Staff Program Manager, Incident Management - AV Development

Job 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 i