Senior Technical Project Engineer – Multidisciplinary Development Programs

Viasat, Inc. • Carlsbad, CA

63d • Hybrid

About The Position

We are seeking a Senior Engineer to operate in a Project Engineer role on a fast‑paced, multidisciplinary development program. This role requires strong systems‑level thinking, broad technical capability, and the ability to coordinate complex engineering efforts across hardware, software, integration, and test! While deep sensing expertise is not required on day one, the ideal candidate has the technical foundation, curiosity, and systems perspective to quickly grow into the role of a sensing‑focused Project Engineer, owning technical direction and cross‑domain integration for sensing‑driven systems. You will serve as a technical integrator and leader—driving alignment across teams, leading technical tradeoffs, and ensuring focused execution from concept through delivery.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (Electrical, Mechanical, Software, Systems, or related field); Master’s preferred.
• 8-12+ years of demonstrated ability in complex system or product development.
• Proven track record to lead or coordinate multidisciplinary technical efforts.
• Strong systems engineering fundamentals, including requirements, interfaces, and integration.
• Ability to learn new technical domains quickly and operate effectively in ambiguous environments.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to align diverse technical teams.
• Able to travel up to 25% travel domestically
• Must be able to work out of our office in Carlsbad, CA or Tempe, AZ.
• Able to come into the office 3 days a week; hybrid role.
• US Citizenship required.
• Must be able to obtain a United States Top Secret/ SCI Clearance.

Nice To Haves

• Prior experience working with sensor‑enabled or data‑driven systems, even if not as a specialist.
• Background in embedded systems, controls, data processing, or system integration.
• Experience operating in a Project Engineer, Lead Engineer, or Technical Lead role.
• Experience delivering products through full product lifecycle

Responsibilities

• Act as the Project Engineer for a major development effort, owning system‑level technical coordination across multiple engineering disciplines.
• Define and maintain system architectures, interfaces, and technical requirements, ensuring consistency and traceability.
• Lead technical trade studies and decision‑making across performance, risk, schedule, and cost.
• Grow into ownership of sensing‑related architectures, interfaces, and performance as program needs evolve.
• Work across hardware, firmware, software, mechanical, and test teams to ensure end‑to‑end system performance.
• Identify and resolve cross‑domain technical issues, particularly at integration and interface boundaries.
• Guide design decisions to support testability, reliability, manufacturability, and scalability.
• Rapidly develop understanding of sensor technologies, data acquisition, and system‑level sensing performance relevant to the program.
• Partner with subject‑matter experts to build depth in sensing systems and eventually assume broader sensing technical leadership.
• Translate sensing‑related behaviors and constraints into clear system requirements and integration strategies.
• Partner closely with program management to support technical planning, milestone definition, and risk management.
• Provide clear technical feedback to schedules, resourcing, and build/test strategies.
• Track technical readiness and integration maturity across program phases.
• Coordinate efforts across multiple engineering teams and disciplines in a matrixed environment.
• Mentor engineers in systems thinking and disciplined development practices.
• Serve as a trusted technical point of contact for engineering leadership and customers.
• Support definition of system‑level test and validation strategies, including integration and performance testing.
• Assist with root‑cause analysis of complex system issues and guide corrective actions.
• Ensure test results and field data feed back into design improvements.

Benefits

• range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the position offered
• comprehensive benefit offerings that are focused on your holistic health and wellness

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior