VW. Two letters. Endless opportunities. A bright future.

Innovation. Sophistication. Optimization. This is our Passion.

Worldwide, the Volkswagen Group has a long tradition of dramatic innovations. The Volkswagen Group with its headquarters in Wolfsburg is one of the world’s leading automobile manufacturers and the largest carmaker in Europe. The Group comprises twelve brands from seven European countries: Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Audi, SEAT, ŠKODA, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche, Ducati, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Scania and MAN. Here in the US, we are blending German engineering with American ingenuity.

As ADMT, we develop and realize fully autonomous mobility and transportation services. Our mission is to make mobility-and transportation-as-a-service safe, accessible, and most attractive for society. For that, we cover the entire ground from strategy and business development, software development and end-2-end integration, fleet operations to next-generation self-driving systems. Being the driver in Volkswagen Group initiative for mobility solutions, we are an integral part of Volkswagen Group's future success.

Role Summary

The Director, Autonomous Driving Safety oversees and ensures that ADMT LLC’s autonomous driving vehicles and services are specified, designed, tested, and operated safely. The primary mission for this role is to build and maintain the trust and confidence of the public, regulators, and government agencies at the federal, state and local levels.

The Director, Autonomous Driving Safety is responsible for leading the development and implementation of a comprehensive safety management system for ADMT LLC in cooperation with the responsible departments and other relevant VW structures globally. In this context, the Director, Autonomous Driving Safety will drive the development and implementation of policies and procedures to ensure compliance with safety regulations, industry standards and best practices for autonomous driving system development and operations in the US. The Director, Autonomous Driving Safety will have independence from the technology and business development organizations to provide the assurance that ADMT’s operations are safe, that risks are assessed, and sufficient plans are in place to manage risk to an acceptable level. In this role, the Director, Autonomous Driving Safety will be the primary point of contact for all safety related topics towards both company leadership and external stakeholders including regulators (NHTSA, state and local), business partners, suppliers, government agencies, industry bodies, first responders and more.

Role Responsibilities:

Safety System, Strategy & Communications

·    Develop and implement SMS (Safety Management Systems) processes and activities for in cooperation with the responsible departments globally.

·    Be the face and voice of ADMT to the outside world on safety-related matters, including participation in national and international forums on autonomous vehicle safety.

·    Actively drive the safety culture across all levels of the organization, ensuring that safety and security are an integral part of all planning and decision-making.

·    Collaborate globally across multi-functional organizations and bodies to integrate and maintain necessary safety principles, processes, and procedures.

·    Develop and execute a safety communication plan for supporting ADMTs expansion and community engagements.

·    Ensure the safety of the autonomous driving fleet by establishing safe operating procedures, overseeing their implementation, and continuously improving based on lessons learned.

·    Establish processes necessary to ensure continuous handling safety-related disruptions of ADMT LLC’s vehicle operations.

Incident & Regulatory inquiry response

·    Co-lead of the global AD Safety Board (ADSB) alongside the ADMT GmbH Chief Safety Officer (CSO)

·    Lead investigations on Incidents on public road testing with ID.Buzz AD and decide on Safety      measures, such as Grounding fleets, Request SW Updates, Deviation permits etc.

·    Escalate and Feed in Crisis Comms for all ADMT related incidents, inform & update VWGoA Crisis Comms team

·    Lead strategy and be the primary point of contact with internal safety departments, US regulatory agencies such as NHTSA, local safety agencies, first responders and similar in representing the company on establishing safety-related policies and procedures in conjunction with autonomous driving vehicles.

·    Establish and implement incident- and investigation-response processes, including their reporting, resolution and timely responses to government and regulatory agencies, while mitigating reputational risks.

·    Guide the communications teams on safety-related messaging.

Safety Framework

·    Lead activities for ADMT LLC to demonstrate product and operational safety compliance with relevant industry safety standards and guidelines (ISO, SAE, AVSC, etc.) for Autonomous Driving Systems, including third-party audits, assessments, and certifications, where applicable.

·    Lead the update and publishing of the VSSA (Voluntary Safety Self-Assessment) document based on product improvements and learnings; ensure that ADMT’s product and operations fulfill the claims included in the VSSA.

·    Review the global product Safety Assurance Case and drive the preparation of supplementary content where needed for US applications in support of the VSSA claims.

·    Develop safety plans and assessments to meet operational needs and expectations for specific Mobility- or Transportation-as-a-Service (MaaS /TaaS) implementations and business partners.

·    Analyze global safety performance metrics for their sufficiency to release products and services in target US markets.

·    Support the safety teams in technical reviews, including coordination of legal support where needed in the interpretations of US regulations, traffic laws and more.

·    Implement, maintain, and develop Quality Management System for ADMT LLC.

Years of Relevant Experience:

     ·    10+ years of relevant professional experience in a safety role in transportation, automotive, aviation or similar                    domain involving complex, safety-critical products

     ·    5+ years of leadership/supervisory experience preferred

 Education

·    Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Robotics, Computer Science, or a related field

·    PREFERRED: Master’s or PhD in Engineering, Robotics, Computer Science, or a related field is a plus

 Skills:

• Excellent team management/leadership and conflict resolutions skills
•  Excellent English language skills mandatory
• Excellent written, communication and presentation skills with top management, internal / external partners, stakeholders, and project affiliates
• Ability to understand and extract action plans from complex technical discussions and translate into succinct messaging for cross-functional status reporting
• Self-motivated, flexible individual with high degree of innovation, ownership, and accountability for results
• Work globally and cross-functionally to ensure necessary project support and prioritization
• Strong initiative, and excellent influencing and negotiation skills
• Strong process orientation
• Analytical, strategical, and conceptual thinking – using logic and reason
• Strong desire to learn and close knowledge gaps related to technology and software used in the product
• Able to work in a highly dynamic, multi-disciplinary, timeline bound and target oriented global work environment
• Able to continuously question and challenge the status-quo, always documenting and applying the lessons learned
• Valid State Driving License

 Required Skills:

• Deep experience in the safety engineering of complex, software-controlled systems
• Knowledge and experience in the application of automotive and autonomous system safety standards and best practices (ISO 26262, ISO 21448, etc.)
• Experience with implementing Quality management systems, esp. ISO 9001 certification
• Knowledge of applicable safety regulations and best practices (NHTSA, DOT, AVSC, etc.)
• Expertise with modern systems engineering methods and tools, judgment and detail oriented in exercising careful planning
• Knowledge of recognized gaps in global safety standards, particularly when applied to autonomy
• Experience leading or overseeing accident/ incident investigations
• Knowledge and experience designing a safety management system (SMS): including proactive, reactive, and reporting strategies

 Desired Skills:

• Familiarity in developing and/or testing autonomous systems or those involving AI/ML
• Automotive, aviation or similar product development experience
• Experience interacting with regulatory agencies at the federal, state, and local levels (NHTSA, NTSB, etc.)
• Safety certification in relevant areas

 Work Flexibility:

• Accommodation for working time zone differences between US locations and Germany as needed
• Ready and able to travel (international and domestic) to remote offices, training facilities or other testing cities subject to business needs

Volkswagen Group of America is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We welcome and encourage applicants from all backgrounds, and do not discriminate based on race, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, color, gender identity/expression, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristics protected by applicable laws.

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