Autonomous Vehicle Shift Lead

Location: London

Reporting to: Head of AV Operations

Employment Type: Full time, permanent - Includes Weekends

Salary: £45,000 + performance incentives

About AV Operations

AV Operations is a specialist autonomous vehicle operations business, established to support the safe, compliant and scalable deployment of self-driving technology within the UK private hire ecosystem. Working in partnership with leading global innovators such as Uber, we sit at the operational edge of the future of mobility.

Our focus is on translating cutting edge autonomous capability into real world, regulator ready operations. We operate with a safety first mindset, rigorous compliance standards and an uncompromising commitment to customer experience.

At AV Operations, we build teams that take ownership, apply first principles thinking and deliver measurable outcomes in complex, fast moving environments. As the autonomous landscape evolves, we exist to ensure it scales responsibly, commercially and at pace.

Role Summary

We are recruiting an Autonomous Vehicle Shift Lead to oversee the safe and effective delivery of autonomous vehicle operations during live testing and deployment shifts.

You will be accountable for managing teams of Autonomous Vehicle Safety Drivers, maintaining operational control, ensuring regulatory compliance and acting as the primary escalation point for safety, performance and incident management during your shift.

The role demands strong leadership capability, disciplined decision making and the ability to manage people, risk and performance in dynamic, real world environments.

This role will help transition our Monday- Friday operation to 7 days a week, 365 days a year. This will require flexibility in availability, alongside proven change management experience with a team.

Key Responsibilities

• Take end to end accountability for autonomous vehicle operations during assigned shifts
• Lead, supervise and support teams of Autonomous Vehicle Safety Drivers
• Act as the primary on shift escalation point for safety, operational or compliance issues
• Ensure all autonomous vehicle activity complies with UK traffic law, PHV regulations and internal safety standards
• Coordinate vehicle allocation, shift coverage and driver readiness
• Conduct structured pre shift briefings and post shift debriefs
• Monitor live operations, intervening where required to safeguard safety, legality and service continuity
• Manage incidents, near misses and exceptions, ensuring timely escalation and accurate reporting
• Capture operational insights and feedback to support continuous improvement
• Support the refinement of AV Operations SOPs, training frameworks and deployment models
• Represent AV Operations professionally with regulators, partners and operational stakeholders
• Change management experience with preference for experience changing a set rota to a variable rota.

Minimum Requirements

• Valid UK driving licence (clean)
• Proven experience leading teams in operational, safety critical or regulated environments
• Strong understanding of UK road safety, compliance and risk management
• Confident communicator with the ability to lead under pressure
• Ability to interpret technical information and translate it into clear operational direction
• Flexibility to work weekends and availability during the week
• Employment is contingent upon passing pre-employment and ongoing drug and alcohol testing, in accordance with our Drugs & Alcohol policy.

What You Will Bring

• A safety first leadership mindset with strong operational ownership
• Calm, analytical decision making in live and high risk environments
• The confidence to challenge, escalate and intervene where necessary
• A collaborative approach to people management and stakeholder engagement

Why Join AV Operations?

• Opportunity to play a leadership role in the UK’s autonomous mobility ecosystem
• Direct involvement in shaping safe, scalable AV deployment models
• High performance culture with strong cross functional collaboration

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: £45,000.00 per year

Work Location: In person