Validation Manager (Platforms)

About the role

You will lead the validation and operational readiness of Waymo Driver platform variants as they move from engineering builds to scaled fleet deployment. In this hybrid role, you will own the end-to-end validation workflow that ensures new platform hardware and software configurations meet safety, performance, and uptime targets before public road exposure. You will serve as the primary liaison between engineering, operations, and vendor teams to resolve cross-functional blockers and align on test execution priorities. You will define and manage the critical path activities for vehicle upfit, sensor calibration, and software validation while maintaining rigorous traceability from requirements to test results. You will build and refine forecasting and scheduling models that balance operator availability, vehicle availability, and testing demand across multiple validation sites. You will standardize key performance indicators and reporting artifacts to provide leadership with actionable insights into fleet readiness and risk exposure. You will partner with Regional Validation Managers to drive continuous improvement in operational efficiency, experiment design, and validation throughput.

Key facts

What you'll do

Lead New Product Introduction (NPI) Validation Operations by driving end-to-end program management for bringing new platform variants online in validation fleets, coordinating vehicle arrival, upfit, and public road mapping.

Align planning with execution by spearheading weekly operating plans that bridge monthly product demand forecasts with daily operational execution while adjusting for real-time vehicle online rates and operator constraints.

Maximize fleet efficiency and yield by partnering with Regional Validation Managers and product teams to build dynamic forecasting tools that optimize operations, capacity, and resource utilization.

Manage vendor performance by overseeing outsourced operations, monitoring service levels, and ensuring that cost-plus or outcome-based staffing models meet defined quality and uptime targets.

Standardize executive reporting by formulating and automating executive-level progress dashboards that provide visibility into operational readiness, fleet uptime constraints, and validation milestones.

Coordinate cross-functional validation activities with engineering, product, safety, and legal teams to resolve dependencies, manage test plans, and ensure compliance with internal and external requirements.

Implement data-driven metrics and tracking tools to identify process bottlenecks, manage capacity models, and support decisions that improve validation throughput and fleet availability.

Support risk management by anticipating operational challenges, defining mitigation plans, and maintaining clear escalation paths for issues that impact validation schedules or safety outcomes.

Champion experiment design and test execution for new hardware and software configurations, ensuring that validation activities reflect the latest product requirements and safety standards.

Foster a culture of collaboration and continuous improvement by sharing insights from operations data, vendor feedback, and on-road performance to refine validation processes over time.

Requirements

You must have 7-10+ years of experience in Program Management or Technical Program Management, specifically in roles focused on process excellence, logistics, or physical operations.

You must demonstrate cross-functional leadership by successfully managing complex dependencies and driving alignment across diverse stakeholders including Engineering, Product, Supply Chain, Safety, and Legal.

You must possess data-centric problem-solving skills with hands-on experience using data-driven metrics to identify process bottlenecks, manage capacity models, and build tracking tools.

You must be comfortable working in a fast-paced, rapidly shifting engineering environment and maintain forward progress despite incomplete information and evolving priorities.

You must have strong written and verbal communication skills to clearly articulate status, risks, and recommendations to both technical and executive audiences.

You must be able to manage multiple concurrent initiatives, prioritize effectively, and deliver results in an ambiguity-rich, deadline-driven context.

You must be willing to travel for business as required by operational needs, within the specified travel expectations for this role.

You must be legally authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship for this position, and you must comply with all employment eligibility requirements.

Nice to have

You will bring additional value if you have direct NPI and vehicle testing experience launching or validating new automotive or robotic hardware platforms.

You will also bring added benefit if you have prior vendor operations management experience with cost-plus or outcome-based staffing models in outsourced operations environments.

Practical notes

Travel for this role is estimated at 15-30%.

You must be eligible to work in the United States without sponsorship.

This role is full-time and based in the United States locations specified in the key facts section.