Technical Project Manager (6-month contract)

Dephy is looking for a candidate who has an urge to understand how things work and who gets excited to find a solution to the problem at hand. We are curious, creative, and passionate, and looking for a team member to help us tackle challenges at the forefront of wearable robotics.
About the Company
At Dephy, our mission is to empower people to move through life with confidence. That starts with building a team that shares our purpose.
Description of Role
We’re looking for a Technical Project Manager to be the organizational backbone of our hardware and software engineering team. You’ll build and manage project plans, run planning sessions and design reviews, and keep work moving across electrical, software, mechanical, firmware, and manufacturing using an agile approach adapted for hardware’s long lead times and validation cycles. You’ll spot at-risk milestones early, clear blockers, and keep the team focused.
The ideal candidate is experienced at operating without direct authority and is confident in negotiation, influence, and constructively pushing back when schedules, scope, or commitments are at risk.
You’ll also track component sourcing and purchase orders, so parts arrive when the schedule needs them. If you enjoy bringing order to complex, cross-functional work, we’d love to hear from you.
Key Responsibilities
Project Coordination & Agile Facilitation (~75%)
Serve as the primary link between program management and the engineering team, turning program goals and timelines into actionable engineering plans while keeping leadership informed on progress, risks, and schedule impacts.
Build and maintain project plans, timelines, and dependency maps across engineering, procurement, and manufacturing in Smartsheet.
Facilitate team check-ins and planning sessions using a cadence suited to hardware work — not a rigid two-week sprint box, but a rolling planning window that accounts for long lead times and validation cycles
Maintain a visible task/backlog board (Jira) that reflects both engineering tasks and procurement dependencies side by side
Track action items, owners, and deadlines; proactively flag at-risk milestones
Identify and remove blockers for engineers — including surfacing supply chain blockers before they stall a build
Run retrospectives and continuous-improvement check-ins to refine team workflow over time
Coordinate and facilitate cross-team meetings (design reviews, kickoffs, milestone checkpoints, cross-functional syncs with EE, mechanical, firmware, and procurement)
Identify and risk-plan for scope creep and unnecessary context-switching
Use flow-based metrics (cycle time, WIP limits, throughput) rather than sprint velocity where they better reflect hardware's uneven task sizes
Procurement & Supply Chain (~25%)
Track Sourcing for electrical, mechanical, and other components (ICs, PCBs, connectors, enclosures, cables, fasteners)
Manage quotes, compare distributor/vendor pricing (Digi-Key, Mouser, LCSC, direct manufacturer channels)
Issue and track purchase orders; expedite critical-path orders
Monitor lead times and proactively flag components at risk of delaying the schedule
Manage basic vendor relationships and negotiate pricing/terms where applicable
Requirements
Required Qualifications
Be a good human - get along with the team, build strong working relationships, and execute on Dephy’s Values.
5+ years in project coordination, program management, or procurement (software/hardware/electronics environment strongly preferred).
Strong organizational skills and comfort managing many moving parts simultaneously across software, electrical, firmware, and manufacturing.
Confident operating without direct authority: able to negotiate, influence, and push back constructively when schedules, scope, or vendor commitments are at risk.
Working knowledge of agile methodology; scrum master experience or certification a plus (CSM, PSM).
Experience with project/task tracking tools (Jira, Smartsheet).
Clear written and verbal communication across technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Desired Qualifications
Experience working directly with electrical, software, firmware, or mechanical engineering teams
Vendor negotiation experience
Exposure to manufacturing or NPI (New Product Introduction) processes
Ability to read and understand a BOM and basic component datasheets
Other Information
Start date: ASAP- 6 month contract, with possibility to extend.
At Dephy, our mission is to empower people to move through life with confidence. Our goal is to do this by attracting, hiring, and building a team of good humans. Humans who are diverse builders with unique collections of tools, cultures, and experiences. We celebrate our differences and foster an environment for our team to learn and ask questions. We trust and respect each other, and value the cultural contribution that we each bring to Dephy. We believe that when people feel respected and included they can be more creative, innovative, and successful. We encourage you to apply, even if you don't meet every qualification or skill.
Candidates need to be authorized to work in the U.S. Local candidates will be prioritized.
Hourly Rate: $55 based on expereince
This position is not eligible for sponsorship of an immigration case in order to employ you (for example, H-1B or other employment-based immigration case).
This listing is not for reproduction. No recruiters, please; only interested candidates.
Apply at http://dephy.com/
Benefits
Retirement Plan (Simple IRA)
Free Food & Snacks
Cafe on Site
Dog Friendly Office

Skills
Agile, Scrum, Jira, Negotiation, Sourcing, Procurement

Experience
5+ yrs

Work arrangement
No