Staff Hardware Technical Program Manager

About Us

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies is a joint venture between two industry leaders with a clear vision for automotive's next chapter. From operating systems to zonal controllers to cloud and connectivity solutions, we're addressing the challenges of electric vehicles through technology that will set the standards for software-defined vehicles around the world.

The road to the future is uncharted. By combining our expertise across connectivity, AI, security and more, we'll map a new way forward. Working together, we'll create a future that's more connected, more intelligent, more sustainable for everyone.

Role Summary

As Hardware Technical Program Manager (TPM) , you will serve as the central technical liaison driving joint vehicle programs between our engineering teams and Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche. Based out of our Berlin hub, you will bridge the gap between our US-based core engineering teams and our European brand partners, aligning complex hardware requirements, program roadmaps, and architectural decisions.

Rather than managing tier-level supply chains, your focus is entirely collaborative and strategic: orchestrating alignment across brand engineering groups, manufacturing plants, and internal hardware teams to turn ambitious vehicle programs into production reality.

This role is based in our Berlin office and requires a minimum of three days per week onsite, with occasional travel to other company and partner sites as needed.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the hardware integration partner for VW, Audi, and Porsche in parallel, keeping alignment across the three brands on requirements, schedules, and decisions.
• Own hardware integration schedules , milestones, and readiness gates across assigned vehicle programs, from prototype builds (EVT, DVT) through production validation.
• Drive engineering change management , including Program Change Requests (PCRs), impact assessments, and approval through partner boards.
• Coordinate with internal hardware development and validation teams, and bridge the time difference between the US home base and European partners.
• Track and close hardware issues and open action items, with clear owners and due dates.
• Lead cost-reduction initiatives on hardware platforms, including proposal reviews and status reporting.
• Represent hardware integration in program reviews, quality boards, and steering meetings, preparing decisions and clear status updates for leadership.
• Maintain the Brand Technical Responsible (BTV) interface, collecting partner feedback and turning it into prioritized actions.
• Help build and grow the European partnering team over time, including hiring and onboarding as the program scales.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, mechatronics, computer engineering, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
• Strong background in hardware development and/or hardware validation, with enough technical depth to challenge engineering decisions and follow test results.
• Generalist profile: comfortable moving between hardware design, validation, program management, and partner alignment.
• Experience in automotive or another safety-critical industry, ideally across development phases (EVT, DVT, PVT).
• Fluent German and very good English, both written and spoken, for daily work with brand partners and with colleagues in the US.
• High stress resistance: able to keep priorities clear and communicate calmly during tight deadlines, escalations, and launch pressure.
• Agile working style: experience running work in sprints or iterative cycles, adapting plans quickly, and working in cross-functional teams.
• Comfortable working across time zones, with regular overlap with US colleagues.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with OEM partner programs, ideally with multiple brands in parallel.
• Experience with automotive change management processes and PCR or ECR workflows.
• Familiarity with zonal architectures, vehicle networking, or ECU platforms such as XMM, RFM, or VAS.
• Project management certification (PMP, PRINCE2, or similar) is a plus.

Total Rewards

We build the exceptional - and we believe the people doing that work should be rewarded accordingly. In addition to a competitive base salary, full-time positions may be is eligible to participate in our annual company performance bonus program.

Payments are discretionary and not guaranteed; actual amounts depend on company results and the terms of the plan in effect, and require active employment at the time of payout. This role is also eligible for equity in the form of Restricted Stock Units (RSUs), subject to board approval and the terms of our equity incentive plans, including applicable vesting requirements.

In addition to our compensation programs, we invest in our people with a comprehensive benefits package designed to support the health, wellbeing, and financial future for full-time emplo