Haystack
← Back to Jobs
Manufacturing
AI

Production Lead

Anduril IndustriesCosta Mesa🇺🇸United StatesPosted Oct 5, 2026

Why This Role Stands Out

This Production Lead role offers a unique opportunity to build and scale manufacturing operations for cutting-edge autonomous vehicle programs within a leading defense technology company, with a competitive salary of $146,000 - $194,000. You'll thrive here if you possess strong leadership and technical expertise, enjoy building processes from the ground up, and are driven to deliver impactful results in a dynamic environment. Apply now to shape the future of military technology and advance your career!

Quick Overview

Salary
$146k - $194k/yr
Seniority
Mid Senior
Work mode
Hybrid
Location
Costa Mesa, United States
Posted
2 days ago
Continuous ImprovementDemand PlanningLean ManufacturingProcurementSix Sigma

Job Description

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.

ABOUT THE JOB

The Maneuver Dominance team at Anduril develops operationally relevant, multi-asset autonomy. We are focused on new air vehicle development programs, and making large groups of autonomous systems work effectively together.

ABOUT THE JOB

You will lead all production activity for an autonomous vehicle program within the Air Maneuver business line. You will build and lead the production organization from scratch, establishing manufacturing processes, quality systems, and the infrastructure needed to scale from prototype builds through full-rate production.
Your spectrum of support will be diverse in nature and require you to leverage your technical expertise as well as leadership skills to set objectives, build cross-functional teams, and rapidly drive to completion. The ability to leverage your intuition and prior experience will be key in making sure the right design, analysis, and test steps are completed to ensure success. The ideal candidate will leverage their experience executing and successfully completing prior highly optimized multi-disciplinary projects.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

  • Own all production activity: manufacturing, quality, supply chain, and production support
  • Build and lead the production organization, hiring across manufacturing engineering, quality, and operations
  • Establish manufacturing processes and production infrastructure for complex electromechanical vehicles
  • Drive the manufacturing development lifecycle: Concept, Prototype, LRIP, FRP
  • Manage production budgets, schedules, and on-time delivery performance
  • Own production readiness reviews and design handoff from engineering
  • Coordinate supply chain including demand planning, procurement, and warehouse operations
  • Implement and optimize production systems (ERP, MES, QMS)
  • Drive continuous improvement using Lean, Six Sigma, or equivalent methodologies
  • Ensure compliance with AS9100D and customer quality requirements
  • Interface with engineering, program management, and customer organizations
  • Travel up to 25% to manufacturing facilities and customer sites

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

  • Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Industrial Engineering, or equivalent
  • 8+ years of experience in manufacturing or production for complex electromechanical systems
  • Experience building and leading production teams and organizations
  • Demonstrated experience scaling production from NPI through full-rate production
  • Experience with production systems (ERP, MES, QMS)
  • Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Secret security clearance

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

  • Experience in maritime, aerospace, or defense manufacturing
  • Working knowledge of AS9100D quality management systems
  • Experience with Lean manufacturing and Six Sigma methodologies
  • Familiarity with shipbuilding or large vehicle production
  • Experience managing production budgets in the $10M+ range
US Salary Range
$146,000—$194,000 USD

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including: 

Benefits

At Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you’re supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits.

Protecting Yourself from Recruitment Scams

Anduril is committed to maintaining the integrity of our Talent acquisition process and the security of our candidates. We've observed a rise in sophisticated phishing and fraudulent schemes where individuals impersonate Anduril representatives, luring job seekers with false interviews or job offers. These scammers often attempt to extract payment or sensitive personal information.

To ensure your safety and help you navigate your job search with confidence, please keep the following critical points in mind:

  • No Financial Requests: Anduril will never solicit payment or demand personal financial details (such as banking information, credit card numbers, or social security numbers) at any stage of our hiring process. Our legitimate recruitment is entirely free for candidates.

  • Please always verify communications:
    • Direct from Anduril: If you receive an email from one of our recruiters, it will only come from an @anduril.com address.
    • Via Agency Partner: If contacted by a recruiting agency for an Anduril role, their email will clearly identify their agency. If you suspect any suspicious activity, please verify the agency's authenticity by reaching out to contact@anduril.com. 

  • Exercise Caution with Unsolicited Outreach: If you receive any communication that appears suspicious, contains grammatical errors, or makes unusual requests, do not engage. Always confirm the sender's email domain is @anduril.com before providing any personal information or clicking on links.

  • What to Do If You Suspect Fraud: Should you encounter any questionable or fraudulent outreach claiming to be from Anduril, please report it immediately to contact@anduril.com. Your proactive caution is invaluable in protecting your personal information and upholding the security and trustworthiness of our recruitment efforts.

Data Privacy

To view Anduril's candidate data privacy policy, please visit https://anduril.com/applicant-privacy-notice/. 

By submitting your application, you consent to Anduril Industries using a third-party service provider to conduct pre-employment risk, integrity, and due diligence screening and assessing potential risks as part of your application process. This third-party service provider provides risk-intelligence services that may include analysis of sanctions and watchlists, adverse media, public-record information, and other lawful open-source or commercial data sources. This third-party service provider does not act as a consumer reporting agency. Use of this provider helps to ensure compliance with applicable laws and protect technology, intellectual property, and organizational security.

Similar jobs

Browse related jobs

Apply with Auto ApplyOr apply on Anduril Industries' site