DoW SkillBridge Internship - Mission Control Operator

Location: On Site at Shift4's Mission Control Center in Center Valley, PA Headquarters

The DoW SkillBridge program allows active-duty service members to participate in civilian internships, apprenticeships or training during their final months of service. Participants remain on active duty, continue receiving full military pay and benefits, and gain real-world work experience with approved industry partners. For more information, and eligibility requirements, visit Shift4 DoW SkillBridge Program

Description:

Shift4 (NYSE: FOUR) is pushing the boundaries of Financial Technology through the creation of a new internal system, Mission Control. Like the name suggests, this system will be akin to the control rooms of the Space Shuttle and Apollo programs, where holistic company wide information is flowed from external systems across the business to a single, unified location. Subject matter experts will be able to analyze and action on data directly, allowing for fast response and creation of automation that can then identify and prevent similar issues in the future. 

As a Mission Control Operator, you will be one of the fundamental components of bringing this new vision to life. You will command and control different Shift4 business systems through our Mission Control interface, make decisions about how to direct and redirect resources, and become a technical subject matter expert in specific business divisions based on your experience. You will support the development of this new operational model and build with our engineering teams to bring new features and functions to Mission Control. 

This internship aligns well for transitioning military members currently at the E4 or E5 level experienced in the following military arenas: 

• Command Post
• Maintenance Operations Center (MOC)
• Crew Chiefs - backing up
• SPOC (Space Ops Center)
• Missile Warning Ops
• Operations Center

Responsibilities:

• Operate one or more Mission Control modules, ranging from supply chain operations to customer service, to technical payment infrastructure, representing and directing these teams when necessary for Mission Control operations.
• Work hand in hand with our business divisional leaders to learn the nuance and current operations, and develop SOPs to support the integration of Mission Control systems to those divisions. 
• Write operational documentation and execute daily, weekly, and monthly Mission Control Procedures.
• Identify, architect, and implement new Mission Control functionalities with support from Mission Control engineering teams. 
• Design and implement communication methods, escalation strategies, quality assurance protocols, and response plans to ongoing business and technical issues that Mission Control will identify. 
• Develop automation strategies to remove parts or process steps with high accuracy and quality to increase overall efficiency of Shift4 systems. 
• Expand the vision, and collaborate with stakeholders to ensure the functionalities of the system are aligned with company objectives. 

Minimum Qualifications:

• Ability to meet the core eligibility requirements of the DoW SkillBridge program (see above link). 
• 2+ years of experience operating in or developing complex systems such as mechanical, electrical, facilities, O&G, aerospace, or industrial automation or relevant experience gained within the military and/or other?
• Highly competent communication skills in English, both written and verbal. Excel in distilling information from dense technical systems into concise and clear documentation, and have experience communicating those consolidations to leadership.
• Personal experience leading technical projects, including conception, development, and implementation. 
• Previous experience in an operational and workflow oriented role.

Additional skills that are a plus to have:

• Professional Degree in a relevant field.
• Experience interacting with data systems such as Grafana, Tableau or other graphical user interfaces. 
• Personal experience utilizing operational software systems, including First Resonance ION, or a wholesale ERP such as SAP. 
• Experience with real time, time series data and creation of workflows around data indicators. 
• Experience with operational fundamentals such as corrective action reporting, non-conformances, inventory management, and data governance. 
• Python, Pyspark, or other programmatic skills.
• Experience with one of the following platforms: Palantir Foundry, Mulesoft.

Motional’s Pittsburgh office is located in the new Hazelwood Green development, a culmination of the city’s goal of restoring an economic driver to the neighborhood in a thoughtful, inclusive, and sustainable way. With views along the Monongahela river, the Pittsburgh office is in the heart of this new state of the art development.

Mission Summary:

The Senior Engineer Team Lead is responsible for the validation of the autonomous vehicle stack with a primary emphasis on the interface between software and physical hardware. This role leads the development and execution of Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) testing strategies to ensure that perception, planning, and control algorithms interact safely and reliably with vehicle sensors, actuators, and ECUs.

