Principal Technical Program Manager

Hayden AISan Francisco, California

Apply with Sonara

Automate your job search with Sonara.

Submit 10x as many applications with less effort than one manual application.¹

Reclaim your time by letting our AI handle the grunt work of job searching.

We continuously scan millions of openings to find your top matches.

Overview

Schedule

Full-time

Education

Engineering (PE)

Career level

Director

Remote

On-site

Benefits

Career Development

Job Description

About Us

At Hayden AI, we are on a mission to harness the power of computer vision to transform the way transit systems and other government agencies address real-world challenges.

From bus lane and bus stop enforcement to transportation optimization technologies and beyond, our innovative mobile perception system empowers our clients to accelerate transit, enhance street safety, and drive toward a sustainable future.

What the job involvesThe Principal Technical Program Manager will own cross-functional visibility and delivery accountability across Hayden’s full engineering and business portfolio. Working directly with executive leadership and business partners across Engineering, Growth, Finance, and Operations, this role translates competing business commitments into a coherent, executable plan, holding the line when capacity and demand diverge. They operate across the full technical stack: hardware, embedded software, edge AI, cloud, computer vision, fleet systems, and government deployment - fluent enough in each domain to surface the right risks and drive the right conversations.

Responsibilities: * * * * * * * * * *

Portfolio Governance: Own the company-level program portfolio — maintaining a single source of truth for commitments, capacity, dependencies, and status across all active lines of work.
Business-Engineering Translation: Serve as the primary interface between executive leadership and engineering teams, translating business commitments (contracts, growth targets, customer deployments) into engineering capacity plans and surfacing tradeoffs before they become misses.
Executive Reporting: Design and maintain the dashboards, cadences, and reporting frameworks that give the senior leadership clear, accurate visibility into portfolio health without noise.
Capacity Planning & Demand Management: Partner with engineering leads across Hardware, Perception, Platform/Cloud, and Eng Ops to maintain a real-time view of capacity versus committed demand, and drive prioritization decisions when they conflict.
Cross-Functional Program Delivery: Drive end-to-end delivery of strategic programs that span multiple engineering pillars and business functions, including customer-facing deployments, new product launches, and operational scaling initiatives.

Required Qualifications:

B.S., M.S., or Ph.D. in an engineering discipline
12+ years in Technical Program Management, Engineering Program Management, or a related role
Demonstrated track record managing a portfolio of concurrent, cross-functional programs in a fast-moving environment
Experience navigating business-engineering tension: translating contracts, revenue commitments, or customer obligations into engineering capacity and sequencing decisions
Technical fluency across multiple domains — enough to engage credibly with hardware, embedded, cloud, and AI engineering teams without domain specialists present
Strong executive communication skills: structured, direct, and able to distill complex program status into clear decisions

Preferred Qualifications

Experience with on-vehicle, edge-deployed, or ruggedized systems (hardware, embedded, edge AI)
Background in computer vision, autonomous systems, robotics, or AI/ML programs
Experience delivering technology to government or municipal clients (procurement cycles, compliance requirements, deployment constraints)
Familiarity with fleet management, secure transaction systems, or sensor hardware platforms
Experience in a high-growth startup or scale-up environment where process didn’t exist before you built it

Automate your job search with Sonara.

Submit 10x as many applications with less effort than one manual application.

Apply with Sonara Apply manually

FAQs About Principal Technical Program Manager Jobs at Hayden AI

What is the work location for this position at Hayden AI?

This job at Hayden AI is located in San Francisco, California, according to the details provided by the employer. Some roles may also include multiple work locations depending on the requirement.

What pay range can candidates expect for this role at Hayden AI?

Employer has not shared pay details for this role.

What employment applies to this position at Hayden AI?

Hayden AI lists this role as a Full-time position.

What experience level is required for this role at Hayden AI?

Hayden AI is looking for a candidate with "Director" experience level.

What education level is required for this job?

The education requirement for this position is Engineering (PE). Candidates with relevant qualifications or equivalent experience may also be considered.

What benefits are offered by Hayden AI for this role?

Hayden AI offers Career Development for this position. Actual benefits may vary depending on the employer's policies and employment terms.

What is the process to apply for this position at Hayden AI?

You can apply for this role at Hayden AI either through Sonara's automated application system, which helps you submit applications 10X faster with minimal effort, or by applying manually using the direct link on the job page.