What are the responsibilities and job description for the Sr. Field Service Engineer position at Rivian?
The Sr. Field Service Engineer acts as the technical bridge between real-world vehicle usage and Rivian’s engineering and product development teams. You will drive field issue detection, structured root cause analysis, and corrective action implementation, ensuring every customer experience informs our continuous product improvement journey. This role supports diagnostic and repair strategies, champions product feedback from the field, and enables scalable quality solutions across all Rivian vehicle systems.
- Act as a field product expert across Rivian’s vehicle platforms (HV Battery, Drive Units, Infotainment, ADAS, Chassis Systems, etc.).
- Lead structured field investigations for early-life failures, durability issues, and emergent customer trends.
- Partner with Field Service Technicians and Service Engineering to deliver advanced diagnostics, while capturing field learnings for upstream product corrections.
- Drive root cause analysis efforts using formal methodologies (5-Whys, Fishbone, Fault Tree) and close quality loops with Engineering and Reliability teams.
- Develop rapid diagnostic and repair plans that prioritize customer uptime and serviceability, including software and hardware solutions.
- Create detailed field diagnostics and technical documentation to inform Service and Design loops.
- Collaborate with Diagnostic Engineering, Diagnostics Specialists, and Quality teams to streamline diagnostics, improve detection methods, and refine repair procedures.
- Support the development of remote diagnostic and field data capture tools to proactively monitor vehicle performance and identify trends.
- Mentor and train service locations on best practices for advanced diagnostics and early issue detection.
- Implement incident response protocols for critical field events requiring immediate data gathering or technical resolution.
- Drive field validation initiatives to ensure corrective actions and new product updates are effective under real-world conditions.
- Champion a culture of product ownership, collaboration, and continuous improvement across field service and engineering functions.
- Frequent travel (up to 75%) is required. Must be able to travel in your region on a weekly basis.
- 7-10 years as ASE Certified Master Level Technician highly desired
- Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Automotive Engineering, or related technical discipline (preferred) and 2-5 years of direct experience in automotive product engineering, service engineering, field quality engineering, or reliability engineering.
- Deep technical understanding of complex vehicle systems including electric drive systems, HV batteries, infotainment, and embedded controls.
- Strong experience in diagnosing system-level failures and collaborating on design or process improvements.
- Skilled in formal problem-solving tools and root cause methodologies (8D, 5-Whys, Fault Tree Analysis).
- High proficiency with vehicle diagnostic tools, CAN tools, and data analysis platforms (Databricks, Tableau, etc.).
- Coding or scripting experience (Python, C/C ) is highly desirable for tool development and automation.
- Knowledge of Linux, Android-based systems, and OTA update processes is a plus.
- Hands-on field experience supporting vehicle diagnostics and repairs.
- Strong cross-functional collaboration skills with Product Development, Manufacturing, Reliability, and Quality organizations.
- Effective communicator, able to clearly present complex technical issues to engineering and non-technical audiences.
- Passion for innovation, adventure, and making a real-world impact through sustainable product development.
- Commitment to travel up to 75% throughout Northern California and Northwest Nevada.
- Minimum age of 21
- No driving related suspensions or revocation of Driver License (within a 3-5 year period)
- Ability to read and speak fluent English
- No drug or alcohol related driving incidents in the last 3 years
- No more than 1 serious moving violation in the last 3 years
- Must have a valid driver's license in the state of residence that you will be driving/operating a vehicle
- Will be subject to continuous Motor Vehicle Record (MVR) monitoring