Data Annotation Manager

Mission Summary:

Motional is seeking a Data Annotation Manager to join our Operations team. In this role, you will lead a team of high-performing team data specialists and project managers responsible for overseeing high-quality data used by our autonomous vehicle perception and other machine learning models. As a manager, you will own team productivity and operational effectiveness, manage the team’s employee lifecycle independently, and ensure team goals are met. You will build on your expertise in human labeled data and annotation workflows while exemplifying Motional’s core values and leadership behaviors.

What you'll be doing:

Supervise Daily Operations: Direct the daily activities of data annotation team members, setting priorities to ensure task completion, SLA adherence, and seamless coordination across workstreams.

Drive Goals & Productivity: Set and ensure the achievement of operational goals owning the productivity, quality, and effectiveness of your team with minimal manager oversight.

Manage Employee Lifecycle: Support the full employee lifecycle independently, including hiring, onboarding, and performance evaluation.  Effectively coach and mentor team members to support their career development and provide continuous feedback.

Solve Operational Challenges: Utilize established process and data-driven insights to guide problem-solving and streamline annotation workflows.  Drive efficiency through automation, removing bottlenecks and cultivate a growth mindset within the team.

What we're looking for :

Degree in any related technical field

At least 6 years of Domain Expertise: Experience in data operations, data labeling, computer vision dataset creation, or machine learning annotation workflows.

2 years of Leadership Experience: Proven experience supervising team members, setting operational priorities, and guiding daily team output in a fast-paced technology or autonomous driving domain.

People Management Capabilities: Demonstrated proficiency in managing the full employee lifecycle, conducting performance reviews, and coaching staff with minimal guidance.

Bonus points:

Prior experience working with autonomous driving data, sensor data (LiDAR, Radar, Camera), or 3D bounding box annotation tools.

Vendor management experience, including defining performance metrics, building relationships with third-party suppliers, and holding them accountable to SLAs and contract standards.

Experience working with diverse cultures and managing projects across multiple time zones.

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