Director of Propulsion Engineering (Spacecraft and Missile Defense)

Location: Primarily onsite at the GravityWorks factory in Centennial, Colorado, with regular travel of up to 20% to the Long Beach, California factory and vendor/test sites. U.S. citizenship, lawful permanent residence, protected individual status, or required ITAR authorizations are required. Ability to maintain or obtain TS//SCI clearance is required.

Base salary: $190,000–$320,000 per year, plus equity and benefits.

Company

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

What you will do

• Define and own the propulsion technology roadmap across spacecraft and defense platforms.
• Lead system-level requirements, component trades, fluid-system development, and propulsion hardware integration.
• Drive adoption and qualification of metal additive manufacturing for flight propulsion components.
• Oversee hot-fire, cold-flow, pressure testing, propellant loading, vehicle-level checkouts, and anomaly resolution.
• Own the propulsion test facility roadmap, infrastructure investments, safety, and operational scaling.
• Represent propulsion in design reviews and coordinate with engineering teams, customers, suppliers, and external partners.

Requirements

• 15+ years of experience in spacecraft, launch vehicle, or advanced defense propulsion systems, including at least 5 years in technical leadership or people management.
• Experience leading propulsion development from concept and design through integration, testing, and flight operations.
• Deep expertise in fluid systems, rocket engines, flight valves, propellant tanks, and pressurization systems.
• Extensive propulsion test-facility, hot-fire, pressure-testing, propellant-loading, and safety-management experience.
• Proven ability to build and lead high-performing propulsion engineering teams and communicate complex technical matters to senior stakeholders.
• Must be eligible to work under U.S. ITAR requirements and able to maintain or obtain TS//SCI clearance.

Nice to have

• Metal additive manufacturing experience, including design for additive manufacturing, process qualification, and flight certification.
• Valve or propellant tank design, analysis, and manufacturing experience.
• DoD space or missile defense propulsion experience.
• Experience scaling aerospace engineering organizations during a high-growth or startup phase.
• Master's degree or PhD in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering, plus familiarity with MIL-STD, AIAA propulsion, or NASA standards.

Culture & Benefits

• Mission focused on developing capabilities for space superiority and defense.
• Health, dental, vision, HRA/HSA options, PTO, and paid holidays.
• 401(k), parental leave, and equity participation.
• Engineering culture centered on technical rigor, safety, accountability, and continuous improvement.