Director of Avionics Engineering

Department: Avionics

Employment Type: Full Time

Location: Hawthorne, California

Reporting To: Jaret Matthews

Compensation: $190,000 - $250,000 / year

Description

Venturi Astrolab, Inc. (Astrolab) is pioneering new ways to explore and operate on distant planetary bodies. We are singularly focused on designing, building, and operating a fleet of multi-purpose commercial planetary rovers to extend and enhance humanity’s presence in the solar system. We are seeking motivated, creative, and exceptional people to join our world-class team.

As the Director of Avionics Engineering at Astrolab, you will oversee a talented team working on solutions for the FLIP, FLEX Rover, and FLEX LTVS, all contributing to our missions to the lunar surface and beyond.

Key Responsibilities

• Drive a technical team to execute system-level and component-level design for rovers and other assets, considering all environments and operational cases. The system may include power generation, power storage, power distribution, compute, motor control, command and data handling, sensing and perception systems, communication systems, robotic manipulators, illuminators, and other I/O
• Recruit, lead, and mentor a team of people leaders, responsible engineers, systems engineers, and analysts. Facilitate autonomy and growth opportunities while achieving exceptional results
• Develop and manage budgets, operational risks, and technical risks to achieve Astrolab’s business objectives
• Formulate program and technical strategies, including decisions to outsource NRE or to conduct in-house development
• Drive concurrent engineering between Avionics, Electromechanical, Vehicle Engineering, Software, GNC, Test, Reliability, and Production to optimize speed of execution while adhering to a rigorous design review process
• Guide the team through technical and programmatic milestone reviews, ensuring technical and programmatic success
  
  

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in STEM from an accredited institution
• 7+ years of experience in space system development in a leadership role with direct reports.
• Proven track record of delivering spaceflight hardware through the full design life cycle (design, test, qualification, launch, operation)
• Understanding of all failure modes of spaceflight electrical components
• Strong understanding of radiation effects on spaceflight electronics
• Experience using Altium, E3, or equivalent design programs
• Exposure to sensor and actuator calibration and characterization needs, methodologies, equipment, and procedures
• Experience with instrumentation, sensors, and communication protocols, including DMMs, DAQ, function generators, oscilloscopes, DIO, GPIB, USB, RS-232/422/485, GigE, SPI, etc.
• Experience with system commands and data handling, I/O management, networking, and similar (or analogous experience)
• Strong understanding of environmental testing, such as shock/vibe, TVAC, burn-in, and its implications for electrical design. Preferred experience with SMC-S-016.
• Ability to lead in a dynamic and flexible environment
• Must be able to communicate complex technical subjects to a variety of audiences succinctly
• Must work well in fast-paced, interdisciplinary environments
  
  

What We Offer

• Join a team of best-in-class engineers building the foundation of planetary surface exploration
• Equity ownership in the company
• Comprehensive health benefits, including medical, dental, vision, and mental health support
• 401(k) plan with company match
• Flexible PTO and parental leave
• Home office set up reimbursement
• Fully flexible and remote friendly work environment
• Weekly lunch stipend, plus complimentary snacks and beverages on-site
• Twice a month social hour on-site with food and drinks