Technical Program Manager

Mercari is a Japan-based C2C marketplace company founded in 2013 with the mission to "Create value in a global marketplace where anyone can buy & sell." From being the first tech unicorn from Japan before its IPO in 2018 we have come a long way towards becoming a global player and continuously and diligently work towards our transformation journey with a strong focus on our mission.

Since its inception, Mercari Group has worked to grow its services, investing in both our people and technology. Over time Mercari has expanded from being the top player in the C2C marketplace in Japan to new geographies like the U.S. We have also successfully launched new businesses such as Merpay, which is a mobile payment service platform with a vision to create a society where anyone can realize their dreams through a new ecosystem centered not only on payment service but also on credit. Today, Mercari Group is made up of multiple subsidiary businesses including logistics, B2C platform, blockchain, and sports team management.

For our services to be utilized by people worldwide; however, there is still a mountain of work ahead of us. This endeavor naturally requires the capability of the best talent and minds, and that is exactly the reason for us to launch the India Center of Excellence. With your help, we will continue to take on the world stage and strive to grow into a successful global tech company.

To achieve our mission at Mercari, our organization and each of our employees share the same values and perspectives. Our individual guidelines for action are defined by our four values: Go Bold, All for One, Be a Pro and Move Fast. Our organization is also shaped by our four foundations: Sustainability, Diversity & Inclusion, Trust & Openness, and Well-being for Performance. Regardless of how big Mercari gets, the culture will remain essential to achieving our mission and something we want to preserve throughout our organization. We invite you to read the Mercari Culture Doc which summarizes the behaviors and mindset shared by Mercari and its employees. We continue to build an environment where all of our members of diverse backgrounds are accepted and recognized, and where they can thrive while holding dear to Mercari's culture.

The AI Taskforce is a central, high-impact team dedicated to leveraging cutting-edge AI to solve Mercari's most significant challenges. We operate on two fronts: building core AI platform services (using LLMs, RAG, etc.) that the entire company can build upon, and optimizing our own Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) to create a smarter, faster, and more effective engineering organization.

We focus on:

• GenAI Integration: Deploying and scaling existing foundational models to solve business challenges.
• Infrastructure & Governance: Building and managing a secure, scalable platform for the deployment, monitoring, and governance of GenAI.
• Enablement & Adoption: Empowering internal teams with the training, standardized APIs, and documentation needed to leverage AI effectively.

As a Technical Program Manager on our AI Taskforce, you will lead our most critical AI initiatives. This role has a powerful dual mandate: first, you will drive the creation of a foundational Generative AI platform, built by integrating best-in-class services, that enables product teams to ship revolutionary features to millions of users. Second, you will turn that same AI capability inward, managing programs that fundamentally improve the productivity of every member at Mercari. You will be the central coordinator for our AI strategy, ensuring the timely delivery of complex projects that accelerate both our product and our people.

• End-to-End Integration Leadership: Manage the full lifecycle of complex GenAI integration programs—from rapid prototyping and testing to full-scale deployment and iteration across Mercari.
• AI Platform Roadmapping: Partner with engineering and product leaders to define the strategic roadmap for our AI platforms, focusing on creating standardized, secure, and scalable AI infrastructure.
• Cross-Functional Orchestration: Act as the key liaison between the AI Taskforce and all internal teams. Drive the seamless adoption of new AI capabilities into both the Mercari app and our internal developer workflows.
• Operational Governance Programs: Lead initiatives to establish and enforce robust compliance, security, and ethical frameworks for responsible AI use, ensuring our integrations are safe and reliable.
• Enablement and Adoption: Develop and execute programs aimed at training and supporting internal teams, driving successful adoption of our AI platforms and tools through clear documentation and support channels.
• Risk & Dependency Management: Proactively identify and mitigate risks related to model performance, cost, data security, and vendor dependencies

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, a related technical field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 5-10 years of experience in technical program management, with a proven track record of shipping complex software.
• A deep understanding of the modern Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) and agile methodologies.
  

• Direct program management experience in the AI/ML domain, especially with Generative AI or LLMs. You understand concepts like RAG and fine-tuning.
• Experience managing programs related to developer tools, engineering productivity, platform engineering, or DevOps.
• Familiarity with cloud platforms (GCP, AWS) and containerization technologies (Docker, Kubernetes).
• Experience with programs focused on systematic model evaluation and ensuring Responsible AI principles.
• A passion for improving developer experience and a strong sense of empathy for engineers as your customer.

• Employment Status: Full-time
• Office: Bangalore
• Hybrid workstyle: We believe in high performance and professionalism. We work from the office 2 days/week and work from home 3 days/week.
  • To build a strong & highly-engaged organization in India, we highly encourage everyone to work from our Bangalore office, especially during the initial office setup phase.
  • We will continue to review and update the policy to address future organizational needs.
• Work Hours: Full flextime (no core time).
  • Flexible to choose working hours other than team common meetings.