Principle Systems Engineering- Software

AST SpaceMobile•Dallas, TX

About The Position

AST SpaceMobile is building SpaceMobile, a space-based cellular broadband network intended to provide 4G/5G-speed connectivity to standard smartphones around the world. The Principal Systems Engineer - Software leads the definition, decomposition, and management of software requirements for a complex communications platform. The role translates stakeholder needs into clear, testable, traceable requirements that engineering teams can implement. This senior technical leadership position drives requirements excellence throughout the system lifecycle. It partners with software, hardware, network, systems, and test engineering teams to ensure requirements are defined, reviewed, verified, validated, and maintained from concept through deployment. The position also provides technical leadership in system architecture, integration, and requirements management, and mentors engineers in systems engineering practices.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related technical field.
Minimum 10–15 years of professional engineering experience.
Experience as a Systems Engineer writing, managing, and maintaining requirements for complex technical systems.
Experience supporting large-scale software development, systems integration, or communications-based platforms.
Proven ability to develop clear, concise, testable, and verifiable requirements.
Experience across the systems engineering lifecycle, including requirements analysis, design support, verification, validation, and deployment.
Experience using requirements management, configuration management, and traceability processes in complex engineering environments.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Strong interpersonal and relationship-building abilities and ability to collaborate across cross-functional engineering teams.
Strong analytical and critical-thinking skills, attention to detail, and documentation quality.
Ability to influence technical decisions without direct authority.
Strong problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
Ability to manage competing priorities and complex technical initiatives.
Self-motivated, proactive, and committed to continuous improvement.
Strong mentoring and leadership capabilities.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in a related engineering discipline.
Experience in cellular telecommunications, wireless communications, networking, or related communications technologies.
Familiarity with 4G LTE, 5G, radio access networks, core networks, IMS, or related telecommunications architectures.
Knowledge of industry standards and specifications development processes.
Experience supporting satellite communications, space systems, or non-terrestrial network architectures.
Experience with Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE).
Experience using SysML, Cameo, or similar MBSE tools.
Background in software development using C, C++, Python, or similar technologies.
Experience with Linux-based embedded, distributed, or networked systems.
Experience supporting highly regulated, mission-critical, safety-critical, or high-reliability environments.
INCOSE CSEP, ESEP, or similar systems engineering certifications.

Responsibilities

Lead development of software system requirements from stakeholder needs and system-level concepts through subsystem and component-level specifications.
Define and maintain software requirements for communications software, networking functions, interfaces, and distributed system architectures.
Develop and manage interface control documents (ICDs) between software elements, infrastructure components, external systems, and partner interfaces.
Own requirements traceability from stakeholder needs through design, implementation, verification, validation, and operational acceptance.
Lead requirements reviews and resolve ambiguity, conflicts, risks, and gaps across engineering disciplines.
Conduct system-level trade studies and technical analyses to support architecture and requirements decisions.
Partner with software development and test teams to define verification strategies, acceptance criteria, and validation approaches.
Support system integration activities, anomaly investigations, root-cause analysis, and requirements changes throughout the development lifecycle.
Develop and maintain requirements management processes, standards, and best practices.
Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to align technical requirements with business and operational objectives.
Mentor engineers and promote strong systems engineering principles across the organization.
Provide technical leadership on complex system architecture, integration, and requirements management initiatives.