Director of Hardware

Position Summary

The Director of Hardware leads Zone 5's Mechanical and Electrical Engineering functions, developing world-class hardware capabilities and ensuring disciplined, high-velocity execution across all programs. This role owns the strategic direction, functional excellence, and organizational development of both ME and EE teams while partnering closely with Programs, Systems Engineering, and Manufacturing to deliver integrated aerospace systems.

You will be accountable for building the people, processes, and architectures that enable Zone 5 to design, integrate, and produce hardware that is safe, reliable, manufacturable, and rapidly deployable.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and develop Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Managers and their teams.
• Set the strategic vision and roadmap for hardware capabilities, tools, and processes across Zone 5.
• Ensure hardware engineering delivers robust architectures, detailed designs, and high-quality integration support on schedule.
• Partner with Programs and IPTs to allocate resources, drive execution discipline, and resolve cross-functional issues.
• Establish and maintain engineering standards for hardware design, analysis, review rigor, documentation, verification, and configuration control.
• Ensure compliance with applicable aerospace standards (AS9100, AS6500, DO-160, MIL-STD-461/704).
• Oversee major design reviews and readiness events-PDR, CDR, TRR-ensuring hardware content meets technical and programmatic requirements.
• Identify and execute capability investments (equipment, software, training) needed for functional scalability.
• Guide root-cause investigations and ensure systemic corrective actions across hardware disciplines.
• Support proposal development by shaping hardware architectures, estimating labor, and defining execution approaches.
• Serve as the senior hardware engineering representative in portfolio, business area, and executive-level reviews.

Qualifications

Basic expectations for this role include a minimum of

• B.S. or M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or related discipline.
• 12+ years of hardware engineering experience in aerospace, defense, autonomous systems, or equivalent.
• 5+ years leading engineering managers or multi-disciplinary hardware teams.
• Demonstrated experience developing hardware architectures and scaling engineering processes.
• Strong understanding of DFMA, configuration control, integration workflows, and test readiness.
• Ability to lead in a fast-paced, high-accountability environment with multiple active programs.

Our ideal candidate has

• Experience in UAS, missiles, loitering munitions, or complex electromechanical systems.
• Familiarity with Solidworks, Altium, MBSE environments (Cameo), EVM, and AS6500-aligned program execution.
• Experience collaborating with vertically integrated manufacturing operations.

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Pay and benefits

Pay range for this role $220,000—$280,000 USD

Benefits

• Competitive total compensation package
• Comprehensive benefit package options include medical, dental, vision, life, and more.
• 401k with company-match
• 3 weeks of paid time off each year
• 40 hours of sick time
• 12 annual company holidays