Manager, Software Engineering

Sierra Space•Centennial, CO

1d•$167,209 - $229,911

About The Position

The Manager, Software Engineer leads and directs one or more software engineering teams responsible for the design, development, testing, and delivery of mission-critical software supporting aerospace and defense programs. This role combines hands-on technical leadership with people management, ensuring that engineering teams follow disciplined software development methodologies, comply with aerospace quality and safety standards, and deliver secure, high-quality software on schedule and within budget. The ideal candidate blends deep software engineering expertise with proven leadership experience, translating organizational strategy and functional plans into actionable engineering processes while mentoring and holding teams accountable to technical and professional excellence. The Manager, Software Engineer provides direct supervision and mentorship to software engineers across one or more teams, setting performance expectations, conducting reviews, and fostering a culture of accountability, technical excellence, and continuous improvement. This individual translates software engineering functional plans into concrete operational plans, defining and tailoring development, testing, and deployment procedures using Agile, Scrum, Kanban, or DevOps methodologies appropriate to aerospace software projects. They oversee the software development lifecycle end-to-end, including version control practices and CI/CD pipeline management, to ensure efficient, repeatable, and secure software delivery. The manager ensures that all engineering activities align with applicable aerospace software development standards (e.g., DO-178B/C, NASA-STD-7150.2, NASA-STD-8739, RTCA/DO-278, Aerospace Corporation ToR guidance) and organizational quality frameworks (AS9100, ISO, CMMI), while also embedding relevant cybersecurity frameworks and compliance requirements into team practices. Responsibilities include managing software development budgets, resource allocation, and tooling investments to maximize team efficiency and return on investment. The role requires driving process improvements that enhance code quality, performance, and maintainability without compromising mission-critical reliability, and leading teams through organizational changes, including adoption of new methodologies, tools, and workflows. The manager serves as a communication bridge between engineering teams and both technical and non-technical stakeholders, clearly articulating technical concepts, project status, risks, and trade-offs to support informed decision-making. Above all, this individual upholds and models company values, holding their teams to high professional and ethical standards while fostering collaboration, innovation, and disciplined engineering practices.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field required (or equivalent work experience in lieu of degree).
Several years of relevant software engineering experience, with a significant portion served in a technical and/or leadership capacity.
Comprehensive knowledge of software development methodologies (Agile, Scrum, Kanban, DevOps) and demonstrated ability to implement and tailor these processes for aerospace software projects.
Experience with software development lifecycle management, version control systems, and CI/CD pipelines to enable efficient and secure software delivery.
Working knowledge of aerospace software development standards (e.g., DO-178B/C, NASA-STD-7150.2, NASA-STD-8739, RTCA/DO-278, The Aerospace Corporation's ToR-2011/2023) and quality standards (AS9100, ISO, CMMI).
Demonstrated ability to translate software engineering functional plans into operational plans, including defining procedures for development, testing, and deployment.
Experience managing the activities of multiple software engineering teams and providing direct supervision to software engineers.
Strong communication skills, with the ability to translate technical concepts for both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Demonstrated commitment to upholding company values and holding software engineering teams accountable to professional standards.
The ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Security Clearance is required.
U.S. Citizenship status is required as this position needs an active U.S. Security Clearance for employment.

Nice To Haves

Knowledge of cybersecurity frameworks and compliance requirements relevant to aerospace and defense software applications.
Skill in developing processes that optimize code quality, performance, and maintainability while meeting mission-critical requirements.
Financial acumen with the ability to manage software development budgets, resource allocations, and tool investments.
Experience supporting organizational change within software teams, including the implementation of new methodologies and tools.
Proficiency in Python and React
Experience with Python FastAPI
Experience with Agile or Scrum/Kanban methodologies and tools (JIRA, Confluence).
Excellent communication and teamwork skills, and efficient with collaborative tools (GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket) and development ceremonies (daily standup, backlog grooming, work planning, task estimation, retrospectives, etc.).
Experience with cloud platforms (AWS) and cloud-native development.
Familiarity with containerization (Docker) and orchestration (Kubernetes).
Knowledge of database management systems (MySQL, PostgreSQL, MongoDB)

Responsibilities

Leads and directs one or more software engineering teams responsible for the design, development, testing, and delivery of mission-critical software.
Provides direct supervision and mentorship to software engineers, setting performance expectations, conducting reviews, and fostering a culture of accountability, technical excellence, and continuous improvement.
Translates software engineering functional plans into concrete operational plans, defining and tailoring development, testing, and deployment procedures using Agile, Scrum, Kanban, or DevOps methodologies.
Oversees the software development lifecycle end-to-end, including version control practices and CI/CD pipeline management.
Ensures all engineering activities align with applicable aerospace software development standards and organizational quality frameworks.
Embeds relevant cybersecurity frameworks and compliance requirements into team practices.
Manages software development budgets, resource allocation, and tooling investments.
Drives process improvements that enhance code quality, performance, and maintainability.
Leads teams through organizational changes, including adoption of new methodologies, tools, and workflows.
Serves as a communication bridge between engineering teams and stakeholders, articulating technical concepts, project status, risks, and trade-offs.
Upholds and models company values, holding teams to high professional and ethical standards.
Fosters collaboration, innovation, and disciplined engineering practices.