Skydio

Director of Product Compliance

Skydio$230K — $347K *
Aerospace & Defense
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 10+ years in product compliance, certification, or regulatory engineering with team leadership experience
  • Strong technical knowledge in EMC, radio, and product safety; familiarity with cellular, battery, aviation, cybersecurity, and supply chain regulations
  • Proven ability to establish processes and governance in unstructured environments
  • Capability to make tough decisions regarding launch timelines
  • Excellent collaboration skills with engineering, legal, supply chain teams, and executives
  • Proactive in addressing ownership gaps beyond assigned responsibilities

Responsibilities

  • Own product compliance across the entire portfolio and ensure accountability for launch readiness
  • Lead and expand the compliance team, tailoring plans specific to each program
  • Transform ambiguous regulatory requirements into clear compliance strategies
  • Collaborate with Product and Engineering on realistic launch timelines based on certification lead times
  • Manage engagement with subject matter experts and external stakeholders to shape regulatory policies

Benefits

  • Comprehensive health insurance plans
  • Paid vacation time and sick leave
  • Holiday pay
  • 401K savings plan
  • Equity in the form of stock options
Full Job Description
About the Role:

Skydio is looking for a Director of Product Compliance to own product compliance across our entire portfolio. As our product families and the markets we serve keep expanding, we're investing in compliance as a core product capability. You'll build the operating system for it: the policy, the risk framework, the requirements inventory, and the gates that make certification something we design from concept.

You'll lead a team of portfolio compliance engineers, each owning certification for their programs, and you'll work across Hardware Ops, Engineering, Product, Security, Supply Chain, Sales, Government, Aviation Regulatory, and Legal to get decisions made. This is a build role with real decision rights, including launch readiness sign-off.

How You'll Make an Impact:
  • Own product compliance for the company. Set the policy, arbitrate cross-program tradeoffs, own the launch readiness recommendation and sign-off, and act as the single point of accountability when a requirement is contested or a launch is at risk.
  • Lead and grow the compliance team. Develop compliance engineers embedded in program teams, balance their capacity against an 18-month roadmap, and make sure each program has a tailored plan rather than a generic checklist.
  • Chart the path forward in ambiguity. Translate unclear or evolving requirements into a clear compliance strategy, maintaining program momentum and making defensible decisions.
  • Partner with Product and Engineering on launch timelines that reflect real certification lead times, dependencies, and external constraints, and escalate launch-critical risk early enough to act on it.
  • Direct our SME bench and external strategy. Get the right experts engaged at the right time across cellular, radio, civil aviation, cybersecurity, supply chain, export, and more, while working with cross functional partners to shape policy and regulation rather than only react to it.


What Makes You a Good Fit:
  • 10+ years in product compliance, certification, or regulatory engineering, including experience leading a team
  • Deep technical grounding across EMC, radio, and product safety, plus enough working knowledge of the adjacent domains - cellular and carrier certification, battery, aviation, cybersecurity, and supply chain and export controls - to know when a requirement applies, which expert to pull in, and whether the answer you're getting holds up.
  • Track record building process and governance where it didn't exist, and getting an organization to adopt it
  • Comfortable holding decision rights, including telling a program its launch date is at risk
  • Strong cross-functional operator, effective with engineering, legal, supply chain, and executive stakeholders alike
  • Willingness to work outside the scope of your role to cover gaps in ownership

Bonus points if you have:
  • Battery, cellular including PTCRB and MNO, or NRTL compliance experience
  • Familiarity with UAS regulatory frameworks such as FAA, Remote ID, and EASA
  • Experience with federal supply chain, export control, or cybersecurity requirements
  • Regulatory advocacy or standards body engagement experience
  • Obtaining FAA Part 107 certification within the first 60 days of employment is strongly encouraged for all Skydio employees and required for certain positions.

Compensation: At Skydio, our compensation packages for regular, full-time employees include competitive base salaries, equity in the form of stock options, and comprehensive benefits packages. Compensation will vary based on factors, including skill level, proficiencies, transferable knowledge, and experience. Relocation assistance may also be provided for eligible roles. The annual base salary range for this position is $230,000 - $347,500*. Fundamentally, we believe that equity is the key to long-term financial growth, and we ensure all regular, full-time employees have the opportunity to significantly benefit from the company's success. Regular, full-time employees are eligible to enroll in the Company's group health insurance plans. Regular, full-time employees are eligible to receive the following benefits: Paid vacation time, sick leave, holiday pay and 401K savings plan. This position and all associated benefits are subject to applicable federal, state, and local laws, as well as the Company's policies and eligibility criteria.

*Compensation for certain positions may vary based on the position's location.

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About Skydio

Skydio is a leading manufacturer of autonomous drones for consumer and commercial use. The company's drones are equipped with advanced computer vision and artificial intelligence technology, allowing them to navigate complex environments and avoid obstacles. Skydio was founded in 2014 by a team of experts in robotics, computer vision, and artificial intelligence. The company is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California.
Learn more about Skydio
Size
200 employees
Industry
Founded
2014

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