External Quality Assurance Specialist

Thanks for your interest in Oklo! We are searching for an External Quality Assurance Specialist to join our team. 

Position Overview

The External QA Specialist supports supplier-facing quality activities across audits, surveillance, and procurement quality, helping ensure that critical components and services meet our technical, regulatory, and safety requirements. This role serves as a key interface between Oklo and its vendors, translating quality expectations into clear requirements and verifying that they are consistently met in the field and at manufacturing facilities. The specialist will work under the direction of QA leadership, executing assigned tasks and escalating issues appropriately. They will also help shape how we work with suppliers by contributing to training, quality metrics, and continuous improvement initiatives that strengthen our overall supply chain and quality management system. This is an ideal role for someone who enjoys being “where the work happens,” collaborating across disciplines, and building a high-reliability culture in advanced nuclear energy.

This role is remote-eligible, with expected travel up to ~70%.

Key Responsibilities

• Assist in the coordination and documentation of external vendor and evaluations
• Support monitoring of supplier performance through data collection, follow-up actions, and report preparation
• Provide oversight to suppliers during key points of fabrication such as welding, testing and nondestructive examination
• Help maintain and update audit schedules, plans, checklists, and other QA records
• Review procurement documentation for alignment with QA requirements
• Assist with tracking and resolving nonconformances, including follow-up on corrective and preventive actions
• Collaborate with engineering, procurement, and project teams to ensure quality requirements are implemented in accordance with regulatory requirements as procedures are developed and revised
• Support quality training initiatives and help develop QA-related materials for external stakeholders
• Contribute to continuous improvement efforts within the external QA domain
• Help prepare metrics, reports, and presentations related to quality system performance and improvement initiatives

Desired Competencies

• Highly organized and detail-oriented, with strong documentation skills
• Comfortable working across multiple projects with competing priorities
• Strong written and verbal communication skills for reporting, team interaction, and engaging with suppliers and other outside partners
• Curious, adaptable, and eager to grow within a high-impact QA role
• Enthusiastic about advanced nuclear energy and clean technology

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a technical, scientific, or quality-related field OR minimum 4 years within QA roles in regulated industries may be used in lieu of a degree
• Minimum of two years quality assurance experience within a regulated industry is required. This experience need not be in a direct quality assurance or oversight role.
• Familiarity with quality system standards such as ISO 9001, ASME NQA-1, ANSI/ANS 15.8, or equivalent
• Basic understanding of QA processes such as document control, audits, and nonconformance management
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and standard QA tracking/documentation tools

Preferred (Bonus) Qualifications

• Exposure to multiple nuclear quality programs or regulated environments such as aerospace, defense, or automotive
• Experience supporting or participating in supplier audits or internal quality reviews
• Familiarity with Commercial Grade Dedication, procurement quality, or configuration management
• Experience with enterprise QMS or audit tools
• Coursework or training in quality management or auditing (e.g., auditor certification)
• Knowledge of fabrication and manufacturing activities (e.g, welding, machining, assembling)
• Familiarity with nondestructive examination procedures and guidelines such as SNT-TC-1A

Who you are:

A startup person: You aren't driven by titles or hierarchy, and prefer efficiency to excess process. You don't need or expect to have a lot of guidance but you enjoy working in a fast-paced team. If you prefer the culture and feel of a large organization, that is great, but you likely won’t enjoy working with us! There is plenty of important work and plenty of good opportunities with organizations like that.

Motivated: You are self-motivated. You bring an enthusiasm to the team, and imbue a sense of passion that goes beyond clocking in and clocking out. This isn’t about a fake or arbitrary “pieces of flair” mentality or lack of work-life balance! It is about being a part of the vision and feeling a part of reaching team goals.

A team-player: Oklo genuinely is a team. We aren’t about taking credit for ourselves, and we aren’t about pushing blame to others. We do incredible things because we work as a team.

An excellent communicator: We need a person who is not only technically competent but also a clear and upbeat communicator.

Creative: Being creative means that when things fall outside clear scopes or processes or problems arise without clear solutions, you are able to identify it as well as invent ways to solve a problem or fill a need without micromanagement. The successful person in this job will not only be creative, but also enjoy being creative and solving open-ended problems which may change day-by-day.

Detail-oriented: This focus is a big part of excellence, consistency, and quality. Excellent grammar and spelling matter for both good communication as well as the image of the company that we put forward.

About Oklo travel requirements:

Oklo requires remote employees to travel to headquarters (Santa Clara, CA) twice a quarter annually, based on business or team needs, including attendance at team meetings, off-sites, and other company events or gatherings.

About Oklo compensation: $80,000-$120,000

Oklo offers flexible time off, equity, competitive pay, 401k, health insurance, FSA, flexible work hours, and other benefits.

About Oklo Inc.: Oklo Inc. is developing fast fission power plants to deliver clean, reliable, and affordable energy at scale; establishing a domestic supply chain for critical radioisotopes; and advancing nuclear fuel recycling to convert nuclear waste into clean energy. Oklo was the first to receive a site use permit from the U.S. Department of Energy for a commercial advanced fission plant, was awarded fuel material from Idaho National Laboratory, and submitted the first custom combined license application for an advanced reactor to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Oklo is also developing advanced fuel recycling technologies in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. National Laboratories.

#CHOP: Oklo’s Values
Collaboration: We go further, together. We bring diverse perspectives, listen actively, and build trust through transparency and respect. We work across disciplines, sharing ownership to turn complex challenges into shared successes.
Humility: We are team players who act for the good of the company and for the world. We are focused on our mission, not personal recognition.
Ownership: We take pride in what we do and how we do it. We are proactive in finding solutions and see tasks through  to completion. We are committed to delivering on our promises to provide clean, reliable, and affordable energy.
Pathfinding: We chart new ground where no path exists by approaching challenges with curiosity, courage, and creativity while navigating ambiguity.