You will be the technical authority for HIL bench architecture and hardware-software integration, ensuring that the "brain" of the vehicle commands the physical "body" with millisecond precision and fail-safe reliability.

Essential Duties:

• HIL Strategy & Architecture: Lead the design, setup, and maintenance of high-fidelity HIL test benches (e.g., dSPACE, NI, or Speedgoat). Define the hardware-software mapping required to simulate real-world vehicle dynamics.
• Hardware-Software Integration: Own the validation of the Drive-by-Wire (DBW) system, ensuring steering, braking, and acceleration commands meet safety-critical latency and accuracy requirements.
• Fault Injection & Robustness: Design and execute complex hardware fault-injection campaigns (e.g., sensor signal loss, CAN bus flooding, power interrupts) to validate system-level safety monitors.
• Communication Protocol Expert: Direct the testing of automotive communication networks, including CAN, CAN-FD, Automotive Ethernet, and LIN, using tools like Vector CANoe/CANalyzer.
• Multi-Modal Validation: While focusing on hardware, maintain oversight of SIL and closed-course testing to ensure HIL results correlate with virtual and physical track performance.
• Mechatronic Debugging: Lead root-cause analysis for complex electromechanical issues, utilizing oscilloscopes, multimeters, and logic analyzers to debug signal integrity and power distribution.
• Tooling & Automation: Architect Python-based automation frameworks for HIL regression suites, reducing manual bench time and increasing test coverage.
• Safety Compliance: Act as a lead reviewer for ISO 26262 functional safety requirements, specifically focusing on Hardware-Software Interface (HSI) specifications.
  
  

Qualifications:

• Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechatronics, Mechanical Engineering, or Robotics.
• Experience: 5+ years in Systems/Hardware testing, with at least 3 years focused on HIL simulation within the automotive or aerospace industry.
• Technical Mastery:
• Hardware: Expert knowledge of ECUs, sensors (Lidar/Radar/Camera), and mechatronic actuators.
• Simulators: Proven experience configuring real-time simulation environments (e.g., dSPACE ControlDesk, NI VeriStand, or IPG CarMaker).
• Scripting: Expert proficiency in Python for test automation and Matlab/Simulink for plant model integration.
• Domain Expertise:
• Deep understanding of automotive electrical architectures and power management.
• Experience with sensor calibration and synchronization across hardware interfaces.
• Familiarity with SOTIF (ISO 21448) and how hardware limitations impact autonomous functionality.
  
  

Physical Demands:

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to sit, talk, or hear. The employee is occasionally required to stand and at times for long periods; walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms. The employee must occasionally lift and move up to 50 pounds.

Working Environment:

The work environment characteristics described here represent those a team member encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the team member is regularly exposed to outside weather conditions, road conditions, and pedestrian traffic.  The team member is regularly exposed to mechanical and computer parts. The team member is occasionally exposed to fumes and airborne particles.  The noise level in the environment is low to moderate.

Motional AD LLC is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer, and we welcome all qualified applicants.  All applicants will receive impartial consideration regarding race, sex, color, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, genetic data, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, or another legally protected status.  Motional AD LLC is a Drug-free workplace.

This role is based in our Pittsburgh office and requires in-office days each week.

Mission Summary:

As a Technical Lead Manager at Motional, you'll lead a team responsible for the development and delivery of core trajectory planning algorithms via numerical optimization for autonomous vehicles. In this role, you will be at the forefront of shaping the motion planning and control systems that enable our fleet to navigate complex environments safely, efficiently, and comfortably. As a key leader, you will drive the development and continuous performance improvements of cutting-edge trajectory generation algorithms, collaborate with cross-functional teams (Planning, Perception, Prediction, Localization, ML Products, and Systems Engineering), and mentor a talented group of highly skilled engineers to deliver state-of-the-art solutions. 

