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Zipline

Site Launcher

South San Francisco, USAOn-sitePosted 3 days ago

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Job type
Not listed
Work mode
On-site
Level
Not listed
Department
Business Operations
Experience
3+ years experience
Posted
Sep 28, 2026

About the role

About You and The Role

As a Site Launcher, you are the on-the-ground point person for bringing new Zipline charging locations and partner sites into service. You turn launch plans into coordinated action: bringing teams together, verifying readiness, resolving blockers, and carrying each assigned site through first deliveries and handoff to ongoing operations.

This is a hands-on individual contributor role with real ownership. You will be trusted to run day-to-day site execution without constant direction, lead people who do not report to you, and make sound decisions as conditions change. You will work closely with the Launch Manager on broader planning and major tradeoffs, while owning daily priorities, follow-through, and clear communication from the field. You know when to act independently, when to bring in a functional expert, and when to escalate.

Success means sites are genuinely ready to launch, teams know what comes next, and risks are visible early enough to act.

What You'll Do

  • Lead the launch on the ground. Serve as the primary day-to-day coordination point for assigned sites, from pre-launch preparation through launch, early operations, and handoff.
  • Turn the plan into action. Maintain site-level launch plans with clear milestones, dependencies, owners, and deadlines. Set daily priorities, run focused check-ins, and follow commitments through to completion.
  • Bring teams together. Align infrastructure, permitting, regulatory, flight operations, maintenance, commercial, community engagement, and partner teams around the launch plan. Resolve gaps between workstreams so critical tasks do not fall between teams.
  • Verify readiness firsthand. Walk the site, validate reported progress with functional owners, and confirm site, equipment, staffing, partner, and operational readiness against required gates. Confirm required checks and approvals are complete before launch; do not trade safety for schedule.
  • Manage risks and resolve blockers. Identify risks early, assess their impact, and drive mitigations with the responsible teams. Resolve issues within your scope; escalate safety concerns immediately and larger tradeoffs early, with clear facts, options, and a recommendation.
  • Report a clear picture from the field. Provide concise, accurate updates on what is ready, what has changed, what is blocked, the schedule impact, and which decisions or help are needed. Keep site plans, trackers, and launch records current.
  • Complete a clear operational handoff. Stay engaged through early operations, confirm the receiving team has the information it needs, and ensure remaining actions have agreed owners and deadlines.
  • Make the next launch better. Apply standard playbooks, readiness checklists, and reporting tools. Capture field learnings and recommend practical improvements that make launches safer, smoother, and more repeatable.

What You'll Bring

  • Typically 3–5 years of relevant experience in field operations, deployment, logistics, project coordination, or physical-site launches, or equivalent hands-on experience.
  • Experience owning a project, rollout, or operational workstream through completion in an environment with multiple teams and time-sensitive dependencies.
  • Sound judgment and autonomy: you can prioritize, make decisions within your scope, and recognize when an issue needs escalation rather than improvisation.
  • Ability to lead without formal authority, build trust with field teams and partners, and hold others accountable constructively.
  • Clear written and verbal communication, including concise status updates that distinguish confirmed facts from assumptions and make the next action obvious.
  • Strong organization, attention to detail, and follow-through, with the composure to adapt when plans change.
  • Comfort working on-site and traveling frequently to U.S. launch locations. Approximately 50% travel is expected.
  • Experience with physical infrastructure, construction, or real estate is helpful, but not required.