Director, Solutions/Conceptual Design

CesiumAstro•El Segundo, CA

About The Position

The Director, Solutions/Conceptual Design leads the organization responsible for developing end-to-end technical solutions for new customer opportunities and strategic pursuits. The role oversees Communication Systems Architects who combine domain expertise and broad systems knowledge to define differentiated, technically credible, executable solutions. As a senior technical leader within Product & Solutions, the Director works with Product, Business Development, customers, and Engineering to translate mission needs into complete system architectures. The organization owns the technical solution from early concept and customer engagement through capture, proposal, contract definition, and transition to execution. The Director ensures solutions are optimized across disciplines and balance mission performance, technical risk, cost, schedule, product reuse, and competitive differentiation. The role also informs product and technology strategy by identifying recurring customer needs, emerging capabilities, and architectural investments that can support future opportunities.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Telecommunications Engineering, or a related technical field with 11–15 years of related experience; or a master's degree in a related field with 9–12 years of related experience; or a PhD in a related field with 7–10 years of related experience.
Related experience in communication systems engineering, system architecture, complex communications systems, payload development, mission systems, or a related engineering discipline.
At least 5 years of progressive technical leadership or management experience in system architecture, Chief Engineer, communication systems engineering, or equivalent technical leadership roles.
Demonstrated experience leading multidisciplinary technical teams and owning end-to-end system architectures spanning multiple engineering disciplines.
Advanced technical expertise in at least one communications domain, such as communication theory, RF/microwave, antennas and phased arrays, digital communications/DSP, FPGA/digital processing, or communications software.
Demonstrated experience leading technical solutions for customer pursuits, proposals, or new business opportunities.
Must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, conditional resident, asylee, or refugee (protected individual under 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3)), or eligible to obtain required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Responsibilities

Build, develop, and lead a high-performing team of Communication Systems Architects responsible for defining technical solutions for customer opportunities and strategic pursuits.
Ensure each pursuit has a technical architect accountable for the end-to-end solution, from customer needs and CONOPS through architecture, requirements, proposal, and transition to execution.
Partner with customers and Business Development to understand mission objectives, operational needs, CONOPS, performance requirements, and constraints, and translate them into differentiated system solutions.
Lead and review architecture-level trades across antennas, RF, digital processing, communications algorithms, firmware, software, networking, and system interfaces.
Partner with Business Development and Product leadership to assess opportunities, support pursue/no-pursue decisions, identify technical discriminators, and establish technical strategies to win.
Ensure proposed architectures, requirements, technical approaches, performance analyses, risks, assumptions, and development strategies form a credible technical solution.
Drive development of system requirements, interfaces, performance allocations, CONOPS, architecture definitions, verification approaches, and key analyses.
Identify recurring customer needs and architectural capabilities that should influence product roadmaps, technology investments, and future product development.
Drive reuse of existing and in-development products when they provide the best system solution.
Ensure architectures balance performance and differentiation with technical maturity, cost, schedule, risk, manufacturability, and execution capability.
Work with Product Development & Assurance to translate technical architectures into executable program plans, including scope, requirements, development activities, Make/Buy decisions, risks, assumptions, cost, and schedule.
Ensure technical solutions transition cleanly from pursuit to engineering and program execution with clear requirements, architecture, interfaces, key trades, risks, assumptions, and customer commitments.
Establish architecture standards, technical review practices, analysis methods, and decision frameworks.
Mentor architects and senior technical leaders in technical expertise, system-level breadth, customer engagement, and business judgment.