About Rivet  

Rivet is an American company building integrated task systems — fusing hardened hardware with software, sensors, AI, and networking — for industrial workforces and defense personnel. We create capabilities that multiply the effectiveness of every individual and withstand the world’s toughest environments. 

We serve the people who build, operate, maintain, and defend our way of life. From technicians and engineers to first responders and service members, they embody the hard work, ingenuity, and meritocratic values that drive Western prosperity. Yet too often they are forced to rely on outdated tools that fail under modern pressures. Rivet exists to reset that priority. 

At Rivet, you’ll join a mission-driven team that fuses disciplines to deliver decisive outcomes where they matter most. Whether shaping our technology, strengthening our partnerships, or building our culture, every role here contributes to equipping the front lines with the modern systems they deserve. 

EOE

Work Authorization Requirement: Due to the nature of our business and compliance with federal regulations, all candidates must be a "U.S. Person". Upon hire, you will be required to provide documentation verifying your status as a U.S. Citizen, a lawful permanent resident, or a protected individual under 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3).

Role: Technical Program Manager

Location: San Jose, CA

Compensation*: $150,000-$275,000 + benefits

Role Summary 

Own the operational backbone of complex, fast-moving technical programs, translating ambiguity into structured execution. You will sit at the center of engineering and cross-functional teams, driving clarity, momentum, and scalable systems as the organization grows. 

Responsibilities 

• Build and evolve the operating structure for a small, high-performing cross-functional team that scales with increasing complexity 

• Create and maintain high-quality tracking artifacts across priorities, dependencies, risks, decisions, and follow-ups  

• Own the operational backbone of execution, including project management tools, documentation systems, status reporting, meeting cadence, and communication flows  

• Pull signal out of ambiguous, fast-moving workstreams and convert it into actionable plans and clear next steps  

• Drive progress through persistent, thoughtful follow-through rather than formal authority  

• Work closely with engineers to understand ground truth, technical constraints, and escalation paths 

• Identify gaps in process or coordination and implement pragmatic improvements with the appropriate level of structure
• Embed testing and reliability into every stage of execution, ensuring systems, workflows, and releases are consistently validated, resilient, and built to perform under real-world conditions

• Build systems and workflows that scale across teams, balancing immediate execution needs with long-term efficiency 

Role Requirements 

• Exceptional attention to detail and strong operational discipline  

• Strong ownership mindset with a bias toward action and accountability for outcomes 

• Demonstrated resourcefulness—able to navigate unfamiliar problems and unblock work independently 

• Proven ability to build trust quickly with engineers and pull information from busy stakeholders without creating friction 

• High tolerance for ambiguity; able to make progress and create clarity without fully defined direction; flexible thinker who can derive the right operating approach from any situation 

• High emotional intelligence and interpersonal judgment, especially in technical and cross-functional settings; strong instincts for when to push, pull, escalate, and let a team work through an issue  

• Ability to balance structure and flexibility, applying the right level of process to the situation 

• Systems thinker who understands how components, teams, and dependencies interact to produce outcomes 

• Comfort getting into the weeds of how work is executed, tracked, and communicated  

• Genuine enjoyment of operational craftsmanship, including tools, workflow design, documentation, and process modeling  

*Total compensation may vary within this range and is determined by years and level of relevant experience, job-related skills, education, and other factors. In addition to base salary, this role may be eligible for equity grants and other forms of compensation. Eligible employees also receive a competitive benefits package, including unlimited PTO.