Business Development Engineer II

Rocket Lab•Littleton, CO

2d•Onsite

About The Position

Rocket Lab is seeking an early-career HASTE Business Development & Strategy Engineer for its site in Littleton, Colorado. The role supports growth of the HASTE (Hypersonic Accelerator Suborbital Test Electron) business and pursuit of opportunities supporting the nation’s hypersonic test and evaluation needs. As part of the Global Launch Services Business Development team, the engineer collaborates with experienced business development professionals and cross-functional teams including Engineering, Mission Management, and Production. Reporting directly to the Director of Business Development, HASTE, the role provides experience in opportunity identification, market and competitive analysis, capture and proposal activities, and developing mission concepts and business cases. The position may involve prolonged sitting, standing, walking, and computer work, as well as occasional exposure to moderate noise, dust, and fumes in production areas.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in engineering or another technical discipline.
At least 2 years of professional or internship experience in an engineering role in the aerospace, defense, or national security industries.
U.S. citizenship is required due to program requirements.
Ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance.

Nice To Haves

Experience or academic exposure to the design, manufacturing, integration, or testing of hypersonic systems, payloads, or flight vehicles.
Experience with hypersonic systems, flight testing, or launch vehicles.
Familiarity with hypersonic flight test, missile defense, suborbital launch, or related national security markets.
Experience on fast-paced engineering programs with geographically distributed or cross-functional teams.
Master’s degree in aerospace engineering or a related engineering discipline, such as mechanical, electrical, or computer engineering.
Experience with Python scripting, trajectory generation, or trajectory analysis.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Curiosity and enthusiasm for aerospace, hypersonics, and national security applications.
Strong organizational and problem-solving skills, including the ability to manage multiple priorities and work independently when needed.
Ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams and colleagues with diverse technical backgrounds and expertise.
Ability to understand complex technical concepts and communicate them clearly and concisely to technical and non-technical audiences.

Responsibilities

Draft proposals for new business opportunities with Business Development and Engineering teams.
Track opportunities, analyze pipeline activity, and forecast demand for HASTE capabilities.
Coordinate with Engineering to assess mission requirements and prepare timely technical responses to inquiries about HASTE capabilities.
Work with Production and Engineering to establish realistic NRE timelines and launch dates for future missions.
Collaborate with Communications and Business Development to maintain and improve HASTE marketing materials, data sheets, and user guides.
Partner with Engineering to identify technical gaps and help improve and standardize customer-facing technical documentation.
Use internal tools, including Salesforce, to track leads, opportunities, and proposals and support Business Development reporting and KPI development.
Support activities related to launch service agreements, technical assistance agreements, and non-disclosure agreements, as well as Jira ticket creation, tracking, and prioritization.
Build and maintain knowledge of suborbital launch and hypersonic test markets, competitive capabilities, customer demand, and emerging trends to support sales forecasting, pricing strategy, business planning, and HASTE product development.