In an era of dynamic change in space, Aerospace is addressing a generation of complex challenges. We operate the only federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) committed exclusively to the space enterprise. Our technical experts span every discipline of space-related science and engineering. Join our team and thrive in a career that matters to the world and you personally.

The Special Programs Division at the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC/SP) is responsible for the development and acquisition of the United States Space Force’s space domain awareness (SDA) and counterspace programs, including the Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program (GSSAP), the Ground-Based Electro-Optical Deep-Space Surveillance system (GEODSS), the Deep-space Advanced Radar Capability (DARC), the Counter Communications System (CCS), among many others. With its dozens of programs, Special Programs is leading the way in the transformation of space to a warfighting domain.

Responsibilities

The Systems Director is responsible for leading Aerospace’s support to the Special Programs Warfighting and Tech Futures Division (SMC/SPF), which performs architecture development, technology prototyping and transition, systems engineering, and integration across all programs in the Special Programs portfolio. SPF leadership also serves as the Capability Area Integrator for the SDA and counterspace mission areas in the SMC Portfolio Architect, impacting requirements, budget inputs, and system-of-systems engineering across SMC.

The Systems Director provides experienced guidance and support to SPF leadership in the development and execution of system-of-systems enterprise integration activities, coordinates these activities with other organizations at SMC and with external government partners, ensures that interfaces between SP programs are clearly defined and consistent with each side’s expectations, and applies systems engineering expertise and experience in support of system and system-of-systems readiness processes, both requirements development and validation, verification and test, transition to operations, and risk assessment. The Systems Director aids the government in monitoring the consistency of programs’ requirements and interfaces with respect to overall enterprise integration goals, developing technology prototyping roadmaps and transition plans, and recommends remediations where disconnects are found.

The Systems Director is also expected to provide leadership, career development, mentorship, and planning for the technical staff supporting SPF. This position requires some travel.
 

Key Functions

• Establishes organization’s objectives and goals and communicates them to subordinates, management, and interfacing matrix organizations. Conducts organization’s activities consistent with corporate policies/practices, goals, and objectives. Sets performance standards; assesses sufficiency and quality of organization’s services
• Participates with higher management in determining organization’s structure and staff and supports resource needs. Participates in budget planning and allocation of resources. Implements policies, practices, and operating processes and recommends improvements to higher management. Reports organization’s activities, progress and achievements through written and oral reports to management, subordinates, and customers
• Identifies and assigns sub-organization and staff functional responsibilities. Assigns and coordinates work activities within organization; monitors workload, work progress and schedules, ensures completion of organization’s work assignments within cost and schedule guidelines. Participates in inter-organizational team assignments associated with management and technical issues and in training and educational activities
• Cooperates and communicates frequently with customer to coordinate and report work progress, issues, and results. Conducts work performance within customer standards and regulations. Participates selectively in day-to-day technical task planning and issue resolution; coordinates work activities with counterpart and common-task participation organizations
• Conducts staff performance reviews and recommends performance improvement, career development, salary and promotion actions; establishes staffing needs and recommends reassignments, training, transfers, and other staff deployments; assists other supervisors in evaluation and assignment of staff
• Directs technical group performing engineering design, analysis or other research and development activities. Directs achievement of engineering assignments within project schedule and cost guidelines. Provides input to management on organization’s technical progress and capabilities. Supports proposal activities by estimating time and effort needed to complete specific engineering tasks and objectives. Identifies, selects and assigns engineering personnel, monitors quality of work outputs; resolves significant technical and administrative problems

Qualifications

Required

• B.S. in engineering or science
• Minimum of twelve (12) years of relevant experience
• Effective written and oral communications skills
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain effective relationships with the government customer, Aerospace, and contractors
• Progressive professional experience and leadership in one or more of the following areas:
  • System-of-systems engineering and integration in national security space
  • As-is, to-be, and should-be architecture development and gap analysis
  • Enterprise modeling and simulation in the SDA and/or space control mission areas
  • Space cyber technology development, including hardware and software solutions and defensive cyber operations
• Demonstrated technical leadership skills with a successful track record of building and leading multidisciplinary teams
• Demonstrated ability to identify and assess risk areas and to work closely with technical staff and program office peers, customers, and contractor personnel to resolve issues
• Demonstrated ability to identify, prioritize, and resolve high-impact technical and/or program management issues
• Current Top Secret and SCI clearance 
• Ability to obtain additional security clearances
• Ability to travel up to 25%

 
Preferred

• Advanced degree in engineering, mathematics, or science
• Familiarity with space domain awareness, space control, command & control, and SMC/SP programs
• 12 or more years of progressively responsible professional engineering/scientific experience, including substantial experience in a managerial role with proven ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with all levels of contractors, customers, and corporate staff
• Excellent interpersonal, written and oral communication skills
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Experience with Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE)
• Current access to one or more SMC/SP programs

Equal Opportunity Commitment

The Aerospace Corporation is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. We believe that a diverse workforce creates an environment in which unique ideas are developed and differing perspectives are valued, producing superior customer solutions. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, age, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, color, religion, genetic information, marital status, ancestry, national origin, protected veteran status, physical disability, medical condition, mental disability, or disability status and any other characteristic protected by state or federal law. If you’re an individual with a disability or a disabled veteran who needs assistance using our online job search and application tools or need reasonable accommodation to complete the job application process, please contact us by phone at 310.336.5432 or by email at [email protected]. You can also review The Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law poster and the supplement, as well as the Pay Transparency Policy Statement.