R&D Program Manager

Company Overview

At Motorola Solutions, we believe that everything starts with our people. We’re a global close-knit community, united by the relentless pursuit to help keep people safer everywhere. We build and connect technologies to help protect people, property and places. Our solutions foster the collaboration that’s critical for safer communities, safer schools, safer hospitals, safer businesses, and ultimately, safer nations. Connect with a career that matters, and help us build a safer future.

Department Overview

Program Management Office

Job Description

About the Role
Join Motorola Solutions’ Video organization in Penang! We are seeking an experienced R&D Program Manager to lead end-to-end product development lifecycles for mission-critical radio, video and security ecosystem solutions. In this role, you will drive cross-functional engineering squads across a matrixed organization partnering with engineering functional heads to deliver complex hardware, software, and integrated system products on time and within budget.

Key Responsibilities

• End-to-End Governance & Lifecycle Management: Drive complex programs from initiation through baseline to market launch in strict compliance with the development lifecycle.
• Schedule Architecture & Executive Visibility: Build, manage, and communicate clear executive schedules using enterprise tools such as Smartsheet or Microsoft Project. Track critical path dependencies, manage established schedule baselines, and present transparent health updates to senior stakeholders.
• Baseline & Scope Control: Govern program scope and manage design or milestone changes via formal Change Control Board (CCB) approvals.
• Matrixed Resource & Capacity Alignment: Work closely with the Business team and Engineering Department Head to align resource loading against product roadmaps, ensuring optimal headcount utilization across functional disciplines.
• Risk Mitigation & Schedule Compression: Proactively identify critical path bottlenecks, lead crisis recovery efforts for troubled milestones, and apply schedule compression techniques (such as fast-tracking or crashing) while accounting for quarter-end operational constraints.
• Supplier & Partner Execution: Lead Statement of Work (SOW) sign-offs for outsourced programs, managing external vendor, JDM, or ODM deliverables to ensure quality and contract compliance.
• Process Compliance & Escalations: Act as the primary point of contact for program escalations. Ensure full compliance with quality, regulatory (e.g., FCC, country type approvals, carrier certifications), and reliability standards while maintaining complete artifacts in the program repository.

Basic Requirements

What You Bring (Requirements)

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Electrical & Electronic Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Telecommunications, or an equivalent technical field.
• Experience: 5 to 8+ years of proven project/program management experience driving multi-disciplinary hardware, software, and system solutions within the technology or telecommunications sector.
• Matrix Leadership & Conflict Resolution: Proven ability to navigate complex "people puzzles," resolve interdependency friction, and drive accountability across cross-functional engineering teams without direct administrative line authority.
• Methodology & Tools: Expert-level mastery of project management scheduling tools (Smartsheet or MS Project), Agile/Scrum frameworks, Jira, and formal gated product lifecycles.
• AI Tool Adoption: Demonstrated experience integrating modern AI tools into daily workflows to improve schedule analysis, risk tracking, and operational output quality.
  

Bonus Points If You Have:

• PMP or PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP) certification.
• Hands-on experience managing global ODM/JDM hardware development partners.

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Travel Requirements

None

Relocation Provided

None

Position Type

Experienced

Referral Payment Plan

Yes

EEO Statement

Motorola Solutions is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status or any other legally-protected characteristic. 

We are proud of our people-first and community-focused culture, empowering every Motorolan to be their most authentic self and to do their best work to deliver on the promise of a safer world. If you’d like to join our team but feel that you don’t quite meet all of the preferred skills, we’d still love to hear why you think you’d be a great addition to our team.