Sr. Director, Forward Deployed Engineering

Hadrian Automation • San Francisco, CA

4d • $300,000 - $415,000

About The Position

Hadrian builds autonomous factories using AI, advanced software, robotics, and full-stack manufacturing to help aerospace and defense customers produce mission-critical systems faster and at lower cost. The Forward Deployed team works alongside program teams on major programs with the U.S. Government, Armed Forces, and defense primes, adapting Hadrian’s products to customer needs and feeding program learnings back into the company’s platform.

The Director leads the Forward Deployed team on one or more programs and owns technical outcomes. This role directs the technical work of large-scale programs, partnering directly with government stakeholders, customers, prime partners, and Hadrian leadership. The team is early and growing, and the Director will help scale it while contributing to major programs.

The Director owns the program’s technical roadmap and delivery, determining what the platform covers, what needs to be built, and what should not be pursued. They are accountable for technical execution supporting program rate, quality, schedule, and cost. They also bring program learnings to platform teams, lead senior technical customer relationships, build and manage the team, and remain hands-on through early development and later-stage technical reviews.

Requirements

• Demonstrated history leading engineering and product teams and scaling a product from zero to one.
• Experience owning senior customer relationships and making company commitments that were subsequently delivered.
• Strong product judgment and the ability to identify what is worth building and what quality looks like for users.
• End-to-end product shipping experience.
• Hands-on technical ability, including supporting architecture and reviews and taking ideas from design through delivery.
• Uses AI extensively to accelerate discovery and execution, can demonstrate its impact, and has adapted team workflows around AI.
• Experience hiring builders into ambiguous roles and getting them productive quickly.
• Strong motivation for Hadrian’s mission and the pace required by its customers.

Nice To Haves

• Founder or founding-team experience, especially involving customer relationships and business decisions while continuing to build.
• Background in aerospace, defense, manufacturing, or work combining hardware, software, and operations.
• Forward deployed or solutions leadership experience at a product company.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Forward Deployed team on one or more programs and own technical outcomes.
• Own the technical roadmap and delivery, taking programs from initial discussions through production.
• Determine what Opus covers, what should be built, and what should not be pursued; hold the team to a high execution standard.
• Help ensure program rate, quality, schedule, and cost objectives through effective software and systems.
• Share program learnings with platform teams and decide which Forward Deployed products should become part of Opus.
• Serve as the primary technical contact for customer program leadership, government stakeholders, and prime partners.
• Lead technical reviews and address scope and schedule discussions with customers and partners.
• Make decisions when scope, schedule, and platform leverage conflict, including where commercial stakes are significant.
• Hire and develop engineers, product managers, and designers working on the program, and set expectations for how they work.
• Remain hands-on, including building early versions when needed and closely reviewing the team’s work for quality.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, and life insurance plans for employees.
• 401k.
• Relocation support may be provided in certain situations based on business need.
• Flexible vacation policy.
• Equity.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Education Level: No Education Listed