Sr. Manager, Hardware Engineering

AeroVironment • Pottstown, PA

1d • $139,371 - $197,400

About The Position

The Sr. Manager, Hardware and Systems Engineering is a pivotal leadership role responsible for the physical architecture and cross-functional integration of VideoRay’s world-class underwater robotic systems. As a key member of the Engineering Leadership team, you will translate our strategic technology roadmap into high-performance reality, ensuring our Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) remain the most capable and portable systems in a competitive global market. You will lead a multidisciplinary team of Mechanical, Electrical, and Systems Engineers, fostering a culture of technical excellence, rapid prototyping, and rigorous validation. Your mission is to scale the organization’s capabilities to meet the demanding needs of our Commercial and Defense customers.

Requirements

• Experience: 12+ years of progressive engineering experience, with at least 5+ years in a formal leadership or management role overseeing multidisciplinary hardware and systems teams.
• Education: BS in Electrical, Mechanical, Aerospace, or other Engineering Disciplines (Master’s degree preferred).
• Industry Background: Proven experience in Aerospace, Defense, or Subsea/Robotics hardware development. Familiarity with ruggedized electronics and systems operating in harsh environments is highly preferred.
• Lifecycle Expertise: Demonstrated success taking complex hardware from initial concept through design, integration, environmental testing (Vibration, Thermal, Pressure), and into high-rate production.
• Process Knowledge: Strong understanding of Systems Engineering principles (requirements traceability, risk management, and interface control).
• Systems Thinker: Proven ability to transform "tribal knowledge" into scalable, documented processes and formal engineering procedures.
• Pragmatic Problem Solver: Experience managing the balance between rapid innovation and the necessity of disciplined documentation and configuration management.
• "Player-Coach" Mentality: Willingness to roll up sleeves to assist the team in solving immediate technical hurdles while simultaneously building the long-term systems to prevent them.
• Communication: Exceptional ability to translate complex technical challenges into actionable business insights for executive leadership.
• Citizenship: U.S. Citizenship is required due to defense contract requirements
• ITAR Requirement: This position requires access to information that is subject to compliance with the International Traffic Arms Regulations (“ITAR”) and/or the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”). In order to comply with the requirements of the ITAR and/or the EAR, applicants must qualify as a U.S. person under the ITAR and the EAR, or a person to be approved for an export license by the governing agency whose technology comes under its jurisdiction. Please understand that any job offer that requires approval of an export license will be conditional on AeroVironment’s determination that it will be able to obtain an export license in a time frame consistent with AeroVironment’s business requirements. A “U.S. person” according to the ITAR definition is a U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident (green card holder), or protected individual such as a refugee or asylee. See 22 CFR § 120.15. Some positions will require current U.S. Citizenship due to contract requirements.

Responsibilities

• Leadership & Talent Development: Lead, mentor, and inspire a high-performing team. Drive professional growth through active coaching, ensuring the team remains at the forefront of subsea engineering innovation.
• Operational Excellence: Develop and implement standardized engineering tools and "best-in-class" processes (CAD/EDA, JAMA, PDM, PLM, Simulation) to streamline the transition from concept to production.
• Strategic Resource Management: Manage staffing levels, budgets, and resource allocation to align with the Annual Operating Plan (AOP) and research, development, and production goals.
• Agile Project Oversight: Drive Agile methodologies within hardware development to ensure rapid iteration, sustaining product support, and timely execution of complex engineering programs.
• Technical Stewardship: Provide deep technical guidance in the design of pressure-tolerant housings, power distribution, propulsion systems, and sensor integration.
• Operational Maturity: Lead the "formalization of the informal" by resolving technical debt, legacy drawing inaccuracies, and undocumented design decisions.
• Process Standardization: Establish rigorous process and procedures for engineering changes (ECO/ECN), version control, and peer reviews to ensure scalable, production-ready quality.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Serve as the primary bridge between Business Leads, Product, Engineering, Production, and External Stakeholders to ensure customer requirements are met with precision and reliability.
• Maturity of Disciplines: Continuous improvement of hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing, systems integration, and environmental qualification.
• Other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• AV offers an excellent benefits package including medical, dental vision, 401K with company matching, a 9/80 work schedule and a paid holiday shutdown.
• For more information about our company benefit offerings please visit: http://www.avinc.com/myavbenefits.
• We also encourage you to review our company website at http://www.avinc.com to learn more about us.

What This Job Offers

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