Senior Program Manager, Autonomy at Merlin Labs (Boston, MA)Senior Program Manager, Autonomy

You are a strategic operator with deep program leadership experience and strong product instincts. As a Senior Program Manager at Merlin, you'll lead a portfolio of high-impact autonomy programs — from early-stage through deployment and fielding — while shaping what we build, not just when it ships. You bring a rare blend of technical fluency, product judgment, and operational rigor. You know how to listen deeply to operators and customers, translate mission needs into product priorities and a deliverable roadmap, and make hard capability-versus-schedule trades with imperfect information. You thrive in dynamic environments where ambiguity is the norm and execution velocity is critical. You're not just a program manager — you're a builder, an integrator, and a force multiplier. If you're excited by the opportunity to shape the future of aviation while growing enduring customer relationships, we'd love to meet you.

Responsibilities:

• Own and lead a portfolio of programs spanning autonomy development, integration, flight test, certification, and operational fielding.
• Own the capability roadmap for your assigned programs — defining what capabilities deliver in which release, and keeping program commitments aligned with the broader Merlin Pilot product strategy.
• Partner with Product and autonomy engineering leadership on release content, scope trades, and prioritization decisions — balancing customer commitments, technical risk, and resource constraints.
• Translate operator feedback, mission needs, and customer requirements into clear, actionable product priorities and deliverables for engineering and test teams — including defining capability acceptance criteria with customers.
• Serve as the senior point of contact for customer engagements, program reviews, and critical milestones — using those engagements to sharpen product direction, not just report status.
• Drive program strategy and execution across multiple internal and external teams — including engineering, product, test, supply chain, and business development.
• Oversee integrated master schedules, financial plans, and program baselines across multiple workstreams, ensuring execution stays tied to product intent.
• Identify and mitigate cross-program risks, resource constraints, and bottlenecks before they impact delivery
• Build and institutionalize execution processes and artifacts that scale as our portfolio grows (e.g., roadmap frameworks, program rhythms, status reporting).
• Provide mentorship and leadership across the broader program management organization.

Qualifications:

• 8+ years of experience in program or product leadership roles, ideally with aviation or automotive autonomy experience.
• Proven success leading complex programs involving cross-functional teams and technical integration, with a focus on software development and delivery.
• Experience shaping product roadmaps or capability definitions in a technical domain — comfortable making prioritization calls with imperfect information and defending the trade-offs.
• Ability to manage a portfolio of programs under resource and time constraints while keeping each aligned to the broader product strategy.
• Exceptional listening, communication, and stakeholder engagement skills, with the ability to build alignment between customers, product, and internal teams.
• Ability to context switch between strategy, execution, and team dynamics across multiple efforts.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Secret Security Clearance.

Nice to Have:

• Product management experience or hybrid program/product roles in autonomy, robotics, or aerospace software.
• Experience scaling program teams or building new operating models in high-growth environments.
• Prior experience in autonomy, mission systems, or flight control integration.
• Active Security Clearance.