Technical Program Manager, Autonomous Operations Product Lead

A problem isn’t truly solved until it’s solved for all. That’s why Googlers build products that help create opportunities for everyone, whether down the street or across the globe. As a Program Manager at Google, you’ll lead complex, multi-disciplinary projects from start to finish — working with stakeholders to plan requirements, manage project schedules, identify risks, and communicate clearly with cross-functional partners across the company. Your projects will often span offices, time zones, and hemispheres. It's your job to coordinate the players and keep them up to date on progress and deadlines.

As the Security Product Lead for Autonomous Systems, you will define and execute the global vision, technical design, and strategic roadmap for deploying autonomous drones (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)) and ground-based robots (Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs)) designed to protect Google’s global fleet of hyperscale data centers. This is a pioneering role operating at the intersection of advanced physical security, robotics hardware, artificial intelligence, and global aviation/operational compliance.

In this role, you will act as the architect of Google's autonomous physical security strategy. You will leverage your technical depth to evaluate emerging technologies and vendor maturity, partner with legal and regulatory councils to navigate international airspace and privacy frameworks, and build the physical infrastructure, technical architectures, and control systems needed for our security operations teams to operate these platforms safely and effectively at scale.

The Data Center team designs and operates some of the most sophisticated electrical and HVAC systems in the world. We are an upbeat, creative, team-oriented group of engineers committed to building and operating powerful data centers.

Individual pay is determined by factors including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

US: $159000 - $230000 (USD) + 15% bonus target + equity + benefits

Learn more about benefits at Google.

Responsibilities

• Design, scale, and maintain the multi-year technology roadmap for autonomous drones and ground robots across global data center sites.
• Navigate international airspace and drone regulations to ensure our technology has the appropriate waivers and authorizations from regional authorities globally.
• Partner with infrastructure teams to integrate autonomous platforms with existing access control, video surveillance, and perimeter intrusion detection systems.
• Author operational guidelines and playbooks for human intervention, while standardizing readiness training to upgrade global security teams.
• Monitor the landscape of hardware and software manufacturers to develop a standardized assessment framework for vendors on capability, security, and operational reliability.

Minimum qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in a technical or engineering field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 5 years of experience managing technical programs, physical security operations, or technology deployment efforts.
• Experience in deploying and managing drone fleets, Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), or critical infrastructure security.
• Experience with autonomous system sensors and architectures (e.g., LiDAR, SLAM, GNSS/GPS).
• Experience navigating aviation compliance, legal frameworks, and airspace operations (e.g., FAA approvals, Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS)).

Preferred qualifications:

• Master’s degree in a technical or engineering field (e.g., Robotics or Aerospace).
• 5 years of experience managing cross-functional or cross-team projects.
  
• Experience deploying enterprise physical security infrastructure.

Note: By applying to this position you will have an opportunity to share your preferred working location from the following: Sunnyvale, CA, USA; Atlanta, GA, USA; Austin, TX, USA; Reston, VA, USA; Seattle, WA, USA.

In accordance with Washington state law, we are highlighting our comprehensive benefits package, which is available to all eligible US based employees. Benefits for this role include:

• Health, dental, vision, life, disability insurance
• Retirement Benefits: 401(k) with company match
• Paid Time Off: 20 days of vacation per year, accruing at a rate of 6.15 hours per pay period for the first five years of employment
• Sick Time: 40 hours/year (increased to 69 hours/year for Seattle) including 5 discretionary sick days per instance
• Maternity Leave (Short-Term Disability + Baby Bonding): 28-30 weeks
• Baby Bonding Leave: 18 weeks
• Holidays: 13 paid days per year