Senior Manager, Mechanical Engineering

Firestorm•San Diego, CA

9d•$180,000 - $210,000•Onsite

About The Position

Firestorm is hiring a Senior Manager, Mechanical Engineering to lead the mechanical engineering team responsible for the airframes, structures, mechanisms, and integration hardware used in its small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS). The role owns technical direction, execution, and team development across multiple product lines, working with electrical engineering, propulsion, payloads, manufacturing, quality, and program management to deliver producible, qualified aircraft on aggressive timelines. This is a technical and people leadership role. The Senior Manager establishes engineering and drawing standards, drives change control and configuration management, and represents mechanical engineering in cross-functional integrated product teams (IPTs), customer technical interchanges, and program reviews. The manager hires, mentors, and develops engineers at all career levels, sets performance expectations, conducts reviews, and makes compensation and leveling decisions. The position plans and resources mechanical engineering work across programs, balances development, sustaining engineering, and customer-driven changes, and supports the transition from prototypes to rate production. It may require on-site participation in structural and integration test campaigns. The role is based onsite at Firestorm Headquarters in San Diego, California, with domestic travel up to 10%. Relocation assistance may be included in an offer where appropriate. The position typically operates in a standard office and manufacturing environment. Compensation is listed as a base salary of $180,000–$210,000, commensurate with experience, plus an equity grant. Firestorm describes itself as a growth-stage defense technology company developing mission-adaptable aerial systems and deployable manufacturing infrastructure.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.
U.S. citizenship and ability to maintain a Department of Defense (DoD) security clearance, as stated in the required qualifications.
10 or more years of mechanical engineering experience, with significant time in aerospace, defense, automotive, or comparable hardware-intensive industries.
5 or more years of direct people management experience, including hiring, performance management, and developing engineers from junior to senior levels.
Demonstrated history of building and developing high-performing engineering teams.
Deep technical credibility in mechanical design, including structures, mechanisms, composites and/or metallic structures, GD&T, tolerance analysis, and DFM.
Hands-on experience leading designs from concept through qualification and into production.
Experience with change control, PLM systems (Arena, Windchill, Teamcenter, or equivalent), and configuration management at scale.
Experience leading cross-functional integrated product teams (IPTs).
Strong communication skills and ability to engage effectively with engineers, executives, customers, and government stakeholders.
Ability to work in a fast-paced and dynamic startup environment.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree.
Experience leading mechanical teams on sUAS, large aircraft, missile, or other SWaP-constrained airborne platforms.
Experience scaling a hardware engineering team from prototype to rate production.
Experience establishing or significantly improving change control / CCB processes.
Track record of identifying and developing early-career engineers who advanced to senior or principal-level roles.

Responsibilities

Set technical direction for mechanical engineering across aircraft platforms, including structures, mechanisms, integration, packaging, and production hardware.
Own design standards, drawing standards, and engineering documentation practices; ensure consistency and quality across the team's work.
Lead mechanical engineering participation in change control board (CCB), ECR/ECO workflows, and configuration management using Arena PLM.
Lead and participate in PDRs, CDRs, structural reviews, and production readiness reviews; provide technical judgment on trade studies and architecture decisions.
Partner with manufacturing and quality on producibility, DFM/DFA, first-article inspection, and disposition of non-conformances.
Represent mechanical engineering in cross-functional IPTs, customer technical interchanges, and program reviews.
Lead, grow, and develop a multidisciplinary mechanical engineering team spanning structures, mechanisms, GSE, and packaging.
Hire engineers at all levels, from interns and new graduates through principal engineers, and build a talent pipeline that scales with the company.
Mentor early-career engineers through stretch assignments, structured one-on-ones, feedback, and career development.
Coach senior engineers into technical leadership and IPT lead roles.
Set performance expectations, conduct performance reviews, and own team compensation and leveling decisions.
Build a team culture that values rigorous engineering, hands-on work, and personal ownership of outcomes.
Plan and resource mechanical engineering work across multiple programs, balancing new development, sustaining engineering, and customer-driven changes.
Partner with program management to commit to schedules, identify risks, and deliver milestones.
Drive productionization and transition from prototype to rate production across Firestorm's aircraft lines.
Support test and fielding events, including on-site presence for structural and integration test campaigns.

Benefits

Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans.
401(k) Retirement Savings Plan.
Equity grants for new hires.
Unlimited PTO.
Generous company holiday calendar, including holiday hiatuses in July and December.
Generous parental leave.
Lifestyle Spending Account.
FSA, DCFSA, and HSA.
Hospital indemnity insurance.
Critical illness insurance.
Accident insurance.
Basic Life/AD&D and short-term and long-term disability insurance, 100% covered by Firestorm; option to purchase additional life insurance for the employee and family.
Free 24/7 mental health resources, including therapy.
Work-life services, including free legal and financial support.
Relocation assistance may be included in the offer package where appropriate.