Field Ops Special Projects Manager

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 Field Ops Special Projects Manager to lead high-profile, strategic partnerships from initial alignment through launch and ongoing execution. This person will turn ambitious partnership goals into coordinated field operations, bringing together external partners and internal teams to deliver complex initiatives safely, reliably, and on schedule.

Based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, you will serve as the accountable operational lead for selected strategic partnerships and special projects. You will build trusted relationships with senior partner stakeholders, define the path from agreement to operational readiness, and resolve issues that span teams or organizations. The work will require sound judgment, executive-level communication, and comfort moving between strategy, detailed execution, and field realities.

We’re looking for a seasoned operator who can create clarity in ambiguous situations, align people around measurable outcomes, and sustain momentum through launch and beyond. You’ll partner across commercial, operations, engineering, product, legal, finance, and other teams as needed. The role may include regular travel to partner locations and other Zipline operating sites.

What You'll Do

• Own assigned high-profile strategic partnerships and special projects end to end, from scoping and planning through launch, stabilization, and performance review.
• Translate partnership objectives into clear workplans, milestones, owners, dependencies, decision points, and measurable outcomes.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships with partner executives and day-to-day teams; establish a regular operating cadence and clear escalation paths.
• Align internal stakeholders across commercial, field operations, engineering, product, safety, legal, finance, and other functions to deliver commitments.
• Lead readiness planning for partner launches, including site and process readiness, staffing, training, support models, communications, and contingency plans.
• Coordinate field execution across multiple locations, adapting plans to local conditions while maintaining consistent operating standards.
• Identify risks, surface tradeoffs early, and drive timely decisions when scope, schedules, resources, or operating conditions change.
• Lead issue resolution during launch and ongoing operations; coordinate the right owners and keep partners informed through closure.
• Track partnership health and project performance using agreed measures such as readiness, reliability, service quality, adoption, and partner satisfaction.
• Create concise updates for senior leaders that summarize progress, risks, decisions needed, and next steps.
• Capture lessons from launches and field feedback; turn them into repeatable playbooks, processes, and improvements for future partnerships.
• Represent Zipline with professionalism and discretion in high-visibility partner settings.

What You'll Bring

• 8-10+ years of experience leading complex partnerships, strategic programs, field operations, consulting engagements, or cross-functional initiatives.
• A track record of taking ambiguous, high-stakes work from strategy through execution and delivering measurable results.
• Experience managing senior external stakeholders and building productive relationships across organizational boundaries.
• Strong program leadership skills: setting scope, sequencing work, managing dependencies, tracking risks, and driving decisions.
• The ability to influence without direct authority and to align teams with different priorities around a shared outcome.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including clear executive updates and confident partner-facing communication.
• Strong judgment under pressure, with an ability to distinguish urgent issues from important long-term work.
• A practical, customer- and partner-focused approach, paired with attention to operational detail and follow-through.
• Comfort working in the field, visiting partner sites, and adapting plans to real-world operating conditions.
• A collaborative approach and willingness to work across commercial, operations, technical, and corporate teams.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience launching or scaling strategic partnerships, new services, or complex multi-site operations.
• Experience in logistics, mobility, retail, healthcare, aviation, technology, or another operationally intensive environment.
• Experience building operating models, launch playbooks, governance structures, or partner performance reviews.
• Familiarity with data-driven operating reviews and continuous improvement practices.

Location and Travel

This role is based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Regular travel to partner sites and other Zipline locations is expected; the exact travel cadence will depend on project needs.

What Else You Need To Know

The starting cash range for this role is $150,000-$165,000. Please note that this is a target, starting cash range for a candidate who meets the minimum qualifications for this role. The final cash pay for this role will depend on a variety of factors, including a specific candidate's experience, qualifications, skills, working location, and projected impact. The total compensation package for this role may also include: equity compensation; overtime pay; discretionary annual or performance bonuses; sales incentives; benefits such as medical, dental and vision insurance; paid time off; and more.

Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or our own sensibilities.

We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. If you like the sound of this position but are not sure if you are the perfect fit, please apply!

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in Zipline ’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.