Principal Systems Engineer Lead

Blue Canyon Technologies, RTX's small satellite manufacturer and mission services provider, is solving some of the toughest challenges in space. Our components and bus platforms have completed missions ranging from very-low Earth orbits to lunar and interplanetary journeys at a fraction of the cost of traditional space systems. We support premier defense, commercial and civil organizations including the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, NASA, MIT Lincoln Lab, the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, University of Colorado and more. Join our innovative and dynamic company as we build, test and operate the small spacecraft of the future.

Position Purpose: The Principal Systems Engineering Lead provides technical leadership and supervision of Spacecraft Systems Engineers.

Title: Principal Systems Engineering Lead

Position Type: Full Time

Pay Range: Pay Range: $108,000 - $220,000  (Salary to be determined by the education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities of the applicant, internal equity, and alignment with market data.)

Location: Lafayette, CO

Benefits:

• 100% company paid health, dental and vision benefits for you and your dependents effective the first of the month following hire date
• Life insurance
• 401k (matching 4% with a minimum 5% contribution)
• Generous PTO (3 weeks of vacation + 3 floating holidays, 2 weeks of sick time, 7 paid holidays throughout the year and parental leave).

 

Job Responsibilities:

• This is a direct charging position, so the Product Area Systems Engineering Lead is expected to lead programs within the product area while also meeting the expectations of the Systems Engineering Lead.
• Ensure spacecraft programs meet contract requirements, with primary focus on technical aspects.
• In partnership with the Product Area Technical Director, adjudicate technical disputes for spacecraft programs, taking into account risk, cost, schedule, customer satisfaction, and company values.
• Review technical designs for requirements compliance, execution feasibility, risk.
• Functional manager for spacecraft systems engineers (timesheet review and approval, career development, program assignments, performance reviews).
• Mentor and provide technical support to spacecraft systems engineers.
• Voting member of the spacecraft product area change control boards (CCB).
• Maintain spacecraft systems engineering workforce (track staffing needs, supporting hiring/talent acquisition).
• Provide customer interface service for ongoing programs – technical escalation path for customers.
• Conduct regular communications meetings with systems engineering staff.
• Coordinate with other BCT systems engineering organizations to ensure that systems engineering efforts across the company are coordinated.
• Shall support business development efforts within the product area including allocating staffing support and ensuring proposed solutions will meet the interests of both BCT and the prospective customer.

 

Required Qualifications:

• Extensive system engineering skills, including requirements interpretation, derivation, allocation, and verification.
• Ability to perform trade studies and parametric analyses.
• Ability to consider cost, schedule, technical robustness, technical risk together for a system solution.
• Ability to evaluate emerging technologies against business case needs.
• Strong situational awareness – ability to “read the room”, work with external customers, internal peers, as well as internal management.
• Results-oriented temperament, with leadership style that empowers and energizes the systems engineering team.
• Understanding of BCT command media and how it applies to spacecraft programs.
• Excellent documentation and communication skills.

 

Expectations:

• The Principal Systems Engineering Lead is expected to flow down information from BCT product area leadership meetings, promote BCT policy adherence (including training), and flow up information to the product area leadership as needed.
• Team Development. The Lead must be willing and able to provide constructive criticism to their direct reports, and have difficult conversations as needed to promote optimal health of the team.
• The Lead is expected to work with Engineering, Operations, and Mission Assurance to resolve disagreements, assess risks, and find mutually acceptable paths forward, as much as possible without escalating to higher levels of leadership.
• As this is a position that functionally leads other engineers, it is desired the product area systems engineering lead is a fully on-site position. A minimum of 3 days a week of in person support is a minimum expectation (with recognition that situations arise that allow short term deviations from this expectation).

  

Required Education:

• Bachelor’s degree or higher preferred, in Aerospace, Engineering, Systems, or Computer Science discipline or related area.
  
• 15+ years of experience as an Aerospace Systems Engineer or Subsystem Engineer.

Working Conditions:

This job operates in a professional office environment, but in a manufacturing company. This role uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, scanners, filing cabinets and fax machines.  BCT anticipates the application window closing approximately 40 days from the date the notice was posted. However, factors such as candidate flow and business necessity may require BCT to shorten or extend the application window.

Physical Demands and Work Environment:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit for long periods of time.  The employee is occasionally required to stand, bend, reach, and walk. The position requires some light physical effort. This would require the ability to lift or move objects up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift or move objects up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities are required by this job which includes close vision, distance vision, color vision, and ability to adjust focus.

Blue Canyon Technologies is a drug-free workplace and an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other protected factor. Colorado Residents:  In any materials you submit, you may redact or remove age-identifying information such as age, date of birth, or dates of school attendance or graduation.  You will not be penalized for redacting or removing this information.  Blue Canyon Technologies is committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. To request a reasonable accommodation, contact Melissa Po at HR@bluecanyontech.com.