Physics
- 10 years of experience in end to end management of reliability programs for complex electromechanical systems
- Experience in delivering on the reliability of 1-2 generations of products, from concept & prototyping, to production ramp and field deployment.
- Experience in managing the DFMEA or other risk analysis process across a product line.
- Extensive experience developing comprehensive reliability test plans, resolving complex failure analyses, and leading root-cause resolution across functions.
- Strong technical background in the mechanics of materials and physics of failure for electronics and sensors.
We prefer:
- PhD Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Material Science, or Physics
- 15 years of experience, as a manager, directing the reliability program at CMs, ODMs or international vendors and suppliers for electronic components and sub-systems
- Experience in OEM automotive, Tier-1 suppliers, autonomous vehicle or sensor domain reliability
- Experience in managing a reliability test lab with thermal, vibration and environmental test equipment
- Product development and launch experience across multiple independent, high-volume hardware product categories.
- Strong mentorship skills with a track record of driving technical leadership within a team
The expected base salary range for this full-time position across US locations is listed below. Actual starting pay will be based on job-related factors, including exact work location, experience, relevant training and education, and skill level. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the role location or, if the role can be performed remote, the specific salary range for your preferred location, during the hiring process.
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.
Skills Required
- Master's Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Material Science, or Physics
- 10 years of experience in end to end management of reliability programs for complex electromechanical systems
- Experience delivering reliability of 1-2 generations of products from concept and prototyping to production ramp and field deployment
- Experience managing DFMEA or other risk analysis process across a product line
- Extensive experience developing comprehensive reliability test plans, resolving complex failure analyses, and leading root-cause resolution across functions
- Strong technical background in mechanics of materials and physics of failure for electronics and sensors
- PhD Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Material Science, or Physics
- 15 years of experience directing reliability programs at CMs, ODMs or international vendors and suppliers for electronic components and sub-systems
- Experience in OEM automotive, Tier-1 suppliers, autonomous vehicle or sensor domain reliability
- Experience managing a reliability test lab with thermal, vibration and environmental test equipment
- Product development and launch experience across multiple independent, high-volume hardware product categories
- Strong mentorship skills with a track record of driving technical leadership within a team
Waymo Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Waymo and has not been reviewed or approved by Waymo.
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Fair & Transparent Compensation — Pay is considered strong for full‑time technical roles, aligning with top‑tier AV/Big Tech benchmarks. Employer materials also emphasize competitive pay with eligibility for bonuses and equity as part of total rewards.
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Healthcare Strength — Coverage spans medical, dental, vision, mental‑health resources, onsite wellness centers, and counseling, with specialized programs such as menopause and transgender medical advocacy. Dependents are included, indicating depth across core health needs.
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Parental & Family Support — Offerings include fertility and family‑forming assistance, parental and baby‑bonding leave, caregiver and elder‑care support, and backup childcare. These programs are positioned to support families through multiple life stages.
Waymo Insights
What We Do
Waymo is an autonomous driving technology company with a mission to make it safe and easy for people and things to move around. With the Waymo Driver, we can improve the world’s mobility while saving thousands of lives. Waymo reaches out to candidates from official channels only (e.g. directly from @waymo.com email addresses, or through our recruiters or sourcers who are noted as such on LinkedIn). We do not contact candidates about career opportunities through instant messaging apps like Telegram, email addresses from domains other than waymo.com (such as Gmail addresses), direct messages on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, or text messages. Visit waymo.com to check out our official job listings.
