Chief of Staff

Paragon Space Development Corporation•Houston, TX

42d•$225,000 - $275,000

About The Position

The Chief of Staff is a strategic executive partner to the CEO and a key integrator across Paragon's technical and operational functions. This role combines direct leadership responsibility for the Engineering organization with company-wide coordination of Program Execution, Operations, Supply Chain, and Quality. The Chief of Staff increases the CEO's bandwidth by driving clarity, alignment, and execution across departments; monitoring strategic priorities; and ensuring programs and engineering teams operate with discipline, transparency, and predictable performance. This role is part technical leader, part operational strategist, and part organizational integrator - ideal for a senior engineering or program leader ready for enterprise-level impact.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in engineering required; advanced degree preferred.
12+ years progressive engineering, program, or technical operations leadership experience in aerospace or complex hardware environments.
Strong understanding of aerospace program lifecycles, mission assurance, systems engineering, and hardware development.
Demonstrated success leading multidisciplinary engineering teams and working cross-functionally with operations, programs, supply chain, and quality.
Proven ability to influence without authority, drive alignment, and lead through complexity.
Exceptional communication, executive presence, decision-making, and organizational skills.

Responsibilities

Direct Leadership Over Engineering
Lead and oversee the Engineering organization, including Systems, ECLSS, Mechanical, Thermal, Electrical, Analysis, R&D, and Principal Investigator teams.
Ensure technical rigor, staffing alignment, and adherence to engineering processes and review cycles.
Develop engineering leaders and advance the technical capability and maturity of the organization.
Establish engineering standards, resource planning models, and long-term capability development roadmaps.
Operational Oversight & Integration
Partner closely with Program Execution, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Quality to ensure technical and operational alignment.
Drive operational KPIs across engineering and programs, including: Cost performance Schedule predictability Quality metrics On-time delivery Labor forecasting & utilization Technical risk management
Strengthen program execution through disciplined planning, earned value management, mission assurance practices, and integrated risk reviews.
Ensure compliance with aerospace quality standards, customer requirements, and regulatory expectations.
Strategic Support to the CEO
Serve as a strategic thought partner and advisor, providing insight across engineering, operations, and programs.
Translate CEO priorities into actionable plans for engineering and operations.
Facilitate executive alignment: manage leadership meetings, track decisions and commitments, ensure follow-through.
Identify gaps, risks, and misalignments across the organization; lead corrective action initiatives.
External Engagement
Serve as a visible senior leader with customers, suppliers, and strategic partners.
Support business development by evaluating capability readiness, resourcing, technical risks, and strategic fit for new opportunities.
Represent engineering and operations during audits, readiness reviews, and customer engagements.
Culture & Leadership
Promote a culture of accountability, transparency, technical excellence, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
Build communication channels that strengthen trust, execution, and alignment across teams.
Support leadership development, talent pipelines, and technical career progression inside Engineering.