Staff Program Manager, Incident Management - AV Development

Description

Staff Program Manager, Incident Management – Autonomous Vehicle Development

At General Motors, our product teams are redefining mobility. Through a human-centered design process, we create vehicles and experiences that are designed not just to be seen, but to be felt. We’re turning today’s impossible into tomorrow’s standard - from breakthrough hardware and battery systems to intuitive design, intelligent software, and next-generation safety and entertainment features.

Every day, our products move millions of people as we aim to make driving safer, smarter, and more connected, shaping the future of transportation on a global scale.

The Safety Assurance for Effective Autonomous Driving Software (SAFE-ADS) department is part of GM’s Global Product Safety, System, and Certification (GPSSC) organization. Our mission is to help GM deliver trusted automated driving products. As the central authority for automated driving system (ADS) safety, SAFE-ADS brings together experts from across the company to develop and maintain a comprehensive safety case including safety performance indicators for GM’s automated driving technologies.

GM’s vision is zero crashes, zero emissions, and zero congestion—and autonomous vehicle safety is essential to achieving that vision.

The Role

The Staff Program Manager, Incident Management – AV Development is the strategic leader responsible for the full lifecycle of incident response for GM’s AV test operations. This role leads a team of Incident Response Specialists, sets the bar for safety and quality, and ensures GM’s global AV incident response runs with precision, reliability, and compliance.

You’ll shape the strategy, elevate cross‑functional alignment, and build a high‑performing team that delivers fast, accurate, and consistent incident management across a mission‑critical program.

What You’ll Do

Set the Strategy

• Own the incident response vision, roadmap, playbooks, escalation models, and quality standards for AV operations.

• Align engineering, operations, safety, legal, and executive partners around clear, disciplined incident response processes.

Lead & Develop the Team

• Manage and mentor Incident Response Specialists; drive accountability, growth, and team cohesion.

• Foster a culture rooted in safety, precision, continuous improvement, and psychological safety.

Crisis & Incident Command

• Oversee the response for major incidents affecting the AV fleet to minimize safety and operational impacts.

• Provide executive‑level clarity during fast‑moving events while ensuring disciplined, real‑time response operations.

• Serve as the an escalation point for critical, fleet‑impacting, or reputationally sensitive incidents.

Technical & Cross‑Functional Leadership

• Partner closely with technical experts to diagnose issues across software, hardware, and systems.

• Coordinate response efforts with engineering, operations, safety, legal, communications, and executives; ensure accurate documentation and aligned messaging.

Process Excellence

• Build and continually improve tools, workflows, and best practices to increase response speed, clarity, and quality.

• Provide actionable insights for Legal, Safety, Regulatory, and Communications teams.

Communication & Compliance

• Deliver timely updates during incidents; support legal inquiries, regulatory reporting, and law‑enforcement requests.

• Review DMV/NHTSA requirements and influence policy, compliance, and documentation updates.

Training & Enablement

• Lead onboarding and ongoing training for incident responders and cross‑functional partners.

• Develop and run incident exercises to strengthen readiness and reinforce safety culture.

Your Skills & Abilities (Required Qualifications)

• Deep knowledge of incident response frameworks in AV, mobility, or other complex, safety‑critical environments

• 7+ years in incident management, including experience as an Incident Commander or lead responder

• 3+ years of people leadership experience

• Proven ability to stay calm, clear, and precise during high‑pressure escalations

• Experience briefing senior leadership in real time

• Demonstrated experience training teams and reinforcing safety culture

• Ability and willingness to participate in a 24/7 on‑call rotation

What Will Give You a Competitive Edge (Preferred Qualifications)

• Degree in Emergency Management, Operations, Business, or related field

• Experience with legal hold/evidentiary requests, law‑enforcement interactions, and regulatory communications

• Background in highly regulated industries (Automotive, Aviation, Maritime, Rail, etc.)

• Certifications such as NIMS/ICS, ITIL, or equivalent

• Strong analytical skills; experience with tools like Looker

Compensation: The compensation information is a good faith estimate only. It is based on what a successful applicant might be paid in accordance with applicable state laws. The actual base salary a successful candidate will be offered within this range will vary based on factors relevant to the position, as well as geography of the selected candidate.

• The salary range for this role is 134,700 to 245,000. The actual base salary a successful candidate will be offered within this range will vary based on factors relevant to the position.

• Bonus Potential: An incentive pay program offers payouts based on company performance, job level, and individual performance.

• Benefits: GM offers a variety of health and wellbeing benefit programs. Benefit options include medical, dental, vision, Health Savings Account, Flexible Spending Accounts, retirement savings plan, sickness and accident benefits, life insurance, paid vacation & holidays, tuition assistance programs, employee assistance program, GM vehicle discounts and more.

Company Vehicle: Upon successful completion of a motor vehicle report review, you will be eligible to participate in a company vehicle evaluation program, through which you will be assigned a General Motors vehicle to drive and evaluate. Note: program participants are required to purchase/lease a qualifying GM vehicle every four years unless one of a limited number of exceptions applies.

GM does not provide immigration-related sponsorship for this role. Do not apply for this role if you will need GM immigration sponsorship now or in the future. This includes direct company sponsorship, entry of GM as the immigration employer of record on a government form, and any work authorization requiring a written submission or other immigration support from the company (e.g., H1-B, OPT, STEM OPT, CPT, TN, J-1, etc.)

This role is based remotely, but if the selected candidate lives within a specific mile radius of a GM hub, they will be expected to report to the location three times a week {or other frequency dictated by your manager}.

This job may be eligible for relocation benefits.

About GM

Our vision is a world with Zero Crashes, Zero Emissions and Zero Congestion and we embrace the responsibility to lead the change that will make our world better, safer and more equitable for all.

Why Join Us 

We believe we all must make a choice every day – individually and collectively – to drive meaningful change through our words, our deeds and our culture. Every day, we want every employee to feel they belong to one General Motors team.

Total Rewards | Benefits Overview

From day one, we're looking out for your well-being–at work and at home–so you can focus on realizing your ambitions. Learn how GM supports a rewarding career that rewards you personally by visiting Total Rewards resources. 

Non-Discrimination and Equal Employment Opportunities (U.S.)

General Motors is committed to being a workplace that is not only free of unlawful discrimination, but one that genuinely fosters inclusion and belonging. We strongly believe that providing an inclusive workplace creates an environment in which our employees can thrive and develop better products for our customers.

All employment decisions are made on a non-discriminatory basis without regard to sex, race, color, national origin, citizenship status, religion, age, disability, pregnancy or maternity status, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran or protected veteran, or any other similarly protected status in accordance with federal, state and local laws. 

We encourage interested candidates to review the key responsibilities and qualifications for each role and apply for any positions that match their skills and capabilities. Applicants in the recruitment process may be required, where applicable, to successfully complete a role-related assessment(s) and/or a pre-employment screening prior to beginning employment. To learn more, visit How we Hire.

Accommodations

General Motors offers opportunities to all job seekers including individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation to assist with your job search or application for employment, email us [email protected] or call us at 1-800-865-7580. In your email, please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting as well as the job title and requisition number of the position for which you are applying.