If you are passionate about autonomous driving and being part of our commercial launch this year, thrive on solving challenging real-world problems, and eager to make a significant impact in a rapidly evolving field, we want to hear from you!

What you'll do:

• Lead and scale a high-impact trajectory planning team, defining its technical vision, execution strategy, and long-term organizational role within the Motion organization.
• Drive commercial launch readiness for trajectory planning by delivering on-road driving behavior improvements (safety, comfort, and assertiveness) across the fleet through feature expansion, continuous performance improvements, and innovation through state-of-the art methods.
• Apply a rigorous, metrics-driven framework to quantify and improve on-road performance. Champion leveraging existing training and evaluation pipelines to ensure scalable, production-ready delivery.
• Manage the computational efficiency and real-time performance of trajectory generation algorithms, ensuring latency budget compliance.
• Lead the rapid triage and root-cause analysis (RCA) of critical fleet incidents, translating real-world edge cases into immediate algorithmic refinements and validation sets.
• Oversee the successful execution of complex, multi-team initiatives, ensuring technical alignment from design through deployment while maintaining a rigorous standard for testing and validation to meet the high safety bars required for our commercial launch.
• Coordinate with peer leads to provide technical leadership, making consequential decisions on architectural direction, strategic investments, tactical execution, and technical debt reduction.Ensure technical excellence through rigorous design and code reviews while actively facilitating the professional growth and mentorship of your engineering team. Set and drive ambitious goals that challenge the team to deliver industry-leading trajectory planning solutions.
• Define and negotiate quarterly and annual technical roadmaps aligned with company-level autonomy milestones in coordinate with project managers and execute plans on schedule.
  
  

What we're looking for:

• Proven Engineering Leadership: 2+ years of experience managing high-performing development teams, with a demonstrable track record of inspiring, mentoring, and coaching engineers and driving measurable productivity gains.
• Ship-to-Production Mindset: Experience leading the delivery of production-quality algorithms in a high-stakes environment (Autonomous Vehicles, Robotics, or Aerospace). You know what it takes to move from a prototype to a commercially viable product.
• Strategic Vision: Ability to look beyond the immediate deliverables to define and defend a balanced technical roadmap that balances long-term architectural health with the urgent needs of a 2026 commercial launch.
• Technical Domain Expertise: Deep theoretical and practical expertise in numerical optimization and optimal control. You should be highly proficient in areas such as Model Predictive Control, nonlinear programming, and convex optimization applied to real-time trajectory generation.
• Advanced Motion Planning: Significant experience solving motion planning problems under uncertainty, including interaction-aware planning with dynamic agents and complex environmental constraints. Experience with Machine Learning based approaches is a significant plus.
• Full-Stack Robotics Context: Strong intuition for the entire robotics stack. You understand how upstream (Perception, Prediction) and downstream (Control, Actuation) systems impact trajectory feasibility and fleet safety.
• Production-Grade Software Development: Expertise in Modern C++ development within a Linux environment, with a focus on writing high-performance, real-time, and safety-critical code.
• Tooling Proficiency: Fluency in Python for rapid prototyping, data analysis, and visualization. Experience applying AI-augmented development workflows to large-scale Modern C++ codebases (e.g., agentic tools for multi-file refactoring, automated test generation, semantic code navigation, and code review acceleration) is strongly preferred. Experience with SQL or big-data frameworks for fleet-scale performance analysis is a significant plus.
• Influence & Clarity: Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to translate complex mathematical concepts into actionable plans for cross-functional stakeholders and executive leadership.
• Educational Foundation: Master’s or PhD in Robotics, Computer Science, Electrical/Mechanical Engineering, or a related quantitative field.
  
  

We encourage a hybrid schedule with in-office time at one of our locations in Boston, Pittsburgh, or Las Vegas to support collaboration, or this role can be fully remote.

