Technical Program Manager

Lightmatter is a photonic computer company that is redefining what computers and human beings are capable of by building the engines that will drive discoveries and progress sustainably. With modern human progress relying heavily on computers, the world has hit a dead end with traditional transistors, and the prospect of constantly building data centers is an environmental nightmare. Lightmatter builds chips for artificial intelligence computing. Our architecture leverages the unique properties of light to enable a fast and efficient compute platform. We created a solution in photonic computing: using photons instead of electrons to take advantage of their higher bandwidth.

If you have a passion for working cross-functionally, leading projects to success, and doing impactful work, work like helping build the world's first optical computers, you should join the team at Lightmatter!

We are hiring a Technical Program Manager to help coordinate the engineering effort behind rolling out the first-ever optical computer. Hardware, Software, Firmware, IP, and a host of validation and development efforts are just part of what you will orchestrate as the PM behind Lightmatter's product rollouts.

You will lead program management for Lightmatter’s AI platform, from design through production, collaborating with engineering teams across the company to plan and drive objectives for the team. In this role, you'll be gathering requirements, driving quality initiatives, managing technical risks, and planning for all phases of the product life cycle. You will work with company and engineering leadership to develop and manage milestones and schedules for the many moving parts that need to come together.

Responsibilities:

• Organize and expertly drive planning, scheduling, and day-to-day execution to support Lightmatter’s silicon, packaging, systems, and software development
• Collaborate with leads and engineering teams in effectively estimating and prioritizing tasks in order to maintain high quality on a realistic delivery schedule
• Develop and lead project plans (scope, schedule, and budget) to ensure alignment with key partners and business needs
• Manage project schedules and quality, identify possible issues and risks, and clearly communicate them to project stakeholders
• Facilitate recurring project meetings and operational checkpoint activities throughout the life cycle of projects
• Set clear and targeted communication to management of project information, including project plan, key dates, and project status
• Provide the required hands-on project management, cross-functional coordination, and internal and external team communications to deliver outstanding program outcomes
• Take responsibility for release schedules and milestones, keeping up a high velocity in a fast-paced environment

Opportunities to engage with vendors and customers in external program management activities

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in a technical field
• 5+ years of experience in semiconductor technologies or related technical fields in a program/project management role
• Experience in ASIC development
• Hands-on experience in hardware program/project management
• Attention to detail and strong ability to multitask
• Experience influencing decisions and leading teams in a matrix environment
• Enthusiastic, responsive, and passionate about finding opportunities for process improvement
• Excellent communications and technical presentation skills

Nice-to-Have Qualifications

• Familiarity with Software/Firmware Engineering
• Expert user of program management tools such as MS-Project, Asana, Smartsheet or similar
• Experience setting up project management initiatives from scratch in either a startup or a new business unit
• Experience in communicating technical concepts to non-technical audiences

Benefits

• Comprehensive Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision)
• 401k matching
• Life Insurance (Basic, Voluntary & AD&D)
• Generous Time Off (Vacation, Sick & Public Holidays)
• Paid Family Leave
• Short Term & Long Term Disability
• Training & Development
• Flexible, hybrid workplace model
• Stock Option Plan