Senior Engineering Program Manager II - New Ventures

Role details

Join Axon and be a Force for Good. At Axon, we’re on a mission to Protect Life. We’re explorers, pursuing society’s most critical safety and justice issues with our ecosystem of devices and cloud software. Like our products, we work better together. We connect with candor and care, seeking out diverse perspectives from our customers, communities and each other. Life at Axon is fast-paced, challenging and meaningful. Here, you’ll take ownership and drive real change. Constantly grow as you work hard for a mission that matters at a company where you matter. Your Impact Axon's Robotics & New Ventures division is building the next generation of autonomous public safety technology -- TASER-enabled drones, ground control stations, ground robots, and the command-and-control ecosystem that connects them. These are complex, multi-disciplinary hardware-software-firmware systems designed, manufactured, certified, and launched for law enforcement agencies across three continents. You will own the integrated execution of the hardware portfolio for our flagship robotics platform -- spanning drone hardware, ground control station hardware, radio integration, international contract manufacturing, regulatory certification, and product launch. The work crosses multiple engineering disciplines, multiple build phases, multiple countries, and multiple vendor relationships simultaneously. Your job is to hold all of it together, see around corners, and drive outcomes that no single team could deliver alone. You will report directly to the Director of PMO and operate as the single-threaded hardware execution leader -- owning the integrated master schedule, the risk register, vendor and manufacturing relationships across 3 countries, phase gate governance, and executive communication. You are stepping into a live, complex program mid-flight. There is no ramp-up runway. You must be someone who has walked into ambiguity before, built situational awareness fast, and started driving outcomes within weeks. What You'll Do Location: Onsite in Scottsdale, AZ (travel 20-30% -- Taiwan, Belgium, Poland, vendor sites) Reports to: Director, PMO - Robotics & New Ventures Direct Reports: None initially; potential to build hardware program operations team INTEGRATED SCHEDULE & EXECUTION Own the Integrated Master Schedule (IMS) across drone, GCS, radio, and supporting subsystems -- from SP2 design through EVT, PVT, and mass production -- ensuring all workstreams are synchronized, dependency-mapped, and resource-loaded Manage the cross-functional integration points where design, manufacturing, firmware, test, and certification converge -- these are where execution breaks down, and your job is to see it before it happens Drive formal change control: evaluate scope, schedule, and cost impacts of proposed changes before they are accepted; maintain a change log with full traceability Ensure configuration management discipline across hardware revisions, BOM versions, ECOs, and firmware builds so that every unit in every location is on a known, controlled configuration GOVERNANCE & PHASE GATES Own phase gate execution (Concept, SP, EVT, DVT/PVT, Mass Production) with formally defined entry/exit criteria, evidence packages, and readiness reviews Prepare and present gate readiness assessments to leadership -- evidence-based arguments for why the program is or is not ready to proceed, not status slides Establish and enforce governance cadence: weekly execution reviews, bi-weekly risk reviews, monthly executive briefings, and ad-hoc decision forums when issues demand rapid resolution Maintain the decision log -- every material decision, who made it, what alternatives were considered, what evidence supported it, and what constraints applied RISK MANAGEMENT Own the risk register end-to-end: identification, qualitative and quantitative assessment (likelihood, severity, detectability, schedule/cost impact), response planning, and active monitoring Conduct structured risk analysis using FMEA methodology for hardware and manufacturing processes Drive risk response strategies (avoid, mitigate, transfer, accept) with assigned owners, funded mitigations, and measurable triggers Quantify schedule confidence on key milestones -- probabilistic assessment, not single-point estimates Track risk velocity and trending: which risks are heating up, which are cooling down, and what the aggregate posture looks like week over week STAKEHOLDER & EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATION Serve as the primary hardware execution voice to VP-level and C-level leadership -- milestone readiness, risk posture, budget health, and critical path Translate complex technical situations into decision frameworks: options, tradeoffs, recommendation, and rationale Represent the hardware program in cross-program reviews, QBRs, MBRs, and customer trial readiness assessments Manage expectations proactively -- bad news delivered early with a mitigation plan is always better than surprises at the gate VENDOR & SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT Manage contract manufacturer relationships across multiple international sites (Taiwan, Belgium, Poland) -- accountability, delivery performance, quality, and cost Own PCB/PCBA supply chain execution: fab house qualification, dual-sourcing strategy, yield tracking, root cause analysis on quality escapes, and supplier corrective actions Drive factory readiness for each build phase: test fixtures, assembly stations, calibration equipment, operator training, SOPs, production line layout, and throughput validation Lead hardware build execution at contract manufacturers -- on-site during critical builds Manage vendor budgets, purchase order tracking, and statement-of-work execution within approved spend envelopes Drive procurement planning aligned to the IMS: long-lead item identification, vendor lead time management, and material availability gates CROSS-FUNCTIONAL TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP Lead design reviews (CDR, TRR, MRR) and drive engineering closure on open items with assi