Director of Engineering

Scope of Responsibility

• Lead the engineering organization in delivering innovative, compliant, and high-performance products.
• Align engineering execution with business strategy, customer needs, and program objectives.

Core Objectives

• Drive the development and execution of product roadmaps in collaboration with Product Management and Business Development.
• Ensure engineering processes meet quality, compliance, and documentation standards (e.g., AS9100, MIL-STD, DO-160).
• Lead technical reviews, risk assessments, and design validation activities across programs.
• Mentor and develop engineering leaders and staff, fostering a culture of accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Collaborate with Operations, Quality, and Program Management to ensure manufacturability, cost control, and schedule adherence.
• Support proposal development, customer briefings, and technical strategy sessions.
• Manage departmental budgets, staffing plans, and resource allocation.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversee all engineering functions including Hardware, Software, Mechanical, Systems, and Test Engineering.
• Ensure engineering processes meet quality, compliance, and documentation standards (e.g., AS9100, MIL-STD, DO-160).
• Lead technical reviews, risk assessments, and design validation activities across programs.
• Mentor and develop engineering leaders and staff, fostering a culture of accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Collaborate with Operations, Quality, and Program Management to ensure manufacturability, cost control, and schedule adherence.
• Support proposal development, customer briefings, and technical strategy sessions.
• Manage departmental budgets, staffing plans, and resource allocation.

Essential Skills

• Strong technical foundation in embedded systems, rugged electronics, or mission computing platforms.
• Proven leadership in managing cross-functional engineering teams and complex product development cycles.
• Deep understanding of engineering lifecycle management, configuration control, and compliance frameworks.
• Excellent communication, organizational, and decision-making skills.
• Proficiency with engineering tools and platforms (e.g., Altium, SolidWorks, Jira, Git, MATLAB).

Experience and Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical, Mechanical, or Systems Engineering required; Master’s degree preferred.
• 10+ years of engineering experience, including 5+ years in a senior leadership role.
• Experience in aerospace, defense, or rugged electronics industries is highly desirable.

Personal Traits and Characteristics

• Strategic and technically grounded: Balances long-term vision with hands-on leadership.
• Collaborative and communicative: Builds strong relationships across departments and with customers.
• Disciplined and detail-oriented: Maintains high standards for quality, compliance, and execution.
• Mentorship-focused: Invests in team development and fosters a high-performance culture.
• Mission-driven: Committed to delivering reliable, secure solutions that support critical operations.

Physical Demands

• The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.
• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, talk, see, and hear.
• The employee is frequently required to walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel and reach with hands and arms.
• The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.
• Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

Work Environment

• The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.
• Office environment with temperature control, may be exposed to chemicals related to the manufacturing process.
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.