Program Manager Jobs in Long Beach, CA

Overview

At Ford, you’ll work on ideas that matter, alongside passionate people who want to make a global impact. Together, we’re shaping the next era of transportation—grounded in purpose, driven by progress. Make your move.

• Job Type: Full time
• Work Type: Hybrid

The ideal candidate is highly execution-oriented, technically fluent, and experienced in coordinating software delivery across hardware-constrained timelines.

Key Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end execution of software deliverables (firmware, end-of-line) aligned to hardware build milestones (SMT, FATP, vehicle builds)
• Act as the single point of ownership for software program execution, ensuring alignment across Software Engineering, Product Management, Program Management, and Quality Engineering.
• Drive software roadmap alignment, engineering readiness, milestone planning, and release execution.
• Drive clarity of scope, requirements, dependencies, risks, and delivery timelines, holding teams accountable to commitments.
• Own trade-off decisions across scope, schedule, and quality, with a strong bias toward long-term software sustainability and product quality.
• Establish and enforce strong planning, execution, and tracking frameworks, including Jira workflows and operational metrics.
• Translate complex technical topics into clear executive-level updates, enabling informed decision-making.
• Proactively identify risks, drive mitigation strategies, and resolve execution blockers to maintain schedule, quality, and software readiness.
• Champion operational excellence by continuously improving software development processes, communication, and cross-team execution models.

Technical Leadership & Problem Solving

• Maintain a system-level understanding of software architecture for hardware devices running embedded Linux/Android and cloud-connected services
• Engage deeply with architects and senior engineers to validate feasibility, sequencing, and technical risk.
• Drive resolution of cross-layer issues spanning hardware, system software, applications, and cloud services.
• Ensure engineering quality, integration readiness, and software stability throughout the development lifecycle.

Required Qualifications

• 7–10 years of experience in software or technical program management
• Experience delivering software aligned to hardware development and manufacturing builds.
• Background in electrical, systems, or software engineering with strong understanding of embedded systems and software development lifecycles
• Hands-on experience working with consumer electronics or automotive hardware development timelines.
• Proven ability to manage execution across cross-functional and cross-company teams