Reports to: Director of Manufacturing Operations & Quality
Department: Operations
Location: Onsite in Littleton, CO with up to 25% international travel
Role OverviewWe are seeking an experienced Hardware Operations Program Manager (OPM) who will lead New Product Introduction (NPI) for new programs while securing a resilient, high-performance global supply chain, ensuring that products are not only launched successfully but also maintained with rigor through their entire lifecycle. The OPM serves as the strategic lead across Engineering, Product Management, and Finance to ensure operational readiness, rigorous supplier quality, and long-term supply continuity from first build through mass production, sustaining updates, and final end-of-life.
The ideal candidate has personally shipped a hardware product from concept through mass production and eventual sunsetting, is comfortable owning outcomes end-to-end, and thrives amid an ever-changing supply chain and market. You are just as passionate about driving continuous improvement and long-term reliability in post-launch products as you are about the initial launch. You are flexible, well-rounded, self-motivated, and detail-oriented, with a breadth of technical understanding across Manufacturing, Quality, and Supply Chain, and comfortable wearing many hats in a startup environment.
Core Responsibilities & CoordinationNew Product Introduction (NPI)- Spearhead and influence cross-functional coordination and communication between Engineering, Product Management, Supply Chain, Quality, and Manufacturing to drive overall system readiness through each product lifecycle phase.
- Own operational readiness for new production: plan and execute production validation builds (EVT/DVT/PVT), mass-production readiness and sign-off, and the transition to scaling and sustaining high-volume production.
- Manage the overall capacity plan, including coordination of equipment, fixtures, and materials for ramp.
- Drive solutions and schedule to problems: develop clear problem statements, project requirements, milestone schedules, and documentation to support decision-making and facilitate implementation.
- Develop, optimize, track, and communicate integrated program schedules, effectively managing dependencies and handoffs.
- Identify technical and operational risks across the program and drive mitigation strategies directly with critical stakeholders.
Sustaining, Supplier Quality & Continuous Improvement- Drive global supply chain resilience and continuity by identifying potential bottlenecks and implementing proactive risk management strategies across the tier-1 and tier-2 supplier base.
- Lead strategic sourcing initiatives and commercial negotiations with contract manufacturers and component suppliers to optimize total cost of ownership and ensure favorable terms.
- Own the relationship with overseas contract manufacturers to execute the production plan against sales demand, ensuring on-time delivery and high-quality output.
- Coordinate and support ongoing manufacturing production activities, including process improvements, cost-reduction opportunities, and second-source qualification.
- Work closely with Engineering to guide development, validation, and implementation of product refreshes or redesigns.
- Support the PLM-based change process (ECO, Deviation, MCO, and similar changes) and ensure all changes are properly implemented at contract manufacturing and supplier partners.
- Partner with the Product team on end-of-life (EOL) planning and transitions for existing products, with the goal of eliminating excess materials at EOL.
Cross-Functional & General- Be proactive, pay attention to the details, and enable teams across different functions to make smart, timely decisions; stay on top of many moving pieces without letting anything drop.
- Create reports from company systems (Google Workspace and similar tools) and provide reporting as needed.
- Emporia is a startup - this role requires wearing many hats, and this description does not capture every assignment.
Required Qualifications- BS or higher in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing & Operations Engineering, or equivalent experience.
- Proven track record of supply chain optimization, strategic sourcing, and managing complex vendor relationships in a high-growth environment.
- 7+ years of experience in Operations/Program Management roles in the consumer electronics industry, having personally owned a product end-to-end - from initial concept through mass production and eventual sunsetting/EOL - with on-site factory experience.
- Experience working with overseas ODM/JDM contract manufacturers and suppliers at scale; experience with partners in India is a plus.
- Familiarity with consumer electronics manufacturing processes and phase-gate development (EVT, DVT, PVT).
- AI-native working style: comfortable using AI tools to accelerate product research, ingest and synthesize data across multiple platforms and systems, and draft requirements and documentation.
- Self-motivated, with strong problem-solving skills and a track record of driving issues to resolution.
- Strong cross-functional relationship-building skills across technical and non-technical teams.
- Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to communicate technical issues clearly to an executive audience.
- Versed in project planning tools such as Smartsheet; familiar with Jira and Confluence for issue tracking and project summaries.
- Familiarity with PLM systems for BOM and ECO/MCO management, such as Arena.
- Ability to travel internationally to contract manufacturing partners and suppliers, up to approximately 25% of the time.
What We OfferCompensation: The expected base salary range is
$130,000 - $150,000, plus stock options. The offered salary will depend on numerous factors, including but not limited to work experience, skills, and internal equity considerations. The base salary does not include benefits or other incentives.
Benefits: medical/dental/vision insurance, employee stock option program, 401(k), paid holidays, unlimited PTO, paid parental leave and discounts on Emporia products and partner offerings.
Career Growth: Be part of a fast-growing company at the forefront of home energy innovation.
