Operations Manager, Fusion Plant

About Helion

We are a fusion power company based in Everett, WA, with the mission to build the world's first fusion power plant, enabling a future with unlimited clean electricity. Our vision is a world with clean, reliable, and affordable energy for everyone.

Since Helion's founding in 2013, we have raised over $1 billion from long-time investors such as Sam Altman, Mithril, and Capricorn Investment Group as well as new investors SoftBank and Lightspeed to propel us forward. Our last prototype, Trenta, completed 10,000 high-power pulses and reached plasma temperatures of 100 million degrees Celsius (9 keV). We are now operating Polaris, our next prototype on the path to the world's first fusion power plant.

This is a pivotal time to join Helion. You will tackle real-world challenges with a team that prizes urgency, rigor, ownership, and a commitment to delivering hard truths - values essential to achieving what no one has before. Together, we will change the future of energy, because the world can't wait.

What You Will Be Doing:

The Operations Manager builds, leads, and scales Helion's technician organization while maturing fusion machine maintenance capabilities. This role establishes foundational maintenance processes and ensures safe, high-quality execution of repair, upgrade, and preventative maintenance work across R&D and test environments. You will play a key role in Helion's transition from prototype to commercial fusion machine operations.

This is a hands-on leadership position combining people management, technical execution, and program ownership. You will report to the R&D Manager, onsite in our Everett, WA office.

This role will be Monday-Friday.

You Will:

• Oversee and coordinate activities of the R&D technicians and supervisors, including scheduling, project assignment, and performance monitoring

• Provide mentorship and reinforce best practices to continuously raise team standards and technical capabilities

• Hire and develop supervisors and technicians, and own long-term staffing strategies aligned to program milestones

• Independently install, troubleshoot, test, inspect, repair, and service lab systems including high-voltage power supplies, charging systems, pulse power capacitors, vacuum systems, and plasma systems

• Coordinate the preventative maintenance on lab and test equipment to ensure operational readiness across multiple fusion protype machines

• Ensure compliance with all safety regulations and protocols, including radiation protection and environmental standards

• Maintain quality control procedures that exceed industry standards

• Keep accurate records related to operations, inventory, and equipment maintenance

• Drive schedule ownership and milestone delivery across the research and development technician team

• Interface with engineering and manufacturing teams to inform design improvements and optimize machine maintenance plans

Required Qualifications

• 7+ years managing technicians or supervisors in R&D, laboratory, or complex machine environments

• Proven ability to hire, mentor, and grow technical teams and frontline leaders

• Experience owning complex maintenance or technical execution schedules

• Strong cross-functional communication and stakeholder management skills

• Hands-on electromechanical troubleshooting experience; comfortable in industrial and confined environments

• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced, hardware-driven organization

#LI-Onsite #LI-TM1

Benefits

Our total compensation package includes benefits, including but not limited to:

• Medical, Dental, and Vision plans for employees and their families
• 31 Days of PTO (21 vacation days and 10 sick days)
• 10 Paid holidays, plus company-wide winter break
• Up to 5% employer 401(k) match
• Short term disability, long term disability, and life insurance
• Paid parental leave and support (up to 16 weeks)
• Annual wellness stipend

Helion is an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the interview process, please let us know.