Development Lead, Ground Charging Infrastructure

About this role

About Zipline

Zipline is the world’s largest and most experienced drone delivery service. We are on a mission to serve all humans equally by ensuring access to food, medicine and essential goods anytime, anywhere. We design, build, and operate the world’s largest autonomous logistics system, delivering critical supplies quickly and reliably. Today, Zipline operates on four continents, makes a delivery somewhere in the world every 30 seconds, and has completed millions of deliveries to date, including blood, vaccines, medical supplies, food, and retail products.

Our customers include the world’s largest and most prominent healthcare systems, governments, retailers, restaurants and global businesses who rely on us to save lives, reduce emissions, increase economic opportunity, and provide delivery from point A to point B as fast as possible. The drone is only 15% of what we’ve built to enable seamless, reliable, global operations.

Our system strengthens supply chains, reduces congestion, and gives people time back. With more than 140 million commercial autonomous miles safely flown, Zipline is redefining access to healthcare, consumer products, and food across the globe.

We operate at a global scale and are looking for practical problem solvers who thrive on real-world challenges and rapid growth. Our team is motivated by building systems that have a direct, meaningful impact on people’s lives and by scaling the future of logistics. We are seeking people who sculpt from first principles, enjoy facing adversity, and can do the impossible at record breaking speeds.

About You and The Role

Zipline is looking for a Development Manager Lead to lead the strategy and execution of ground system infrastructure that enables the next generation of autonomous operations. In this role, you will oversee a portfolio of infrastructure development projects, guiding them from early site evaluation through permitting and construction readiness while helping shape the processes, standards, and partnerships that enable Zipline to scale.

As a senior technical leader, you will partner closely with Engineering, Construction, Government Affairs, Legal, Operations, Real Estate, and external stakeholders to deliver reliable, scalable infrastructure. You will provide leadership on complex development challenges, mentor Development Managers, and serve as a trusted advisor on permitting strategy, utility coordination, and regulatory engagement.

This is a highly cross-functional role that requires deep technical expertise, sound business judgment, and exceptional stakeholder management. You'll build strong relationships with Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs), utility providers, consultants, and landowners while navigating complex regulatory environments to advance projects efficiently and responsibly.

What You'll Do

• Lead the development and execution of a portfolio of ground infrastructure projects from site identification through permitting and construction readiness.

• Provide technical leadership and strategic guidance for site due diligence, feasibility assessments, site design, permitting, and utility coordination.

• Develop and standardize development processes, permitting strategies, design standards, and best practices to improve scalability and execution across projects.

• Mentor and provide technical guidance to Development Managers, fostering their growth and ensuring consistent project execution.

• Oversee complex site due diligence activities, including land surveys, title review, easement verification, environmental studies, geotechnical investigations, and regulatory assessments.

• Review and guide multidisciplinary design packages to ensure constructability, operational requirements, regulatory compliance, and cost objectives are met.

• Build and maintain strong relationships with Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs), utility providers, consultants, and key external stakeholders.

• Lead negotiations with regulatory agencies and utility providers to resolve complex permitting and infrastructure challenges.

• Partner cross-functionally with Engineering, Construction, Government Affairs, Legal, Operations, and Supply Chain to align development priorities and remove execution roadblocks.

• Identify portfolio-level risks and develop mitigation strategies to maintain project schedules, budgets, and business objectives.

• Communicate project status, risks, and strategic recommendations to senior leadership and executive stakeholders.

• Drive continuous improvement across the development organization through lessons learned, process optimization, and technical excellence.

What You'll Bring

• 8-15+ years of experience leading land or infrastructure development projects from due diligence through permitting and construction readiness in industries such as autonomous aviation, EV charging infrastructure, energy, telecommunications, commercial development, or other complex infrastructure sectors.

• Proven experience leading multiple concurrent projects or infrastructure portfolios with demonstrated success delivering complex development programs.

• Strong technical expertise in civil, structural, electrical, or utility infrastructure development, with the ability to make sound engineering and business decisions.

• Extensive experience navigating entitlement, permitting, environmental review, and utility service processes with regulatory agencies and utility providers.

• Demonstrated success leading negotiations with AHJs, utility companies, consultants, and external partners.

• Experience mentoring, coaching, or leading technical teams and developing high-performing organizations.

• Exceptional project management, organizational, and stakeholder management skills.

• Strong executive communication and presentation skills, with the ability to influence decisions across technical and non-technical audiences.

• A collaborative leadership style with a bias for action, sound judgment

Similar jobs

• Development Manager, Ground Charging Infrastructure — Flyzipline · Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, USA; Los Angeles, California, USA; New York, New York, USA; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; San Diego, California, USA; Seattle, Washington, USA; South San Francisco, California, USA
• Manufacturing Test Infrastructure Lead, Energy Storage — Redwoodmaterials · San Francisco, California, United States
• Senior Electrical Engineer - Ground Systems — Flyzipline · South San Francisco, California, USA
• Senior Mechanical Engineer, Charging Systems — Figureai · San Jose, CA
• Commissioning Electrical Lead, Data Centers — Fluidstack · Austin, TX
• Staff Hardware Engineer, Charging Systems — Waymo · Mountain View, CA, US
• Lead Engineer — Raft · Remote
• Lead Infrastructure Engineer — Brisk-teaching · San Francisco