Staff/Sr Staff Technical Program Manager, Hardware Systems

• Own program coordination across all HW Systems activities: maintain an integrated schedule across all concurrent projects and workstreams, surface priority conflicts, and drive resolution of resource contention with engineering leads.
• Drive cross-functional alignment between HW Systems and other teams: setting agendas, facilitating meetings, capturing decisions, communicating delays and risks, and relentlessly following up on action items
• Manage team-wide resource loading and capacity visibility, partnering with engineering leads to flag overallocation risks and drive trade-offs discussions across concurrent programs
• Build and maintain integrated program schedules that reflect hardware development realities - bring-up milestones, NPI phases, EVT/DVT/PVT gates, and cross-team dependencies
• Own program scope that lives outside formal project charters: tester boards, demos, lab fixtures, calibration equipment, and internal engineering tools that teams depend on but that would otherwise lack dedicated ownership
• Coordinate material flow within the HW Systems team: track component orders, PCB fab runs, PCBA and mechanical assemblies, and engineering samples; partner with supply chain to ensure critical materials land on schedule
• Track and coordinate cross-functional teams' HW deliverable dependencies including quantities and timelines, and ensure downstream teams are unblocked with accurate, up-to-date visibility into HW schedule and status
• Serve as the primary hardware program interface with external contract manufacturers, PCB and sheet metal fabricators, and assembly houses: managing schedules, tracking deliverables, facilitating technical alignment, and driving closure on open issues in partnership with Supply chain.
• Represent the HW Systems team in company-wide program reviews and cross-functional planning cadences; own the team's program interface to broader organizational stakeholders, communicating schedule changes, material needs, and engineering commitments proactively and clearly
• Track HW Systems budgets for engineering activities, prototype builds, and tooling; coordinate with finance and operations to ensure spend is planned, visible, and aligned with program milestones
• Adapt quickly to change: replan and realign when scope shifts, schedules move, or engineering realities force a pivot; maintain momentum and clarity even when the path forward is not fully defined
• Establish and maintain lightweight program management processes: status reporting cadences, risk registers, dependency tracking, and decision logs

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or a related technical field.
• 5+ years of program management experience in hardware engineering, with direct exposure to electrical and mechanical development cycles.
• Proven track record managing concurrent engineering programs with shared resources and overlapping timelines.
• Deep familiarity with hardware development processes and terminology across the full lifecycle—including PCBA and mechanical enclosures, PCB fabrication, system integration, bring-up, EVT/DVT/PVT, and production—enabling clear communication with engineers and vendors.
• Proven experience coordinating with contract manufacturers (CMs) and ODMs to manage schedules, track deliverables, and resolve open issues.
• Hands-on experience with material flow, component tracking, and BOM management.
• Skilled facilitator who drives productive meetings, captures critical context, and ensures action items are owned and closed.
• Strong written and verbal communicator, comfortable presenting program status and risk assessments to engineering leads and executives.
• Expert in project management tools such as Microsoft Project, Jira, Smartsheet, or equivalent platforms.
• Strong bias for action—consistently closes loops, follows up independently, and identifies potential slips before they impact project timelines.
• Thrives in fast-paced, ambiguous environments; proactively creates structure and drives clarity without waiting for complete information.

• Experience managing programs for complex hardware development
• Experience defining and improving program management processes in a startup or new business unit

This role is open to two different levels.

Staff: $171,000 - $200,000

Sr Staff: $203,000 - $243,000

We offer competitive compensation.

The base salary range for this role determined based on location, experience, educational background, and market data.

• Comprehensive Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision)

• Generous Time Off (Vacation, Sick & Public Holidays)

• Commuter Benefits
• Flexible, hybrid workplace model
• Equity grants (applicable to full-time employees)

eligibility may vary depending on your employment status and location.

Lightmatter recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, veteran status, and other protected status as required by applicable law.

Candidates should have capacity to comply with the federally mandated requirements of U.S. export control laws.