Senior Program Manager, Manufacturing Operations

SPAN is mission-driven to design, build, and deploy products that electrify our built environment, decarbonize our world, and slow the effects of climate change.

• Decarbonization is the process to reduce or remove greenhouse gas emissions, especially carbon dioxide, from entering our atmosphere.

• Electrification is the process of replacing fossil fuel appliances that run on gas or oil with all-electric upgrades for a cleaner way to power our lives.

At SPAN, we believe in:

• Enabling homes and vehicles powered by clean energy

• Making electrification upgrades possible

• Building more resilient homes with reliable backup

• Designing a flexible and distributed electrical grid

As part of our Manufacturing Operations team, the Senior Program Manager will lead the end-to-end bring-up of a new manufacturing facility, serving as the central point of accountability across site selection, local incentives, construction and facility readiness, and manufacturing readiness. This role requires someone who can build structure across highly ambiguous, fast-moving workstreams, and who is comfortable coordinating engineering, finance, legal, HR, and supply chain teams toward a shared timeline without having direct authority over any of them. You'll be based at our HQ with frequent travel to the site during active build-out phases.

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  Own the master program plan for new facility bring-up, including milestones, dependencies, critical path, and risk register, from site selection through ramp to full production

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  Coordinate site selection activities, working with real estate, legal, and finance teams to evaluate candidate locations against cost, labor, logistics, and regulatory criteria

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  Manage relationships and negotiations related to local and state incentives (tax abatements, grants, workforce development funds), partnering with legal and finance to track commitments and compliance obligations

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  Drive facility bring-up activities including permitting, construction oversight coordination, utility and infrastructure readiness, and equipment install scheduling

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  Lead manufacturing readiness planning: equipment qualification, process validation, staffing and training plans, safety certification, and quality system readiness

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  Run regular cross-functional program reviews, surfacing risks, resolving blockers, and escalating decisions to leadership with clear options and recommendations

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  Build and maintain program dashboards and status reporting for executive stakeholders

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  Manage relationships with external partners including general contractors, equipment vendors, local government agencies, and economic development organizations

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  Develop contingency plans for schedule, budget, or supply chain risks, and adjust the program plan as conditions change

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  Document lessons learned and build repeatable playbooks to streamline future facility launches

• Lead site selection evaluation and final recommendation for SPAN's next manufacturing facility

• Negotiate and secure a local/state incentive package, then build the tracking system to manage ongoing compliance commitments

• Build the manufacturing readiness checklist and timeline that gets the new facility from equipment install to first production unit

• 5+ years of program or project management experience, with direct experience standing up new manufacturing facilities, lines, or large capital projects

• Demonstrated ability to manage complex, multi-workstream programs involving internal teams and external partners simultaneously

• Working knowledge of manufacturing readiness concepts: equipment qualification, process validation, EHS/safety compliance, and quality systems

• Strong financial acumen, with experience building and tracking capital budgets, forecasts, and incentive-related financial commitments

• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence and align engineering, finance, legal, HR, and operations leaders without direct authority over them

• Proven track record of building structure and clarity in ambiguous, fast-moving environments

• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including experience presenting to senior leadership

• Willingness to travel frequently to the facility site during active build-out phases (travel expectations vary by program phase, potentially 30-50%+)

• Familiarity with site selection processes and economic incentive negotiation

• Experience in a relevant manufacturing vertical (e.g., EV/battery, electronics, hardware)

• Familiarity with lean manufacturing or Six Sigma methodologies

• Prior experience working directly with state or local economic development agencies

• PMP certification or equivalent program management training

• Experience with program management tooling (e.g., MS Project, Smartsheet, Monday.com, or similar)

SPAN embraces diversity and equal opportunity in a serious way. We are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills.

Headquartered in San Francisco's vibrant SoMa neighborhood, we are an eclectic group of creative thinkers who value open communication, teamwork, and a 'make it happen' approach to addressing complex challenges.

We're hiring talented individuals who are driven by success and are passionate about shaping the future of renewable energy. If that sounds like you, we'd love for you to consider joining the rapidly growing team at SPAN.