Staff Operations Program Manager

About this role

WHO WE ARE

Biofire Technologies is on a mission to give gun owners better tools for reducing preventable gun injuries and deaths, especially among children. We believe our technology, combined with a best-in-class customer experience, will define the future of firearms safety for the next generation. Our mission-driven approach has earned support from the firearm community, the tech world, and the media.

Biofire employees encompass a diverse range of talents, including world-class engineers who have designed and tested firearms, medical devices, robots, cars, satellites, rockets, and supersonic jets; expert technicians from aerospace, defense tech, special forces, and gunsmithing; and elite operators from high-tech, advanced manufacturing, and regulated industries. Whether building the product or powering the company behind it, every Biofire team member is united by an obsession with safety, reliability, and operational excellence.

OUR CULTURE

Reducing accidental firearm injuries and deaths requires original thinking and authentic collaboration, so we’re deeply invested in building a team and culture that can achieve our mission together. Team members enjoy autonomy and flexibility from day one, so expect to be immediately tasked with solving challenging problems and building new systems that work. We’ll hold you accountable for executing audacious goals, giving and receiving honest feedback, and helping your teammates succeed. You’ll receive respect, kindness, and support from every direction while you figure out how to get it all done.

ABOUT THE ROLE

As an Operations Program Manager at Biofire, you will serve as the connective tissue between Supply Chain and Production — owning the operational execution pipeline that keeps both organizations synchronized and ensures handoffs never create gaps. We are looking for a disciplined, cross-functional operator with deep manufacturing program management expertise to build the coordination infrastructure that governs how product changes move from concept to the production floor.

To succeed you will need to design and operate upstream coordination forums, author a Product Development Process that governs all active programs of record, enforce readiness gates before programs reach affected teams, and drive measurable improvement in program intent achievement across scope, schedule, and quality. You will need to be a systems thinker and structured executor who is eager to build the programmatic discipline a fast-moving hardware company needs to scale reliably. If you're excited about building the operational backbone of a mission-critical manufacturing organization from the ground up, we encourage you to apply.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Day-to-day responsibilities of the role will include:

- Owning the operational execution pipeline across Supply Chain and Production — ensuring cross-functional readiness before changes reach the Change Review Board, and that no handoff creates a coordination gap;

- Designing, launching, and running upstream coordination forums with defined cadence, attendees, agenda structure, and action tracking across Supply Chain, Production, Engineering, and Software;

- Authoring and publishing a Product Development Process (PDP) with clear stage gates, entry/exit criteria, and lines of responsibility — including modular plug-in points for future Engineering and Technical Program Manager counterparts;

- Enforcing readiness gates for every program of record — ensuring each program is PDP-approved, scoped with a full WBS with named owners and target dates, and scheduled with a realistic walk-back timeline before broadcast to affected teams;

- Managing 2–3 concurrent programs of record simultaneously, proactively identifying risks both upstream (inputs from other organizations that threaten the portfolio) and downstream (manufacturing omissions that put successors at risk);

- Building and operating a measurement system that tracks program intent achievement across scope, schedule, and quality dimensions — and using it to drive continuous improvement across successive programs;

- Peering with Director-level leaders across Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Engineering, and Software to build influence without positional authority and earn credibility through demonstrated understanding of the cross-functional landscape.

QUALIFICATIONS

We understand that not all applicants will possess skills that perfectly align with our job qualifications. At Biofire, we appreciate diverse experiences from various industries, and we encourage all individuals who meet the necessary qualifications to submit their applications. While having the "desired" qualifications may strengthen a candidate's profile, we also welcome applicants with alternative experiences to apply.

- 7+ years of program or project management experience in a hardware manufacturing environment, with direct exposure to contract manufacturing, supply chain, and production operations;

- Demonstrated experience building cross-functional coordination processes from scratch — not inheriting and running an existing system, but designing the structure, cadence, and governance;

- Proven ability to manage 2–3 concurrent complex programs simultaneously, with externalized systems (WBS, trackers, review cadences) that maintain context and keep all programs moving;

- Track record of identifying and escalating programmatic risks using leading indicators — before they materialize into misses — with a structured approach to classifying severity and reversibility;

- Experience operating as a staff-level individual contributor who peers with Director-level leaders and drives cross-functional execution without direct line authority;

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

In addition to competitive pay, as a full-time employee at Biofire you are eligible for:

- Stock Options in Biofire, 401(k), HSA - and other financial benefits

- Medical Insurance - including plan…