Scientist, Project Engineering

L3Harris•Salt Lake, UT

About The Position

L3Harris is seeking an experienced engineering leader to shape technical solutions and lead engineering execution for Protected and Hybrid Satellite Communications programs and weapons datalinks. The role guides multidisciplinary teams from mission needs and architecture development through integration, verification, validation, and delivery. It involves leading complex technical decisions, resolving engineering risks, and partnering with Program Management to deliver solutions that meet performance, cost, schedule, and quality commitments. As a senior technical resource, the Scientist engages directly with customers and engineering leadership, contributes to proposals and technology investment decisions, and strengthens engineering practices across programs. The position combines communications systems expertise with technical leadership amid uncertainty and competing program priorities. The work schedule is 9/80: employees work 9 out of every 14 days, totaling 80 hours, and have every other Friday off. Travel is approximately 10–20% to customer, partner, and subcontractor locations.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree and a minimum of 12 years of prior relevant experience; or a graduate degree and a minimum of 10 years of prior related experience; or, in lieu of a degree, a minimum of 16 years of prior related experience.
Demonstrated experience leading complex communications, SATCOM, or closely related defense systems development through multiple lifecycle phases.
Demonstrated technical depth in communications systems, including the ability to evaluate system architecture, performance analyses, and engineering trade-offs.
Experience leading multidisciplinary engineering teams and resolving technical issues across hardware, software, and system interfaces.
Experience applying systems engineering practices, including requirements development, architecture definition, interface management, integration, verification, and validation.
Experience developing engineering execution plans and estimates, managing technical risks, and balancing performance with cost and schedule commitments.
Demonstrated ability to communicate technical recommendations to customers and senior leaders and influence decisions across organizational boundaries.

Nice To Haves

Experience with protected military satellite communications, including Protected Tactical Waveform (PTW) and AEHF/XDR capabilities.
Advanced expertise in digital communications, modulation, spread-spectrum techniques such as FHSS and DSSS, and RF link-budget analysis.
Experience integrating military and commercial SATCOM capabilities, including proliferated low Earth orbit (pLEO) services and associated terminal or network interfaces.
Experience planning and executing MILSATCOM certification or interoperability activities with applicable government authorities.
Experience supporting NSA certification activities for communications products, including certification planning, technical evidence, and issue resolution.
Experience applying earned value management to engineering execution, including performance analysis, forecasting, and recovery planning.
Experience using model-based systems engineering or digital engineering practices to support architecture, requirements traceability, trade studies, and verification.
Experience developing modular architectures and managing interfaces that support technology insertion and interoperability.
Experience leading technical proposals, customer solution development, and internal research and development initiatives.

Responsibilities

Establish the technical approach and engineering execution plan for assigned programs, aligning customer objectives, technical scope, resources, milestones, and delivery commitments.
Lead system architecture development and technical trade studies, balancing mission performance, interoperability, affordability, security, supportability, and development risk.
Guide the translation of operational needs into system requirements, hardware and software allocations, interface definitions, and verification criteria.
Lead technical baseline development and change assessment, evaluating impacts to system performance, interfaces, cost, schedule, and risk.
Direct multidisciplinary engineering activities across systems, hardware, software, RF, integration, and test teams, including subcontractors and technology partners.
Partner with Program Management and functional leaders to develop engineering estimates, resource plans, and integrated schedules; assess execution performance and drive corrective actions.
Identify and retire technical risks through analysis, modeling, prototyping, and test; lead resolution of complex integration and performance issues.
Lead technical reviews, including SRR, PDR, CDR, and TRR, with clear readiness criteria, documented decisions, and closure of review actions.
Guide integration, verification, validation, and applicable certification activities, ensuring objective evidence demonstrates compliance with requirements and customer acceptance criteria.
Serve as a primary technical interface with customers and partners; communicate alternatives, recommendations, risks, and decisions to technical audiences and senior leaders.
Lead technical contributions to proposals and business pursuits, including solution concepts, engineering estimates, development strategies, and risk assessments.
Recommend technology roadmaps and internal research and development investments that address customer needs and strengthen future capabilities.
Mentor engineers, develop technical guidance and training, and implement improvements that increase engineering effectiveness across programs.