Lead Cost Engineer

About Rivian Rivian is on a mission to keep the world adventurous forever. This goes for the emissions-free Electric Adventure Vehicles we build, and the curious, courageous souls we seek to attract. As a company, we constantly challenge what’s possible, never simply accepting what has always been done. We reframe old problems, seek new solutions and operate comfortably in areas that are unknown. Our backgrounds are diverse, but our team shares a love of the outdoors and a desire to protect it for future generations. Role Summary The Rivian Supply Chain team is looking for strategic technical leaders to drive the financial health of our vehicle programs. As a Lead Cost Engineer, you are an advanced individual contributor and subject matter expert serving as the primary authority for complex commodities and systems. You act autonomously to evaluate strategic cost trade-offs, develop high-level business cases, and influence engineering and purchasing strategies at a systemic level. In this role, you lead system-level analysis and partner with cross-functional leadership to drive organizational change through technical expertise. You are responsible for solving complex challenges, mentoring junior engineers, and providing the "big picture" financial insights necessary to guide major business decisions. We are looking for an expert who can articulate the financial health of an entire portfolio to executive leadership while advocating for the team’s strategic goals. This position is based on site in Plymouth, MI and reports to the Manager, Cost Engineering Interior, Thermal, Powertrain, & Adventure Products. Responsibilities Knowledge Base: Serves as the primary authority for assigned commodities, possessing deep knowledge covering strategic implications of cost drivers, manufacturing processes, and market trends. Presentation & Storytelling: Articulates the overall financial health, risks, and strategic opportunities of a portfolio of parts to a wider, non-expert audience. Technical Skills: Expert in deconstructing highly complex assemblies and applying first principles to validate data and strategically influence business decisions. Organizational Influence & Outreach: Serves as the go-to person for cost information and influences stakeholders by building a compelling narrative and data-driven business case. Direction: Acts instinctively to manage and effectively prioritize a complex workload with little manager input while persevering in the face of setbacks. Qualifications Education and Experience: Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related field and a minimum of 6 years of relevant experience. Domain Expertise: Evaluates complex cost trade-offs, develops business cases for design changes, and uses financial data to actively influence sourcing and engineering strategies. Commodity-Specific Cost Estimation Experience: Powertrain - gears, mechanical/electrical components & assembly Rivian Internal Restraints - develop new cost models, mechanical/electrical components & assembly Interior - assembly models development - seat JIT, instrument panel, console Manufacturing processes (castings, forging, broaching, powder metal, stamping, plastic injection molding, rubber molding, surface finishes) Technical Skills: Acts as the primary technical mentor, providing expert-level training on all cost engineering tools and autonomously customizing modeling tools. Communication: Defines and models how the Cost Engineering team communicates its value. Execution: Reaches beyond their defined scope to solve problems and implements systemic changes and improvements internal and external to their function. Operational Style: Consistently leads with first principles to identify and implement systemic changes and high-impact outcomes. Travel Requirements: Ability and willingness to travel as needed based on business needs, expected to average between 10 - 15 % . Pay Disclosure The salary range for this role is $125,800 - $157,200 for Plymouth, Michigan based applicants. This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee’s position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, specific competencies, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, shift, and organizational needs. The successful candidate may be eligible for annual performance bonus and equity awards. We offer a comprehensive package of benefits for full-time and part-time employees, their spouse or domestic partner, and children up to age 26, including but not limited to paid vacation, paid sick leave, and a competitive portfolio of insurance benefits including life, medical, dental, vision, short-term disability insurance, and long-term disability insurance to eligible employees. You may also have the opportunity to participate in Rivian’s 401(k) Plan and Employee Stock Purchase Program if you meet certain eligibility requirements. Full-time employee coverage is effective on their first day of employment. Part-time employee coverage is effective the first of the month following 90 days of employment. More information about benefits is available at rivianbenefits.com. You can apply for this role through careers.rivian.com (or through internal-careers-rivian.icims.com if you are a current employee). This job is not expected to be closed any sooner than September 17, 2026. Equal Opportunity Rivian is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local fair employment practices laws. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information or characteristics, physical or mental disability, marital/domestic partner status, age, military/veteran status, medical condition, or any other characteristic protected by law. Rivian is committed to ensuring that our hiring process is accessible for persons with disabilities. If you have a disability or limitation, such as those covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, that requires accommodations to assist you in the search and application process, please email us at [email protected]. Candidate Data Privacy and Technology Rivian may collect, use and disclose your personal information or personal data (within the meaning of the applicable data protection laws) when you apply for employment and/or participate in our recruitment processes (“Candidate Personal Data”). This data includes contact, demographic, communications, educational, professional, employment, social media/website, network/device, recruiting system usage/interaction, security and preference information. Rivian may use your Candidate Personal Data for the purposes of (i) tracking interactions with our recruiting system; (ii) carrying out, analyzing and improving our application and recruitment process, including assessing you and your application and conducting employment, background and reference checks; (iii) establishing an employment relationship or entering into an employment contract with you; (iv) complying with our legal, regulatory and corporate governance obligations; (v) recordkeeping; (vi) ensuring network and information security and preventing fraud; and (vii) as otherwise required or permitted by applicable law. Rivian may share your Candidate Personal Data with (i) internal personnel who have a need to know such information in order to perform their duties, including individuals on our People Team, Finance, Legal, and the team(s) with the position(s) for which you are applying; (ii) Rivian affiliates; and (iii) Rivian’s service providers, including providers of background checks, staffing services, and cloud services. Rivian may transfer or store internationally your Candidate Personal Data, including to or in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the European Union and in the cloud, and this data may be subject to the laws and accessible to the courts, law enforcement and national security authorities of such jurisdictions. How We Use AI in Our Hiring Process: To ensure transparency, we want candidates to know that Rivian uses iCIMS Talent Cloud Artificial Intelligence (TCAI) and AI-enabled tools to assist with screening, reviewing, organizing and highlighting profiles and applications that match the key requirements for each role. AI does not make hiring decisions: Qualified candidate applications are reviewed by a member of our team, and all decisions throughout the process are made by humans. We use AI to support efficiency and consistency, not to replace human judgment. We are committed to a fair, thoughtful, and equitable experience for every candidate. Participation in AI profile matching is entirely voluntary. If you prefer that your profile not be used in this process, you can opt out at any time. Opting out means your profile will be excluded from automated matching and will not be surfaced for additional roles through this system. Your current application remains active and will not be affected in any way. Please note that we are currently not accepting applications from third party application services.

