Lead Systems Engineer (Space Systems)

Location: On-site at Kirtland AFB in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States

Company

hirify.global supports the Air Force Research Laboratory's Space Vehicles Directorate and the Rapid Architecture Prototyping and Integration Development laboratory.

What you will do

• Serve as the technical lead for the RAPID laboratory, reporting to the Program Manager and Technical Director.
• Lead technical interchange meetings, design reviews, stakeholder briefings, and collaboration with government program offices.
• Develop and manage system-of-systems requirements, interface definitions, operational concepts, and mission-level use cases.
• Support system architecture development, trade studies, algorithm and modeling efforts, testing, integration, and system-level validation.
• Identify and mitigate technical risks across software, hardware, and network domains.
• Guide and mentor junior engineers and subcontractors while communicating technical status and risk posture to leadership.

Requirements

• U.S. citizenship and DoD Secret clearance required.
• Bachelor's degree in engineering, computer science, or a related technical field.
• At least 3 years of relevant technical engineering experience.
• Experience with space systems, satellite communications, or secure ground systems.
• Ability to lead technical discussions, manage complex requirements, and communicate with diverse stakeholders.
• Strong analytical, organizational, time-management, and independent problem-solving skills.

Nice to have

• DoD TS/SCI clearance.
• Experience with IT infrastructure, networked systems, defense acquisition processes, trade studies, algorithm development, or system-level modeling.
• Experience on large-scale government programs valued at $100M or more.
• Proficiency with DOORS, Jama, Jira, Confluence, Cameo, MagicDraw, or Enterprise Architect.
• Experience working with senior government or military leadership.

Culture & Benefits

• Full-time role with less than 10% travel.
• Work directly with government stakeholders and program offices supporting resilient space systems.
• Position based at Kirtland Air Force Base in an Air Force Research Laboratory environment.