Sr Systems Engineer - Satellite Ground Systems (Clearance Required)

Sierra Space•Louisville, CO

About The Position

The Sr Systems Engineer contributes to the development and implementation of advanced ground system solutions supporting the Space Development Agency's Accelerated Missile Defense Tranche 3 (AMDT3) program, providing alignment, connection, and direction to the technical team throughout a fast-paced, mission-critical development lifecycle. The Sr Systems Engineer champions the viewpoint of the integrated whole during ground system development and works to glue segments and subsystems together via top-down decomposition of stakeholder requirements, traceability through development artifacts, and bottom-up validation and verification of the system — all in support of an aggressive schedule to get critical missile defense capability on orbit quickly. They shepherd the team through technical development milestones, track performance measures, and identify and retire technical risk rapidly to arrive at a compliant and cohesive ground system solution without sacrificing schedule velocity. The Sr Systems Engineer is a promoter of Systems Engineering principles and has expertise across the major systems engineering skills including requirements management, system architecture development, concept of operations definition, system integration, and system verification, with a focus on ground system elements (e.g., command and control, mission operations, data processing, and network/communications infrastructure) that interface with the space segment. The Sr Systems Engineer leads teams to execute systems engineering scope in a high-tempo environment and helps develop systems thinking in others, thriving on ambiguity and rapid iteration rather than requiring fully mature processes before contributing. In this role, you will lead the specification, architecting, and integration of complex ground system solutions while collaborating with cross-functional teams, government stakeholders, and subject matter experts to understand project requirements and objectives under compressed timelines. You will oversee the derivation, decomposition, allocation, tracing, and management of ground system requirements and architectures, as well as define and document concepts of operation for ground-to-space mission support. Leading development milestone reviews by creating artifacts and deliverables will be a key responsibility, alongside overseeing system integration and verification activities to ensure ground system functionality, performance, and readiness to support on-orbit operations. You will identify and manage technical risks, develop and execute mitigation strategies quickly, and contribute to continuous improvement initiatives that keep pace with program velocity. Adhering to established engineering processes and standards while being willing to pragmatically streamline where appropriate will be essential, and you will communicate effectively and proactively with team members, customers, and stakeholders to ensure alignment and successful execution in support of this nationally critical missile defense mission.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in a related field (or equivalent work experience in lieu of degree or Masters +8 yrs experience).
Typically 10+ years of related experience (or Masters + 8 years of experience).
Demonstrated expertise in Systems Engineering principles and practices, including a comprehensive understanding of the systems development lifecycle.
Progressive experience across the system development lifecycle, including requirements management, functional requirements parsing, derivation, and allocation.
Progressive experience developing systems architecture and performing systems integration, verification, and validation (V&V) activities.
Demonstrated ability to work and communicate with technical and specialty subject matter expert engineers to drive systems engineering products.
An Active Secret Security Clearance is required.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree in Engineering, Physics, or a related field.
Extensive experience with Requirements Management and Model Based Systems Engineering tools and frameworks, such as DOORS, CAMEO EA, Rhapsody, Matlab, and SysML.
Strong understanding of ground systems architecture, including command and control, telemetry processing, data management, and network infrastructure subsystems.
Proven ability to architect and design ground system solutions, including interface definitions, data flows, and subsystem integration strategies.
Experience creating, managing, and executing comprehensive test plans for ground systems, including integration testing, end-to-end testing, and operational readiness validation.
Background in software systems engineering and integration test (SW SEIT) for complex ground systems.
Knowledge of Agile and Dev Sec Ops methodologies for ground software development and deployment.
Strong understanding of project management methodologies including risk management and technical performance tracking.
Strong understanding of technical baseline and configuration management.
Proven experience in leading projects and mentoring junior and mid-level engineers.
Experience or certification in INCOSE standards.
Excellent problem-solving skills and attention to detail.
Ability to adapt to a fast-paced and dynamic work environment.

Responsibilities

Lead the specification, architecting, and integration of complex ground system solutions.
Collaborate with cross-functional teams, government stakeholders, and subject matter experts to understand project requirements and objectives under compressed timelines.
Oversee the derivation, decomposition, allocation, tracing, and management of ground system requirements and architectures.
Define and document concepts of operation for ground-to-space mission support.
Lead development milestone reviews by creating artifacts and deliverables.
Oversee system integration and verification activities to ensure ground system functionality, performance, and readiness to support on-orbit operations.
Identify and manage technical risks, develop and execute mitigation strategies quickly.
Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives that keep pace with program velocity.
Adhere to established engineering processes and standards while being willing to pragmatically streamline where appropriate.
Communicate effectively and proactively with team members, customers, and stakeholders to ensure alignment and successful execution.