Senior Director, Optical Communication - TeraWave

BLUE ORIGIN•Seattle, WA

4d•$317,388 - $444,342

About The Position

The Senior Director, Optical Communications Terminals leads the multidisciplinary engineering organization responsible for the architecture, development, qualification, production, and deployment of TeraWave optical communications terminals. This leader owns end-to-end technical and execution performance across optical, opto-mechanical, electro-optical, electronics, firmware, software, controls, systems engineering, test, and supplier engineering disciplines. This role reports to the VP, Payloads and Terminals and partners closely with spacecraft, ground systems, mission operations, manufacturing, supply chain, quality, and program management.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in engineering, physics, computer science, or related technical field
12+ years of engineering experience, with substantial experience leading complex multidisciplinary engineering organizations
Experience developing sophisticated electro-optical, optical communications, aerospace, semiconductor, or similarly complex products
Demonstrated ability to take products from architecture through development, qualification, production, and deployment
Strong record of recruiting, developing, and retaining engineering talent
Experience with suppliers, manufacturing, qualification, and production environments

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree in a relevant technical discipline
Experience with optical and laser systems.
Experience in space systems or high-reliability communications products

Responsibilities

Own the technical architecture and product definition for TeraWave optical communications terminals
Drive architecture decisions across all engineering disciplines and establish system-level performance, reliability, scalability, and manufacturability objectives
Define and control interfaces between the optical terminal, spacecraft, ground infrastructure, and network
Lead resolution of complex technical issues and cross-disciplinary tradeoffs
Maintain the technical roadmap for future terminal generations
Own engineering execution from concept through development, qualification, production, and deployment
Establish clear technical milestones, identify critical-path activities, and surface schedule risks early
Ensure technical risks have clear owners, mitigation plans, and escalation paths
Drive disciplined design reviews, verification, validation, and qualification activities
Partner with program management to establish realistic commitments and maintain execution accountability
Lead and develop a multidisciplinary organization of engineering managers, senior technical leaders, and individual contributors
Build an effective leadership structure with clear ownership and decision rights
Establish engineering standards, processes, and operating mechanisms that provide timely visibility into organizational health
Build a culture of technical rigor, accountability, early risk identification, and constructive escalation
Recruit and retain exceptional engineering talent
Partner with spacecraft, ground systems, manufacturing, supply chain, mission operations, and network engineering to ensure effective integration and producible designs
Represent optical terminal engineering in senior leadership and program reviews
Resolve cross-organizational issues at the appropriate level
Establish technical relationships with strategic optical, photonic, electronic, mechanical, and semiconductor suppliers
Define supplier technical performance requirements and qualification criteria
Partner with manufacturing engineering to transition development designs into repeatable production processes
Drive design-for-manufacturing, design-for-test, and design-for-reliability practices