Head of Quality & Reliability
Santa Clara, California
Production Manufacturing – Operations Program /
Full-time /
On-site
Atomic Machines is ushering in a new era in micromanufacturing with its Matter Compiler (MC) technology. The MC enables new classes of micromachines to be designed and built by offering manufacturing processes and a materials library that is inaccessible to semiconductor manufacturing methods. The MC promises to unlock MEMS manufacturing both for the many device classes that never could be made by semiconductor methods but also to open up entirely new classes. Furthermore, the MC is fully digital in the way 3D printing is digital, but where 3D printing produces parts of a single material using a single process, the MC is a multi-process, multi-material technology: bits and raw materials go in and complete, functional micromachines come out. The Atomic Machines team has also created an exciting first device – one that was only made possible by the existence of the Matter Compiler – that we will be unveiling to the world soon.
Our offices are in Emeryville and Santa Clara, California.
About The Role:
We are looking for a Head of Quality and Reliability to lead our efforts in establishing world-class processes for a new class of manufacturing. The AMP platform is the first of its kind and therefore has unique abilities and requirements when it comes to quality and reliability. We are looking for someone with a deep understanding of the fundamentals of quality and reliability who also understands the promise of truly deterministic digital manufacturing. The ideal candidate will be able to combine their knowledge and understanding with the capabilities of AMP to help usher in a new paradigm of precision and repeatability. This will be a highly visible role within the company and successful execution will be critical to the success of the AMP vision.We are seeking an experienced and hands-on Head of Quality & Reliability to build and lead the quality organization at a fast-paced, innovation-driven high-tech startup. This highly visible role is critical to the success of the AMP vision, as the ideal candidate will be responsible for setting the quality vision and implementing processes that ensure product performance, manufacturability, compliance, and customer satisfaction.
The successful candidate will develop and execute the company's quality and reliability strategy across R&D, manufacturing, supply chain, and customer support functions—ensuring robust design validation, production readiness, continuous improvement, and field performance monitoring.
The ideal candidate will have a strong background in quality engineering, reliability testing, and manufacturing process control, with a track record of implementing scalable quality systems from the ground up. We are looking for someone with a deep understanding of the fundamentals of quality and reliability who also understands the promise of truly deterministic digital manufacturing. This leader will combine their knowledge and understanding with the capabilities of the AMP platform, a new class of manufacturing that is the first of its kind, to help usher in a new paradigm of precision and repeatability.
What You'll Do:
- Develop and implement the company's QMS, ensuring compliance with ISO 9001 and other relevant certifications.
- Define the quality vision, objectives, roadmap, and metrics, aligning them with business goals.
- Lead the Management Review Board (MRB) process, material disposition, and corrective/preventive actions.
- Establish and maintain the QMS for all of Atomic Machines, encompassing both product devices and the AMP manufacturing platform.
- Define and lead reliability testing plans for devices and equipment throughout design and validation stages (e.g., HALT/HASS, ESS, environmental testing, life testing).Ensure closed feedback loops from design to manufacturing to the field, driving data-driven improvements.
- Establish and track field failure rates and corresponding corrective action plans.
- Create and execute reliability test plans for AMP hardware.
- Lead factory and site acceptance testing for new and repeat equipment.
- Champion "Quality at the Source" in manufacturing, designing processes to minimize rework, escapes, and variation.
- Implement in-process and end-of-line inspection methods, test coverage, and statistical process control (SPC).
- Build systems to monitor yield, scrap, and rework trends, and lead initiatives for improvement.
- Establish processes for incoming and outgoing inspection and test, and oversee the management of non-conforming materials.
- Lead efforts to improve the overall equipment effectiveness of the AMP platform to meet internal targets.
- Perform regular audits of AMP manufacturing facilities to ensure consistent operations and adherence to quality standards.
- Define and enforce supplier qualification processes, including audits, PPAP, FAI, incoming inspection, and performance scorecards.
- Collaborate with sourcing and engineering to develop strategic suppliers that meet quality, cost, and delivery expectations.
- Plan and deliver PPAP documentation as required by customers.
