Sr. Technical Program Manager

About Xanadu: 

Xanadu’s mission is to build quantum computers that are useful and available to people everywhere. At Xanadu, we are learners, innovators, researchers, collaborators and problem solvers. We are creating something that has never been built before. What we are doing is extremely hard, the classic moon shot. Few people in their life will be able to be a part of something like this, where if we are successful, the technologies we develop will solve some of the world’s most challenging problems, and literally change the world. And that is something to be excited about!

Your role and responsibilities:

As a Sr. Technical Program Manager, your primary mission is to ensure we successfully deliver new versions of our quantum hardware systems on schedule and within budget. You are the high-velocity driver of the project lifecycle, focused on identifying and clearing the path for our engineering teams. This role will specifically be tasked with handling our DARPA QBI program.
This position can be remote from the US but regular monthly/quarterly travel to Toronto will be required

• Schedule & Budget Ownership: Define and maintain the master program schedule, ensuring that all modular subsystem tranches meet critical milestones without cost overruns.
• Communication with DARPA: Be the primary contact with the DARPA team communicating our progress and other important information as the program progresses
• Bottleneck Removal: Proactively identify technical and operational "blockers" in the development pipeline and orchestrate rapid-response solutions to keep delivery on track.
• Cross-Functional Alignment: Coordinate efforts across all teams to ensure that dependencies are managed and integration happens seamlessly and on time.
• Resource Management: Optimize the allocation of personnel and specialized equipment to ensure that the most critical path items receive the necessary support for timely completion.
• Process Efficiency: Drive process improvements to increase the reliability and repeatability of hardware deployment and validation workflows.
• Risk Mitigation: Perform continuous system risk analysis to anticipate potential delays and design recovery strategies before they impact the bottom line.

Basic qualifications and experience:

• BSc or MSc in Engineering, Physics, or a related technical field.
• 5+ years of experience in technical project or program management, specifically driving the delivery of complex hardware-software systems.
• Experience delivering programs for US government entities such as DARPA, ARPA, NIST etc
• Demonstrated expertise in project management tools and methodologies (Agile, Gantt, Critical Path Analysis) for hardware environments.
• Proven track record of managing multi-million dollar budgets and complex technical supply chains.
• Exceptional leadership skills with a focus on accountability, timeline adherence, and resolving team-level friction.

Preferred qualifications and experience:

• Experience in high-stakes industries such as aerospace, satellite engineering, or quantum computing where schedule slips have significant mission impact.
• PMP or equivalent project management certification.
• Experience with vendor management and defining tool acceptance criteria to ensure third-party delivery stays on schedule.
• Background in streamlining automated validation workflows to reduce time-to-delivery