Manager, Cost Engineering

About Rivian Rivian is on a mission to keep the world adventurous forever. This goes for the emissions-free Electric Adventure Vehicles we build, and the curious, courageous souls we seek to attract. As a company, we constantly challenge what’s possible, never simply accepting what has always been done. We reframe old problems, seek new solutions and operate comfortably in areas that are unknown. Our backgrounds are diverse, but our team shares a love of the outdoors and a desire to protect it for future generations.

Summary The Manager, Cost Engineering, will play a pivotal role within the Rivian Cost Engineering organization, leading a team of Remote Mexico Cost Engineers. This role will be responsible for recruiting, building, and leading a dedicated team of direct-hire Cost Engineers based remotely in Mexico. In this role, you will serve as both a strategic leader and a subject matter expert, responsible for developing full-vehicle bottom-up cost estimation capabilities and driving engineering change costing. You will act as the critical bridge between US-based engineering/onsite operations and your Mexico-based team, ensuring seamless cross-functional collaboration, technical mentorship, and precise execution across vehicle programs Combining leadership and hands-on responsibilities, this role requires a strong background in cost engineering, excellent communication skills, and effective team supervisory abilities. This role is based in Irvine, CA and reports to the Senior Manager of Cost Engineering.

Project Management Partner with Talent Acquisition to interview, hire, and onboard a high-performing team of full-time, direct-hire Cost Engineers based in Mexico. Proactively manage task completion and regularly update cross-functional teams on project status, timing, resource allocation, challenges, and the likelihood of on-time, high-quality delivery. Define milestones and identify potential risks to ensure timely delivery of cost models within agreed completion dates. Provide seamless coordination and issue resolution between all team members and groups. Support the implementation of a comprehensive cost engineering strategic roadmap: develop should-cost models, support tear-down and benchmarking activities, integrate advanced software and tools, and steer cross-functional teams in cost optimization initiatives. Supervisory Establish robust training programs, standardized methodologies, and best practices to upscale team capabilities in full-vehicle Should-Cost modeling. Oversee ground-up cost modeling across major vehicle systems to support sustaining programs and change actions. Drive agile, accurate evaluation of engineering change requests (ECRs), providing data-backed cost impact assessments to engineering and supply chain leadership. Ensure coordination with global cost engineering management on priorities, support, and execution of cost models. Provide guidance, coaching, and support to ensure accurate and timely cost estimates. Review and validate cost estimates submitted by team members, ensuring they meet quality standards and align with project goals. Cultivate a collaborative and innovative team environment, encourage knowledge sharing and continuous improvement. Function as the primary bridge ensuring alignment, clear communication, and seamless workflow integration between remote Mexico employees and US-based onsite engineering/manufacturing teams. Cost Engineering Provide hands-on deep cost engineering expertise to support the team’s costing initiatives. Develop should-cost estimates and projections for various automotive vehicle commodities as needed to support the team’s timelines. Collect details and compile data for the team to estimate all production costs considering raw materials, labor, and tooling for estimations or should-cost models. Interface with GSMs and suppliers to ensure the most economical tooling, processing, and operations that contribute to profitable