Product Design Engineering Program Manager - Apple Watch
Summary
Leads the mechanical enclosure development for Apple Watch, coordinating engineering teams and manufacturers to deliver premium, miniaturized devices from design to mass production.
Apple is where individual imaginations gather together, committing to the values that lead to great work. Every new product we build, service we create, or Apple Store experience we deliver is the result of us making each other’s ideas stronger. That happens because every one of us shares a belief that we can make something wonderful and share it with the world, changing lives for the better. It’s the diversity of our people and their thinking that inspires the innovation that runs through everything we do. When we bring everybody in, we can do the best work of our lives. Here, you’ll do more than join something — you’ll add something.
Apple Watch is the ultimate device for a healthy life, requiring incredibly precise mechanical engineering that combines premium materials, advanced health sensors, and miniaturized systems into a beautifully compact form factor. We are looking for a dedicated Product Design EPM to lead the development of our world-class device enclosures, balancing structural integrity, premium aesthetics, and cutting-edge technology integration.
The PD EPM is a hands-on programmatic role where you will be responsible for delivering mechanical enclosures and modules through the entire program life cycle, from early architecture and design to mass production. It includes frequent multi-disciplinary collaboration with teams like Product Design, RF, EE, System EPM, EPS and Operations. You will be responsible for driving the program through the entire development process, creating and maintaining streamlined schedules, driving cross-functional progress, managing mechanical and system builds at vendor and final assembly factories, and presenting multiple levels of status updates to org leaders and executives.
Minimum Qualifications
- Previous experience in engineering program management.
- Experience in mechanical engineering delivering products comprised of multiple
- advanced materials (e.g., metals, glass, ceramics, advanced adhesives,
- engineering plastics) is preferred.
- Experience leading product development in highly dynamic and ambiguous work
- environments, supporting high-volume mechanical manufacturing and system
- integration.
- Excellent communication, teamwork, cross-functional engagement, and strong
- presentation skills.
- Ability to anticipate functional direction and roadblocks, prioritize parallel closure
- paths, and effectively distill and communicate relevant data to the appropriate
- functional and leadership teams.
- Demonstrates independent initiative and attention to detail with proven creative
- and critical thinking capabilities.
- Experience engaging with manufacturers on Design for Manufacturability (DFM),
- FAI/CPK, quality control, and production timelines.
- BS degree in Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, Industrial Engineering, or
- equivalent; MS degree preferred.
Preferred Qualifications
- 5+ years of experience related to engineering program management in the
- consumer electronics industry.
- Wide knowledge of mechanical development processes including a detailed
- understanding of manufacturing processes (e.g., CNC machining, stamping,
- forging, injection molding, metrology) and tooling timelines.
- Shipped multiple full life-cycle programs with demonstrated experience in early
- architecture, development build execution, and operational mass production.
- Experience as a primary point of contact with vendors and contract manufacturing
- partners to establish a daily build plan, provide clear direction, and offer guidance
- to meet program and build objectives.