Joby Aviation

Head of Quality

Joby Aviation • $230K — $330K *
Aerospace & Defense
11 - 15 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 15+ years of quality leadership in aerospace, defense, or aviation manufacturing, including 7+ years in executive management roles.
  • Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace, Mechanical, Electrical Engineering, or a related field.
  • Hands-on experience securing or managing an FAA Production Certificate and FAA conformity inspections.
  • Expertise in quality oversight for composite structures, complex electronics, and high-voltage powertrains.
  • Strong knowledge of AS9100 / ISO 9001 standards and advanced metrology tools.

Responsibilities

  • Oversee FAA Production Certificate management and compliance under 14 CFR Part 21.
  • Collaborate with DARs for FAA inspections and regulatory communications.
  • Ensure uncompromised quality to maintain safety and compliance standards.
  • Manage AS9100 QMS governance and internal audit programs.
  • Lead quality planning, FAI processes, and design-for-quality reviews.
  • Direct inspection operations across manufacturing plants and cleanrooms.
  • Drive root cause and corrective action processes to eliminate production non-conformances.

Benefits

  • Comprehensive benefits package including healthcare.
  • 401(k) plan with company match.
  • Employee stock purchase plan (ESPP).
  • Short-term and long-term disability coverage.
  • Life insurance.
Full Job Description
Overview

Joby Aviation is seeking a Head of Quality to lead our enterprise-wide quality organization as we scale from New Product Introduction (NPI) to rate manufacturing. This critical role holds end-to-end accountability for Quality Control (QC), Quality Engineering (QE), Quality Assurance (QA), Metrology Engineering, and Supplier Quality across all internal plants and manufacturing disciplines.

 

Serving as an independent functional check-and-balance to manufacturing, the Head of Quality holds primary responsibility for securing and maintaining Joby’s FAA Production Approval and Production Certificate (PC). This position leads the quality systems, inspection frameworks, and regulatory compliance required to produce flight-ready eVTOL aircraft across all manufacturing areas.  This includes Powertrain & Electronics, Composites, Airframe Assembly, Paint, Final Integration, Additive Manufacturing, Blades, and Wire Harnesses.

Responsibilities

FAA Production Certification & Regulatory Oversight

  • FAA Production Approval & PC Ownership: Serve as the primary operational authority for securing, maintaining, and expanding Joby’s FAA Production Certificate (PC) and manufacturing approvals under 14 CFR Part 21

  • FAA Conformity & Audits: Collaborate with DARs for all FAA manufacturing conformity inspections, system audits, and regulatory communications across all manufacturing facilities

  • Independent Governance: Maintain an uncompromised quality boundary to ensure safety, compliance, and airworthiness standards are strictly enforced independent of schedule pressures

Functional Quality Leadership (QC, QE, QA, Metrology)

  • Quality Assurance (QA): Oversee AS9100 Quality Management System (QMS) governance, document control, internal audit programs, and regulatory compliance reporting

  • Quality Engineering (QE): Lead manufacturing quality planning, First Article Inspections (FAI / AS9102), design-for-quality reviews, and Engineering Change Requests (ECR) effectivity validation

  • Quality Control (QC): Manage receiving, in-process, and final inspection operations across all plant floors, cleanrooms, and flight integration bays

  • Metrology Engineering: Direct precision measurement strategies, calibration systems, coordinate measuring machines (CMM), 3D scanning, and non-destructive testing (NDT) across all hardware domains

Problem Solving

  • Root Cause & Corrective Action (RCCA): Drive rigorous 8D, CAPA, and Material Review Board (MRB) processes to eliminate scrap, rework, and non-conformances at the root cause

  • Metrics & Analytics: Establish real-time quality dashboards in VERT / VERNIE tracking Scrap, Rework, First-Pass Yield (FPY), and Escapes across every production line

  Required
  • 15+ years of progressive quality leadership experience in aerospace, defense, or commercial aviation manufacturing, including 7+ years in executive management (Director/VP/Head) supervising cross-functional QA, QE, QC, and Metrology teams
  • Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related technical field
  • Direct, hands-on experience securing or managing an FAA Production Certificate (PC) and executing FAA conformity inspections under 14 CFR Part 21

  • Demonstrated expertise in quality oversight across composite structures, complex electronics, high-voltage powertrains, wire harnesses, additive manufacturing, and aircraft final assembly

  • Deep working knowledge of AS9100 / ISO 9001 quality management systems, AS9102 FAI requirements, and advanced metrology tools

Desired
  • Master’s degree in Engineering Management or Business Administration
  • Six Sigma Black Belt / Lean Manufacturing certification

  • Direct experience managing quality transitions from low-volume prototype builds to high-rate aerospace manufacturing

Additional Information

Compensation at Joby is a combination of base pay and Restricted Stock Units (RSUs). The target base pay for this position is $230,000 - $330,000. The compensation package will be determined by job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.

Joby also offers a comprehensive benefits package, including paid time off, healthcare benefits, a 401(k) plan with a company match, an employee stock purchase plan (ESPP), short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, and more.

 

About Joby Aviation

Joby Aviation is an aerospace company that is developing an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for urban air mobility. The company's aircraft is designed to be quiet, efficient, and environmentally friendly, and is intended to provide a faster and more convenient mode of transportation for urban commuters. Joby Aviation was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in Santa Cruz, California. The company has received funding from a variety of investors, including Toyota and JetBlue Technology Ventures.
Learn more about Joby Aviation
Size
500 employees
Market Cap
$2 billion
Industry
Founded
2009
NASDAQ

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