Principal Guidance & Control Engineer

The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory•Huntsville, MA

22h

About The Position

Draper is an independent, nonprofit research and development company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with more than 2,000 employees. Its multidisciplinary engineering and scientific teams develop solutions for national challenges across areas including military defense, space exploration, and biomedical engineering. The Autonomy, Guidance Navigation and Control (GNC) Engineer develops software for advanced space and defense systems serving U.S. Government and commercial customers, as well as internal research and development projects. The Guidance and Control Engineer develops, integrates, and deploys algorithms and software for systems operating in complex underwater, ground, air, and space environments. This senior technical and leadership role owns the full development lifecycle, from requirements evaluation and algorithm design to software implementation, performance analysis, rigorous testing, and documentation. The engineer provides subject-matter expertise, leads complex and high-impact multidisciplinary work, mentors junior staff, and helps set technical direction while managing task priorities, scope, schedule, and cost. The role also engages customers and stakeholders to shape requirements, problems, and deliverables.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related field.
At least 15 years of relevant engineering experience.
Demonstrated expertise in guidance, navigation, and control technology.
Proficiency in one or more programming languages, such as C++, Python, or MATLAB.
Proficiency with basic software development standards and tools, such as Jira and Git.
Excellent communication skills and ability to articulate complex technical ideas to customers and team members.
Ability to lead and delegate tasks across interdisciplinary teams.
Expert knowledge of project execution and ability to scope new technical work.
Excellent analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
Strong technical judgment and a practical, common-sense approach to completing work.
Willingness to take on challenging problems.
Sustained record of helping customers shape problems and needs.

Nice To Haves

Master's or Ph.D. in a related field.

Responsibilities

Develop and lead autonomy and GNC algorithms using state-of-the-art theory and proven techniques.
Own the development lifecycle, including requirements evaluation, algorithm design, software implementation, performance analysis, testing, and technical documentation.
Communicate with customers, stakeholders, and team members to establish requirements and explain technical work products, designs, and deliverables.
Mentor junior staff and provide technical leadership to drive innovative project outcomes.
Develop technical reports and presentations tailored to their intended audience.
Define technical direction and track priorities, scope, schedule, and cost for large teams.
Serve as a subject-matter expert in Autonomy and GNC disciplines and customer mission areas.
Lead internal and external meetings and maintain accountability in high-impact situations.
Lead complex, multidisciplinary, high-risk, high-visibility tasks and teams of more than 10 people.
Develop solutions and techniques that benefit multiple programs, lines of business, and engineering capabilities.
Maintain an external professional network connected to subject-matter expertise, including professional societies and customers.
Continuously update technical skills to keep pace with advances in Autonomy and GNC theory.
Derive task-level or component-level requirements from system requirements.
Scope new technical work for prospective customers and help customers shape problems and needs.
Lead and delegate work across interdisciplinary teams.