FieldAI · 18 hours ago
Director of Program Management
Irvine, CA
Full-time
Hybrid
Director/Executive
$70K/yr - $300K/yr
15+ years expField AI is seeking a highly experienced Director of Program Management to lead the end-to-end delivery of complex programs within their AI, robotics, and autonomy R&D organization. This role involves building and leading the Project Management Office, ensuring alignment with company strategy, and driving predictable delivery in a fast-moving environment.
Enterprise SoftwareRobotic Process Automation (RPA)Robotics
Responsibilities
Build and lead a centralized PMO overseeing portfolio management and program execution across Field AI’s R&D and product roadmap
Drive portfolio prioritization and execution planning in close partnership with R&D, Product, Engineering, and Business leadership
Lead cross-functional programs spanning research, applied AI, robotics, systems engineering, software, hardware, and deployment
Ensure programs are delivered on time, within scope, and within agreed resource constraints, while managing uncertainty inherent in advanced R&D
Establish and continuously improve project management frameworks, governance models, and execution rhythms suited for deep-tech and AI development
Introduce standardized tools, metrics, and reporting to provide leadership with clear visibility into progress, risks, dependencies, and trade-offs
Act as a strategic partner to Technical Leads and Engineering Managers to identify, surface, and mitigate technical, operational, and execution risks
Enable strong cross-site and cross-discipline collaboration, aligning teams working across research, productization, and customer delivery
Own resource planning and capacity management across the portfolio, balancing near-term delivery with long-term innovation
Communicate program status, escalations, and mitigation strategies clearly and credibly to executive stakeholders
Hire, mentor, and inspire a high-performing team of program and project managers, fostering a culture of accountability, rigor, and learning
Champion a customer- and mission-driven mindset, ensuring Field AI solutions are delivered with real-world impact in mind
Qualification
Required
Bachelor's degree in engineering, computer science, robotics, AI, or a related technical field
15+ years of progressive experience in program / portfolio management within technology-driven, R&D-heavy organizations
Demonstrated success leading large, complex, cross-functional programs involving software, hardware, and advanced R&D
Strong understanding of product development lifecycles in AI, robotics, autonomy, or similar deep-tech domains
Proven ability to influence senior technical and business leaders without direct authority
Experience building or scaling PMO capabilities in fast-growing or ambiguous environments
Experience managing globally distributed teams
Preferred
Advanced degree (MBA, MS, or PhD) preferred
PMP, Agile, or equivalent program management certification preferred (pragmatism over bureaucracy expected)
Experience operating in a top tier tech company
Familiarity with Agile, hybrid Agile-waterfall, or research-to-product transition models
Company
FieldAI
FieldAI is pioneering the development of a field-proven, hardware agnostic brain technology that enables many different types of robots to operate autonomously in hazardous, offroad, and potentially harsh industrial settings – all without GPS, maps, or any pre-programmed routes.
11-50 employees
H1B Sponsorship
FieldAI has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (9)
Funding
Current Stage
Early StageTotal Funding
$405M2025-08-20Series Unknown· $91M
2025-08-20Series A· $314M
Leadership Team
Ali Agha
Founder and CEO
Recent News
Crunchbase News
2025-12-19
2025-10-16
Company data provided by crunchbase