Job Summary
The Director Manufacturing is Knightscope's senior-most manufacturing leader and a direct report to the CEO, accountable end-to-end from supplier to shipped machine: manufacturing engineering, production, and supply chain. This is an industrialization mandate, not a caretaker role. Knightscope designs, builds, deploys, and operates its own fleet of Autonomous Security Robots (ASRs) and Emergency Communication Devices (ECD) as part of a fully managed service - so this role is measured on machines performing in the field, not just units leaving the dock.
The immediate mission: reconfigure facility to manufacture the K7 ASR and H1 ASA while sustaining current K5 ASR, K1 Hemisphere and Emergency Communication Device (ECD) production; drive assembly hours and unit costs to automotive-caliber targets; and institutionalize the engineering discipline - design for manufacturability, formal engineering change control, standard work - that makes output predictable. The Director operates with full authority and full accountability, and builds an organization that performs without executive intervention.
Key Responsibilities
Industrialization & Factory Buildout
- Own the facility reconfiguration: layout, station design, tooling, fixtures, test capability, and capacity planning
- Lead advanced manufacturing engineering through New Product Introduction alongside the Chief Program Engineers (K7, K1/H1): DFM/DFA reviews, process FMEAs, pilot builds, launch readiness, and the transition from prototype to repeatable production.
- Drive assembly-hour and unit-cost reduction to automotive standards across all product lines using time studies, standard work, and design change proposals.
- Enforce the Knightscope Product Development System (KPDS) and formal ECO discipline with Engineering: no production builds without released drawings, accurate BOMs, and validated work instructions.
Production & Fulfillment
- Own daily production output, quality, and on-time fulfillment across ASR and ECD lines, including daily/weekly fulfillment reporting.
- Establish a finished-goods operating model so orders ship from stock, not from the end of the line, in support of company shipment targets.
- Own quality systems and continuous improvement on the floor: standard work, 5S, first-pass yield, scrap/rework reduction, and 8D/CAPA closure with Engineering and Service.
- Own environmental health and safety on the manufacturing floor, including Cal/OSHA compliance, incident prevention, and investigation.
Supply Chain & Materials
- Own the supply chain through the Supply Chain Manager: supplier strategy, early supplier involvement in design, negotiated agreements, and material availability.
- Eliminate shortage-driven line stoppages: demand planning, min/max discipline, zero-quantity fail-safes, and BOM/data accuracy in NetSuite.
- Drive make/buy decisions and domestic sourcing resilience consistent with an exclusively U.S.-focused business.
- Own outside-processing relationships (build partners, paint, fabrication, cable assembly): performance, capacity flex, and the make-versus-buy roadmap as volume grows.
Organization & Leadership
- Build, develop, and hold accountable the manufacturing organization; establish a promote-from-within career ladder for technicians and supervisors.
- Own the manufacturing budget, cost of goods sold, and capital planning: equipment, tooling, automation, and in-house prototyping investments with clear payback.
- Own and grow the operations analytics capability already in place - labor-hours-per-build by technician, dashboards, backlog-coverage-by-inventory reporting - as the management operating system of the factory.
- Report manufacturing KPIs (shipment value, assembly hours per unit, labor utilization, first-pass yield, material availability, cost per unit, on-time delivery) to the CEO, executive team, and Board as required.
- Model Knightscope values on the floor every day: Own It. Work the Problem. Improve Every Day. In Data We Trust.
Required Qualifications
- 15+ years of progressive manufacturing experience, including 5+ years leading a manufacturing organization, with a foundation in automotive OEM or comparably disciplined production environments (automotive supplier, aerospace, medical device, high-volume electromechanical).
- Demonstrated advanced manufacturing engineering depth: has personally industrialized a vehicle or complex electromechanical product from prototype through production launch - line design, DFM/DFA, PFMEA, APQP or equivalent launch discipline.
- Proven track record standing up, relocating, or reconfiguring a production facility, including layout, equipment, tooling, and test.
- Deep command of standard work, work instructions, time studies, and engineering change control in a low-volume, high-mix environment.
- Experience directing supply chain and procurement functions, including supplier development and material planning.
- A hands-on builder of systems and teams - someone who removes the organization's dependence on any single person, including themselves.
- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Industrial, or Manufacturing Engineering, or equivalent practical experience.
Preferred Qualifications
- AI-first mindset
- Robotics, autonomous vehicle, drone, or defense manufacturing experience.
- Toyota Production System training or experience in a high-growth vehicle production ramp.
- Lean/Six Sigma Black Belt or equivalent process-improvement certification.
- Experience in a public company or capital-disciplined scale-up where processes were built from the ground up.
- Multi-site and contract-manufacturing operations experience.
- PLM implementation experience and fluency with analytics tools
Compensation & Benefits
- Base Salary: $250,000 - $275,000 (DOE)
- Equity: Stock options
- Benefits: Medical, dental, vision, 401(k), paid time off
- Location Requirement: Full-time, on-site at Knightscope HQ (KHQ), Sunnyvale, CA
