Technical Chief of Staff

Vannin Chief of Staff has been retained by a fast-scaling, venture-backed software company building the modern data infrastructure platform for hardware engineering. Companies across industrial manufacturing, energy, robotics, and highly regulated sectors rely on this platform to run, analyze, and scale complex test systems - replacing fragmented legacy tools with a unified layer for test automation, real-time telemetry, and system-level debugging. The company recently achieved unicorn status following a significant Series B extension, with strong year-over-year revenue growth and plans to nearly double headcount in 2026. The customer base spans major enterprise organizations and government programs. The team draws from some of the most respected names in engineering-driven software and deep tech, and operates with a high-performance, mission-oriented culture.

The company is growing rapidly and moving from two product verticals to four. The product and engineering organization needs a force multiplier - someone who can operate horizontally across all product lines, keep teams moving in concert, and build the operating infrastructure that allows the organization to scale without losing velocity or strategic coherence. This is a high-leverage, high-visibility role at the center of the product organization. You will work directly with the Head of Core Product and closely with engineering leadership across multiple product lines. You will be the operating architect behind the product organization - the person who turns ambitious product vision into disciplined, documented execution.

Part technical program manager, part product operator, and part internal strategist, the Technical Chief of Staff sits at the intersection of product strategy, engineering execution, and program management. You will help transform a founder-driven product organization into a professionally scaled one, building the systems, rhythms, and communication structures that a rapidly growing organization requires.

An important element of this role is also spot mentorship: the organization is actively pushing product management responsibility down to individual engineering team leads and ICs. Many of these people are exceptional engineers but are not historically product managers. You will jump into different teams, diagnose what is or is not working, and up-level those individuals on process and product thinking as the horizontal span of the organization grows.

Responsibilities include:

Running the product and program operating system

• Own the product and program management operating cadence that drives execution across all product teams
• Lead quarterly product planning and roadmap processes; get the roadmap out of people’s heads and onto paper
• Maintain clear execution visibility across all product verticals
• Drive cross-team alignment between engineering, product, and GTM
• Design and run the leadership operating cadence including staff meetings, execution reviews, and cross-team alignment forums
• Help prepare materials for leadership reviews, executive team meetings, and board discussions; build enough trust over 3–6 months to eventually present on the Head of Product’s behalf

Turning strategy into execution

• Ensure product strategy translates into clear priorities, coordinated programs, and shipping software
• Identify and remove execution bottlenecks across teams
• Drive major cross-team programs and initiatives that span multiple product groups
• Ensure critical initiatives have clear owners, milestones, and accountability structures

Professionalizing the product organization

• Design scalable operating mechanisms and program management frameworks that replace founder-driven coordination as the company scales
• Improve internal product communication across the company
• Build the operational infrastructure needed to support rapid product growth across multiple product lines
• Mentor engineering team leads and ICs on product management fundamentals and operating cadence

Being deeply technical

• Engage directly with engineers on architecture decisions and tradeoffs
• Maintain strong technical fluency - able to read code, reason about architecture, andengage substantively with engineering teams on technical decisions
• Serve as a credible technical translator between product leadership and engineering across a complex, multi-product software environment

Recommended Minimum Qualifications

You are a technical operator who thrives in high-growth product environments. You have been the person who makes organizations run better. You don’t need to be managed closely, you orient yourself, and you deliver outcomes without waiting to be asked.

Likely backgrounds include:

• Staff or Principal Technical Program Manager at a high-scale software organization
• Engineering leader who transitioned into program or technical operations leadership
• Technical Chief of Staff with genuine software development foundation
• Product Operations leader with deep engineering roots

You probably have:

• 10–20 years of experience in software engineering, product, or technical program management
• Experience at a company that scaled through the ~100 to 500 employee range
• Genuine software technical depth: you can read code, reason about architecture, and hold credibility in a technically demanding engineering environment
• A track record of building operating cadence from scratch or significantly improving it
• Experience at a T1 software organization (e.g. Amazon, Microsoft, Google) and/or in a hardware-adjacent or industrial software context
• A reputation as someone who makes organizations run better

What makes someone exceptional in this role:

• Engineers trust your technical judgment and see you as credible, not just coordinating
• Product leaders rely on you to make execution predictable and roadmaps real
• You are comfortable surfacing disagreement in a collaborative team environment - drawing people out and creating the conditions for real alignment rather than assumed consensus
• You are precise in written communication - translating what lives qualitatively in people’s heads into structured, documented artifacts an organization can act on
• You operate with an owner’s mindset, not an advisor’s mindset
• You are genuinely drawn to mission-driven work - building software that powers some of the most technically demanding engineering programs in the world

Compensation Range: Compensation is competitive and commensurate with experience. Base salary range is $240-250K/yr. Total compensation includes equity participation and a comprehensive benefits package including fully covered health, dental, and vision insurance for employees and families, unlimited PTO, daily catered lunch, wellness stipend, learning and development budget, and employee-friendly equity terms. Full compensation details including equity structure will be shared with qualified candidates.

US Work Authorization required. Open to candidates located in Los Angeles, CA or Seattle, WA.

What to Expect from Our Selection Process

Here is what to expect after your application is reviewed:

1. Vannin Chief of Staff Screening: 15 minute vetting interview and 30 minute skills interview
2. Predictive Index Assessment
3. Client Interview 1: Interview with Head of Core Product
4. Client Interview 2: Interview with Head of Connect Product
5. On-site panel interview in Los Angeles - includes engineering leadership, co-founder and executive team members
6. Final conversation with the CEO

Vannin Chief of Staff partners with The Predictive Index to align styles with the role. All applicants complete this quick, two-question, five-minute assessment—no right or wrong answers—and receive a profile readout.

--> Please take the assessment here as you complete your application.

Our client is committed to creating and maintaining a diverse and inclusive workplace where our employees can thrive and be themselves! We welcome all persons into our community. We embrace the diversity of gender, gender identity or expression, race, color, religious creed, national origin, ancestry, age, physical and mental disabilities, medical condition, genetic characteristic, sexual orientation, marital status, family care or medical leave status, military or veteran status, or perceived membership in any of these groups.