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Zoox is seeking a Team Lead for Ground Operations to lead overnight (3rd shift) vehicle maintenance and fleet readiness operations in Phoenix. This is a hands-on leadership role combining technical automotive expertise with people management.
You will provide direct leadership, coaching, and mentorship to technical staff and contract personnel during the overnight shift. Key responsibilities include recruiting, hiring, onboarding, and training workshop personnel while fostering a high-performance culture centered on safety and continuous improvement. You will manage employee and contractor schedules, track KPIs, and provide consistent feedback to drive team performance.
On the technical side, you will lead vehicle maintenance and rework activities during low-demand periods to maximize daytime vehicle availability. You'll serve as the primary escalation point for complex technical issues, ensuring all work meets rigorous quality standards. You will support analysis, documentation, and reporting of fleet data for root cause analysis on component and vehicle-level issues to prevent future downtime.
You will enforce health and safety policies, maintain a clean and organized workshop compliant with OSHA guidelines, and identify bottlenecks in overnight workflows to implement lean methodologies for operational efficiency.
Mission readiness responsibilities include ensuring correct software and firmware deployment to vehicles, directing vehicle ingest, conducting pre-mission checks, and ensuring completion of readiness checklists for the first shift. You will oversee logistical movement and storage of vehicles, manually drive and maneuver autonomous and auxiliary vehicles when needed, and support multi-site operations as the company scales.
REQUIREMENTS:
- 5+ years of hands-on automotive technician experience combined with 2+ years of people leadership or supervisory experience
- Willingness and ability to lead overnight operations (3rd shift)
- Extensive knowledge of automotive maintenance methods, diagnostic methods, parts, and tools, including high proficiency in CAN/LIN architecture, wiring diagrams, and soldering
- Proven ability to quickly learn technical subjects
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills; must be honest, responsible, and capable of translating technical details for cross-functional stakeholders
- Demonstrated ability to manage time, multitask, and drive priorities effectively in a fast-paced, ambiguous startup environment
- Clean driving record and ability to travel locally and nationally (less than 20%)
BONUS QUALIFICATIONS:
- Bachelor's degree in a technical or business field, or Technical trade school certificate / Associate Degree in automotive repair
- Strong understanding of electric vehicle architecture and high-voltage systems
- Experience in a fast-paced service environment
- Familiarity with Lean, Six Sigma, or other continuous improvement methodologies