Mission Summary:

The Staff Systems Safety Engineer:

• Oversees the development and implementation of engineering safety processes for our autonomous vehicle systems
• Is responsible for reviewing hazards, risk assessments, and ensuring compliance with industry safety standards (ISO 26262, SOTIF, and ASIL).
• Collaborates with cross-functional teams, including software, hardware, and AI engineers, to ensure integration of safety into the design and validation of our AV system
  
  

Essential Duties:

• Ensure and oversee the development and implementation of  system safety processes for autonomous vehicle platforms.
• Ensure hazard analysis and risk assessments (HARA) for AV components and subsystems are conducted.
• Assist in the definition and verification of functional safety requirements in compliance with ISO 26262 and SOTIF (ISO 21448).
• Collaborate with hardware, software, and AI teams to integrate safety measures into perception, decision-making, and control systems.
• Support the development of failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) and fault tree analysis (FTA) for AV systems.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory and industry safety standards, including SAE J3016, NHTSA, and UNECE WP.29.
• Ensure the development and execution of safety verification and validation plans, including simulation, testing, and real-world driving scenarios.
• Work with certification bodies and regulators to ensure safety case documentation and approval processes.
• Contribute to the development of safety culture within the organization by providing guidance and training
  
  

Qualifications:

Educational Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field 

Technical / Specialized Knowledge, Skills, Abilities:

• 5+ years industry and 3+ years of experience in safety engineering for automotive, aerospace, or robotics systems.
• Strong knowledge of functional safety standards (ISO 26262, SOTIF, ASIL).
• Knowledge of systems / software engineering standards (INCOSE, ISO15288, ASPICE CMMI)
• Experience with hazard analysis, risk assessment, and safety case development.
• Proficiency in safety analysis tools (e.g., Medini Analyze, Ansys, Fault Tree+, FMEA software).
• Familiarity with autonomous vehicle architectures, including perception, planning, and control systems.
• Experience working with real-time embedded systems and software safety.
• Strong problem-solving, analytical, and communication skills.
• Experience with machine learning safety challenges in AVs.
• Knowledge of cybersecurity principles related to vehicle safety (ISO/SAE 21434).
• Experience in safety assurance for AI-driven systems.
• Previous work with automotive OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, or AV startups

Physical Demands:

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to sit, talk, or hear. The employee is occasionally required to stand and at times for long periods; walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms. The employee must occasionally lift and move up to 50 pounds.

Working Environment:

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those a team member encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 

While performing the duties of this job, the team member is regularly exposed to the office environment, outside weather conditions, road conditions, and pedestrian traffic.  The team member is regularly exposed to mechanical and computer parts. The team member is occasionally exposed to fumes and airborne particles.  The noise level in the environment is low to moderate. When traveling, the team member will be exposed to airports, airplanes, hotels and public transportation environments.

This role is based in our Pittsburgh or Las Vegas office and requires in-office days each week.

Key Responsibilities

• Support customers in the design, optimization, and management of electrical infrastructures
• Analyze and improve network performance, reliability, and energy efficiency
• Perform cable design, network sizing, and system modeling
• Conduct network simulations and short-circuit studies
• Provide both technical and cost-related assessments of electrical systems
• Deliver actionable recommendations for infrastructure optimization and long-term sustainability
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure successful implementation of solutions

Required Qualifications

• Proven experience with applied electrical networks in complex environments such as:
• Data centers
• Semiconductor fabrication facilities
• Airports
• Metro systems
• Industrial sites
• Strong expertise in:
• Cable design
• Network sizing and modeling
• Network simulation
• Short-circuit analysis
• Ability to evaluate both technical performance and financial implications of infrastructure decisions
• Strong customer-facing skills with the ability to explain complex technical topics clearly
• Proficiency with Matlab / Simulink

Preferred Skills

• Experience in energy optimization and sustainability initiatives
• Background in power systems engineering or electrical infrastructure consulting
• Familiarity with industry standards and grid compliance requirements

Salary Range: $90,000-100,000

The actual salary offered is dependent on various factors including, but not limited to, location, the candidate’s combination of job-related knowledge, qualifications, skills, education, training, and experience