You will define and build the robotics integration architecture for the IFS suite and grow the engineering team that delivers it. This is a software role, requiring deep working knowledge of the software surfaces of major robot OEM platforms. You will be the engineering counterpart to our robotics ecosystem, building first integrations yourself and then scaling through the team you hire. You will own the agent-first integration architecture, deliver working integrations hands-on, and represent IFS in technical engagements with OEMs and standards bodies.

Responsibilities

Own the agent-first integration architecture between the IFS suite and robotics OEM platforms, from reference design to production
Build the abstraction layer that lets IFS agents and applications treat heterogeneous robot fleets as dispatchable, auditable executors of work
Deliver working integrations hands-on: work order dispatch to robots, mission and task orchestration, telemetry and inspection data flowing into asset and service records
Evaluate OEM platforms on engineering merit and steer where IFS invests integration effort; kill weak options early
Represent IFS in technical engagements with robot OEMs, robotics foundation model providers, and interoperability bodies
Hire and lead a robotics integration engineering team and set its technical bar
Ship demonstrable outcomes on real customer scenarios and flagship events, on hard dates
Brief executives and customers on the robotics roadmap in commercial terms

Requirements

15+ years in software engineering, with several years architecting integration or platform layers used in production at enterprise scale
Demonstrable working knowledge of at least 2 major robot OEM ecosystems at the SDK and API level: you have built against them, not read about them
Still keyboard-credible: you prototype, review PRs, and debug integrations. We will verify this in the interview process
Applied AI capability: production experience with agentic systems, tool use and function calling, and orchestration of long-running autonomous tasks
Fluency in the operational reality of robots in industrial settings: connectivity, safety interlocks, teleoperation and human-in-the-loop handover, degraded modes, and what actually breaks in deployment
Experience leading engineering teams and dealing with external partner engineering organisations
Clear written and spoken communication at executive level; comfortable presenting live demos

Nice to have

Prior work connecting robots or autonomous systems to business systems (ERP, EAM, WMS, MES) rather than to other robots
Exposure to asset-intensive or field service domains: utilities, manufacturing, aviation, energy, logistics
Experience in an OEM or fleet management vendor engineering organisation, seen from the inside
Standards body or interoperability consortium participation
0-to-1 experience standing up a new engineering capability inside a larger organisation

VP Robotics Engineering

Responsibilities

Requirements

Nice to have