Manager, Quantum Processor Development

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At D-Wave, we’re helping customers realize the value of quantum computing today and are shaping the quantum-driven industrial and societal advancements of tomorrow.

**About the role**

We are seeking a highly experienced, technically accomplished and people-focused Manager, Quantum Processor Development. In this role, you will lead and support a world-class team of processor development scientists who have delivered six generations of progressively powerful annealing quantum computers. This is a hands-on leadership role at the intersection of cutting-edge quantum hardware development and people-focused management.

You will report to the Director, Science and work closely with other technical leads, project management and people managers within Processor Development and adjacent teams. Your responsibilities will span strategic planning, technical direction, team well-being and development, and scientific mentorship.

The Processor Development team is creative, driven, and highly collaborative. They value continuous, interconnected learning, and mutual support. You will play a key role in shaping both the technology and the team culture that sustains and inspires the team to drive our quantum computing platform forward.

**What you'll do**

**Team Leadership & Development**

- Lead and mentor a team of experimental physicists, fostering a culture of technical excellence, creativity, and collaboration.
- Work with your team to set goals, provide timely feedback, and support the professional development of each team member.
- Work with your team, and program and product management to scope projects that are both ambitious and achievable, balancing scientific innovation with realistic, sustainable goals.
- Partner with HR and senior leadership to support functions such as recruitment, strategic planning, and budgeting.
- Champion a culture of inclusion, integrity, accountability, and open scientific inquiry that welcomes diverse perspectives and experiences.
- Identify skills gaps and growth opportunities within the team to meet evolving organizational needs.
- Foster a learning mindset, ensuring individuals have the resources and mentorship to grow with the company.

**Cross-functional Collaboration**

- Encourage collaborative problem-solving across disciplines, building mutual understanding and respect between technical groups.
- Regularly connect the team’s scientific goals with the company’s broader mission to maintain shared purpose.
- Guide your team through root cause analysis of complex, interdisciplinary systems issues, in collaboration with expertise from other teams.
- Communicate team priorities and progress to internal stakeholders and senior leadership.

**Innovation & Technology Development**

- Develop a solid understanding of D-Wave’s superconducting processor technology and use that understanding to guide prioritization and resource allocation.
- Balance short-term objectives with long-term innovation and research curiosity.
- Stay up to date with the relevant competitive landscape and academic research; help to evaluate relevant scientific and technological advancements to support product decisions.
- Contribute to technical work, patents, internal and external publications, and conference presentations.
- Foster a culture of innovation, encouraging team members to propose, experiment with, and evaluate new ideas, and recognize and celebrate creative risk-taking and scientific exploration.
- Participate in or lead hands-on experimental work as needed, bringing a systems-level perspective to technical challenges.

**Strategic and Operational Excellence**

- Partner with program management to identify and manage risks in project execution.
- Identify and manage risks in resource planning and team operations.
- Support roadmap development and contribute to long-term technical strategy.
- Ensure strategic decisions reflect both technical priorities and the sustained growth and health of the team.

**About You**

- Graduate degree in Physics, Electrical Engineering, or related discipline or equivalent research experience.
- 8+ years of experience working in quantum computing, superconducting circuits, or experimental condensed matter physics.
- 5+ years of experience leading scientific or technical teams in an industrial R&D environment.
- Demonstrated success managing teams or research projects involving multidisciplinary collaboration.
- Strong mentoring skills, with demonstrated success in developing early-career researchers.
- Demonstrated ability to lead with empathy while fostering inclusion, trust, and mutual respect.
- Excellent communication skills, with the ability to communicate effectively across technical and non-technical audiences.
- Skilled at translating complex ideas into s