Knowledge Base: Serves as the primary authority for assigned commodities, possessing deep knowledge covering strategic implications of cost drivers, manufacturing processes, and market trends. Presentation & Storytelling: Articulates the overall financial health, risks, and strategic opportunities of a portfolio of parts to a wider, non-expert audience. Technical Skills: Expert in deconstructing highly complex assemblies and applying first principles to validate data and strategically influence business decisions. Organizational Influence & Outreach: Serves as the go-to person for cost information and influences stakeholders by building a compelling narrative and data-driven business case. Direction: Acts instinctively to manage and effectively prioritize a complex workload with little manager input while persevering in the face of setbacks.

Education and Experience: Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related field and a minimum of 6 years of relevant experience. Domain Expertise: Evaluates complex cost trade-offs, develops business cases for design changes, and uses financial data to actively influence sourcing and engineering strategies. Commodity-Specific Cost Estimation Experience: Powertrain - gears, mechanical/electrical components & assembly Rivian Internal Restraints - develop new cost models, mechanical/electrical components & assembly Interior - assembly models development - seat JIT, instrument panel, console Manufacturing processes (castings, forging, broaching, powder metal, stamping, plastic injection molding, rubber molding, surface finishes) Technical Skills: Acts as the primary technical mentor, providing expert-level training on all cost engineering tools and autonomously customizing modeling tools. Communication: Defines and models how the Cost Engineering team communicates its value. Execution: Reaches beyond their defined scope to solve problems and implements systemic changes and improvements internal and external to their function. Operational Style: Consistently leads with first principles to identify and implement systemic changes and high-impact outcomes. Travel Requirements: Ability and willingness to travel as needed based on business needs, expected to average between 10 - 15 % .