Deputy Chief Engineer (Aerospace)

Location: Hybrid work with some onsite work required; candidates will be located near Denver or Colorado Springs, Colorado. The position is also listed for Denver, CO or Long Beach, CA.

Salary: $185,000–$310,000 base salary annually, plus equity and benefits.

Company

hirify.global develops autonomous spacecraft, advanced payloads, mission software, and space-based interceptors for space superiority and missile defense.

What you will do

• Support the Chief Engineer in maintaining the technical integrity of a next-generation missile defense program and act as Chief Engineer when delegated.
• Lead technical reviews, milestone readiness assessments, integrated design reviews, risk boards, and engineering change control.
• Coordinate systems integration across host vehicle, interceptor, kill vehicle, and ground systems.
• Drive cross-disciplinary engineering across avionics, structures, thermal, propulsion, GNC, and systems engineering.
• Oversee requirements verification, analytical and test rigor, configuration control, and technical disposition of non-conformances.
• Represent engineering in customer technical interchange meetings, design reviews, audits, and future technology maturation planning.

Requirements

• 8+ years of experience in aerospace systems engineering, design, and technical leadership.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary teams through full lifecycle development from concept through fielding.
• Deep knowledge of configuration management, requirements traceability, and verification processes.
• Strong expertise in at least one core domain: systems, structures, propulsion, GNC, or avionics.
• Must be a U.S. citizen and eligible for DoD Secret clearance.
• Strong communication, decision-making, and leadership skills.

Nice to have

• Experience as a Chief Engineer, Deputy Chief Engineer, or IPT Lead on a missile defense, launch, or space vehicle program.
• Experience working with government technical authorities and independent review boards.
• Experience scaling technical processes from rapid prototyping through operational deployment.
• Advanced degree in Aerospace, Mechanical, or Systems Engineering.
• TS/SCI clearance.

Culture & Benefits

• Hybrid work environment with required onsite work for some activities.
• Health, dental, vision, and HRA/HSA options.
• PTO, paid holidays, 401(k), and parental leave.
• Equity compensation.
• Work is subject to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including ITAR.