- Serve as the primary voice of the customer for product quality concerns, leading structured issue resolution (e.g., 8D, RCA, FMEA).
- Drive customer complaint resolution processes, product recall decision-making, and communication protocols.
- Establish and maintain quality KPIs across development, manufacturing, and field performance (e.g., yield, DPPM, escapes, audit findings, reliability).
- Set up regular quality reviews with executive and functional teams, providing transparency on trends, risks, and mitigation plans.
- Build and manage internal audit and continuous improvement programs.
- Establish and monitor quality metrics for AMP and the devices it will produce.
- Track recurring issues, perform root cause analysis, and ensure corrective actions are implemented.
- Collaborate with Operations teams to establish and monitor performance metrics, ensuring actions are taken for improvement.
- Lead Atomic Machines through all relevant third-party certifications such as UL and ISO.
- Recruit, lead, and develop a high-performing quality and reliability team.
- Collaborate cross-functionally with engineering, manufacturing, supply chain, product, and customer service teams to embed quality discipline.
- Foster a culture of ownership, accountability, and continuous improvement throughout the organization.
- Build and manage both the Quality and Reliability teams, leading resource planning to meet company objectives.
- Manage the quality and reliability teams by setting goals and KPIs to track performance, requiring detailed knowledge of quality tracking methods and tools.
- Develop metrology solutions aligned with the AMP manufacturing philosophy of deterministic digital manufacturing.
- Establish Product Quality Plans (PQPs) for all new products with input from the Devices team.
- Participate in design reviews at each project milestone and act as a required approver for all design gates.
What You'll Need:
- 10+ years in progressive quality and reliability roles, including leadership positions of teams (5+ people)
- Quality Management Systems (QMS) Leadership: Demonstrated expertise in the development, deployment, and scaling of QMS frameworks such as ISO 9001, from early-stage startup through growth. Experience leading ISO audits and maintaining certification is required.
- Reliability Engineering Proficiency: Exhibits a strong understanding of reliability best practices, modeling techniques, physics of failure, and accelerated life testing (e.g., HALT/HASS).
- Root Cause & Corrective Action Mastery: Possesses deep experience with RCCA methodologies including FMEA, 8D, 5 Whys, fishbone/Ishikawa diagrams, and statistical tools for failure analysis and prevention.
- Prototype to Production Scalability: Proven success in establishing quality processes that scale from R&D and NPI through volume manufacturing.
- Supplier Quality & Audits: Demonstrates hands-on experience with supplier qualification, audits, incoming inspection protocols, PPAPs, and supplier scorecard systems.
- Capital Equipment Qualification: Experienced in qualifying capital equipment and associated tooling for both production use and product reliability testing.
- Design for Manufacturing (DFM) Awareness: Familiarity with DFM principles and their impact on quality, manufacturability, and yield at scale.
- System & Data Tool Familiarity: Proficient with PLM, MES, and ERP systems, and adept at driving closed-loop quality feedback into engineering and operations.
- Leadership & Cross-Functional Collaboration: Possesses strong execution skills and the ability to lead and influence cross-functional teams including engineering, manufacturing, supply chain, and customer support.
- Team Building & People Leadership: Proven track record of hiring, developing, and managing high-performing quality and reliability teams in dynamic environments.
- Startup & Scaling Agility: Comfortable operating in startup or high-growth environments, including the ability to build quality systems and infrastructure from inception.
- Communication & Documentation Excellence: Exhibits exceptional written and verbal communication skills with a strong emphasis on documentation quality and the ability to drive clear reporting of quality metrics and decisions.
- Problem Solving & Strategic Influence: A fast, critical thinker with a collaborative mindset, capable of driving clarity and alignment in high-tempo environments through whiteboarding, trade-off analysis, and stakeholder influence.
- Adaptability & Initiative: Creative, autonomous, and resilient in ambiguous situations; demonstrates strong initiative and the ability to deliver tangible progress amid change.
- A Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Physics, or a related technical field is required; a Master’s degree is preferred.
$200,000 - $250,000 a year
The compensation for this position also includes equity and benefits.
