VP Engineering

RIVR is a Swiss robotics company pioneering Physical AI and robotic solutions to revolutionize last-mile delivery, giving 1 human the power of 1000. Through the combination of artificial neural networks and innovative robot designs with wheels and legs, RIVR aims to enhance efficiency, sustainability, and scalability in last-mile delivery. Founded as Swiss-Mile, the company rebranded to RIVR in 2025 to better reflect its mission of driving the future of intelligent robotics. Join our innovative team, renowned for pioneering robotic design and neural network applications in robotics that improve environmental understanding and decision-making. With a robust research foundation and notable contributions from ETH Zurich, we are leaders in translating artificial intelligence and robotics into practical, real-world applications.

RIVR is committed to building a diverse and inclusive team that values every perspective. If you're passionate about driving innovation in robotics and creating meaningful impact, we encourage you to apply and bring your unique self to our team.

Job Description
As a senior software engineering leader at RIVR, you will work closely with the CTO Software to scale the software organization during a period of rapid growth. This role is designed for someone passionate about developing talent, guiding teams, and creating processes and structures that allow engineers to thrive in a complex software, AI, and cloud environment. You will help build a high-performing software organization where ownership, iteration, clear communication, and collaboration are the foundation for delivering impactful software solutions. Your work will directly influence how teams operate, make decisions, and grow, while ensuring that RIVR's culture of responsibility, ambition, and collaboration is reinforced every day.This is a rare opportunity for a leader who combines technical insight with a genuine passion for coaching managers, strengthening team culture, and enabling engineers to do their best work.

What You'll Be Doing

• Partner with the CTO Software to scale the software engineering organization, aligning structure and priorities with RIVR's mission
• Mentor and coach engineering managers, team leads, and senior ICs to foster accountability, clear ownership, and professional growth
• Establish clear processes, alignment, and structures across AI, cloud, APIs, fleet management, and product engineering teams
• Improve execution by refining planning, prioritization, communication, and decision-making practices
• Encourage a culture of iteration and velocity, where teams act quickly, learn from feedback, and remove blockers proactively
• Lead organizational planning, including headcount strategy, hiring priorities, and team structures that support long-term scalability
• Partner with Product, Field and Remote Operations, and Hardware teams to ensure software initiatives are aligned, integrated, and impactful
• Support the CTO in driving transparency, predictable delivery, and high-quality decision-making across software engineering
• Help build a resilient software engineering organization prepared for global growth, while maintaining a culture of trust, respect, and collaboration

What You Must Have

• Significant leadership experience in software engineering, AI, cloud, robotics, or similarly complex environments
• Experience scaling software teams in fast-growing startups or scale-ups
• Proven ability to develop talent, foster high-performing teams, and strengthen leadership across an organization
• Bias for action: ability to move teams forward through iteration, constructive feedback, and decisive progress
• Track record of improving engineering processes, communication, and cross-team collaboration
• Experience partnering with a CTO or senior technical executive
• Strong technical understanding combined with organizational awareness and empathy
• Collaborative, solution-oriented mindset with a habit of stepping up proactively

Get some bonus points

• Background in software program management, org design, or people operations
• Experience with cloud infrastructure, AI/ML pipelines, or fleet software for robotics
• Familiarity with multicultural or international software teams (Europe & US)
• Exposure to CI/CD, DevOps practices, or large-scale distributed systems

RIVR is committed to building a diverse and inclusive team that values every perspective. If you're passionate about driving innovation in robotics and creating meaningful impact, we encourage you to apply and bring your unique self to our team.

We believe the best work is done when collaborating and therefore require in-person presence in our office locations.