RF/EW Principal Engineering Project Lead

Mercury Systems•Cypress, CA

About The Position

Mercury Systems’ Integrated Processing Solutions Business Unit is developing complex ground, airborne, and mission-critical processing solutions for defense and aerospace customers. These products include integrated hardware, software, firmware, RF, mechanical, system architecture, integration, test, qualification, manufacturing, and customer-delivery activities. We are seeking a Principal Engineering Project Lead to support the planning and execution of cross-functional engineering programs. This role is ideal for a technically grounded project leader with experience in RF systems, radar, electronic warfare, communications systems, embedded systems, systems engineering, or complex hardware/software integration environments. The Engineering Project Lead will work closely with engineering leadership, program management, functional managers, and technical teams to help plan work, coordinate resources, track progress, identify risks, and support successful delivery of engineering commitments. This person will help improve project visibility, strengthen execution discipline, and support cross-functional coordination across active development programs. This is a hands-on engineering project leadership role for someone who enjoys working with technical teams, organizing complex work, resolving coordination challenges, and helping programs move efficiently from planning through integration, test, and delivery.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, Engineering Management, or a related technical discipline.
Typically requires 10+ years of engineering experience, including 5+ years of relevant experience in engineering, technical project leadership, systems engineering, RF engineering, complex product development, program execution, or related technical roles.
Experience supporting or leading cross-functional engineering teams in the development, integration, qualification, or delivery of complex technical products.
Experience working in one or more of the following areas: RF systems, microwave systems, radar systems, electronic warfare, communications systems, signal processing, embedded systems, systems engineering, hardware/software integration, or defense/aerospace product development.
Experience with complex product development involving hardware, software, firmware, RF, mechanical, systems, integration, test, quality, or manufacturing activities.
Experience system-level integration activities, including hardware/software integration, RF subsystem integration, lab integration, verification, validation, qualification, production transition, or customer acceptance.
Experience of the product development lifecycle, including requirements, design, implementation, integration, verification, qualification, manufacturing release, and customer delivery.
Experience understand technical dependencies between engineering disciplines and help coordinate work across multiple teams.
Experience developing or maintaining project schedules, resource plans, milestones, dependencies, deliverables, risks, and action-item trackers.
Experience with project management, scheduling, tracking, and risk management tools and methods.
Experience using Microsoft Project or similar project planning tools.
Ability to obtain a DoD Secret Clearance.

Nice To Haves

Direct experience with RF systems, radar systems, electronic warfare systems, receivers, transmitters, signal generators, RF test equipment, DRFM-based systems, radar environment simulation systems, or threat simulation systems.
Familiarity with electronic warfare concepts, including radar threat simulation, emitter/receiver interactions, electronic attack, electronic protection, jamming techniques, or RF mission systems.
Experience working with RF test equipment such as spectrum analyzers, network analyzers, signal generators, oscilloscopes, power meters, noise sources, or automated test stations.
Experience with safety-critical, ruggedized, airborne, ground-based, or mission-critical product development environments.
Experience supporting formal reviews such as SRR, PDR, CDR, TRR, PRR, qualification reviews, production readiness reviews, and customer acceptance reviews.
Experience with EAC/ETC tracking, labor forecasting, resource loading, capacity planning, or engineering budget support.
Experience supporting proposal development, engineering estimates, basis of estimates, technical volumes, execution planning, or NRE planning.
Experience with requirements management tools such as DOORS, Jama, Polarion, or similar tools.
Experience with Atlassian Jira and Confluence.
Experience with Agile, waterfall, or hybrid development methodologies.
Strong communication skills with the ability to summarize project status, risks, issues, and next steps for both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced environment with changing priorities, technical complexity, and cross-functional dependencies.

Responsibilities

Support engineering execution for development programs involving hardware, software, firmware, RF, mechanical, systems engineering, integration, test, qualification, manufacturing, and documentation.
Develop and maintain engineering project plans, including schedules, milestones, deliverables, dependencies, resource needs, risks, and action items.
Coordinate cross-functional engineering activities across Hardware Engineering, RF Engineering, Software Engineering, Firmware Engineering, FPGA Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering, Integration and Test, Quality, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Documentation.
Work with engineering leadership, program management, and functional managers to support resource planning, priority alignment, and execution of program commitments.
Help identify schedule risks, technical risks, staffing gaps, dependency issues, and integration challenges before they impact program execution.
Track project progress against engineering commitments and provide clear status updates to stakeholders.
Support regular engineering project reviews, status meetings, risk reviews, integration planning meetings, and action-item follow-up.
Help coordinate system, subsystem, hardware/software, and RF integration activities, including lab readiness, test planning, interface coordination, and issue tracking.
Support engineering teams in resolving cross-functional blockers involving hardware, software, firmware, RF, test, manufacturing, quality, supply chain, or documentation.
Assist with monitoring engineering labor, estimates to complete, schedule impacts, and potential budget concerns.
Work with project teams to clarify scope, priorities, deliverables, ownership, dependencies, and completion criteria.
Support proposal planning, engineering estimates, basis of estimates, resource forecasts, and development planning for new business opportunities.
Support formal program and technical reviews, including SRR, PDR, CDR, TRR, PRR, qualification reviews, production readiness reviews, and customer acceptance activities.
Communicate project status, risks, issues, and recommended actions clearly to technical teams and leadership.