Senior Manager, Technical Program Management (Search & AI Foundations)

Airbnb was born in 2007 when two hosts welcomed three guests to their San Francisco home, and has since grown to over 5 million hosts who have welcomed over 2 billion guest arrivals in almost every country across the globe. Every day, hosts offer unique stays and experiences that make it possible for guests to conne...

Airbnb's mission is to create a world where people can Belong Anywhere. As we grow to achieve that mission, we're looking to add a technical, hands-on, and mission-driven Senior Manager of Technical Program Management (TPM) for the Infrastructure team to lead AI Platforms initiatives spanning Search Relevance, Machi...

In this role, you will collaborate closely with the Machine Learning (ML) engineers, infrastructure engineers and product managers from across Airbnb to develop holistic solutions that ensure a vibrant and equitable marketplace.

Shape and influence the technical direction of projects, ensuring we meet stakeholder needs while maintaining high-quality standards. Rapidly prototype and validate project ideas through iterative development cycles, adapting as necessary based on insights and data.
Balance broad, outcome-driven thinking with attention to critical details, exercising sound judgment to prioritize where deep focus is necessary to ensure successful execution.
Define and secure stakeholder alignment on clear, measurable success criteria to accelerate AI initiatives. Regularly assess risks and opportunities, and devise proactive mitigation strategies to maintain momentum and project success.
Maintain transparent and effective communication channels to keep stakeholders informed of progress, developments, and challenges.
Expertly present outcomes and updates to senior leadership, clearly and comprehensively articulating trade-offs, risks, and emerging opportunities.

13+ years in technical program management function, with at least 8 years of experience managing a team of TPMs, creating a culture of inclusiveness and sustainability
Demonstrated experience in search relevance, natural language search, and recommendation systems. Experience with applying GenAI/LLM technologies on search is a plus.
Demonstrated ability to work through ambiguity to detailed solutions. You can take a vague problem, crisply frame the challenge, identify a path forward, and drive an initiative over the finish-line.
Self-motivated, proactive and proven ability to adapt well and work with teams having different operating cadences.
Sound business judgment, a proven ability to influence others, strong analytical skills, and a track record of taking ownership, leading data driven analyses, and influencing results
Experience with ML models, LLMs, LRMs, feature development, model testing and resource management to support the development of AI-powered product experiences.
Familiar with A/B testing, incremental delivery and deployment.
Ability to ramp up quickly and learn new technologies with minimal lag time.
Excellent written and oral business communication and people skills, with the ability to influence stakeholders.