Team Lead, Magnetic Navigation

Q-CTRL; Sydney; On-site; AUD 190,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Q-CTRL is seeking a Team Lead, Magnetic Navigation in Sydney to guide a multidisciplinary engineering team. You will develop and deliver advanced navigation systems, including custom sensor heads, controllers, and real-time hardware, for airborne, maritime, and uncrewed platforms.

You don't need a quantum background; a strong engineering foundation, product mindset, and execution leadership are essential to drive complex, first-of-their-kind projects in a world-class environment.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated leadership of engineering teams delivering complex hardware–software products.
• Strong grounding in deep-tech engineering with a product mindset.
• Ability to lead execution across interdependent teams with high accountability.

Responsibilities

• Drive execution and cadence for the magnetic navigation team, translating product goals into milestones.
• Establish technical buy-in and align senior specialists on plans and risks.
• Coach and develop engineers, manage performance, and foster a safe, high-performing environment.
• Collaborate with Product Managers and Technical Leads to maintain architectural integrity across teams.

Skills

Team leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Execution discipline

Technical leadership

Deep-tech engineering

Education

PhD or equivalent in atomic, molecular, and optical physics or related

Tools

Laser systems

Optics hardware

Embedded electronics

Real-time processing

Job description

Team Lead, Magnetic Navigation at Q-CTRL, Sydney. A lead-level full time position in the Sensing R&D team, listed under research.

About the team

The Sensing R&D team at Q-CTRL transforms quantum research into deployable technologies that address real-world problems. We design, build, and field-validate an array of quantum sensors that support our key products, including Ironstone Opal - our solution for GPS-denied navigation.

You don’t need a background in quantum to make an impact here. We value strong engineering fundamentals, a product mindset, and a drive to solve the hardest engineering problems in quantum sensing today.

About the role

Join Q-CTRL to turn cutting-edge quantum sensing technology into robust, manufacturable products deployed on real-world airborne, maritime, and uncrewed platforms. As the Team Lead for Magnetic Navigation Systems, you will lead a multidisciplinary engineering team responsible for developing and delivering advanced navigation systems.

We are engineering novel navigation systems from scratch, integrating custom sensor heads, controllers, real-time computer hardware, to deliver a product. This role requires a technically grounded, decisive leader who commands the respect of world-class domain experts, bridges cross-team handoffs cleanly, and drives focused execution through others.

You do not need a background in quantum physics. We value deep-tech experience, strong engineering fundamentals, operational discipline, and a proven ability to lead execution across interdependent teams.

Responsibilities

• Drive execution and pace: Own the team’s delivery cadence, translating high-level product goals and cross-department initiatives into structured, measurable execution milestones. Break down complex, first-of-their-kind engineering objectives into clearly scoped, sequenced, and trackable work packages.
• Establish technical buy-in: Facilitate rigorous technical debates, build strong consensus among senior specialists, and drive unified commitment to execution plans.
• Coach and develop talent: Manage, mentor, and support direct reports across engineering levels, provide continuous coaching, conduct performance reviews, and build a high-accountability and psychologically safe team environment.
• Leadership partnership: Partner with Product Managers on scope trade-offs and Technical Leads on architectural integrity, ensuring aggressive multi-team delivery targets maintain uncompromising technical standards.

Nice to Have

• Deep-tech systems track record: Demonstrated experience delivering complex hardware-software products designed from the ground up in deep-tech, robotics, defense, or advanced engineering environments.
• Cross-functional and inter-team collaboration: Proven success working alongside peer engineering leads, coordinating technical dependencies, and aligning multi-team deliverables toward overarching departmental goals. Ability to articulate plans, trade-offs, and critical risks with clarity to both direct reports and executive leadership
• Technical authority and fluency: A solid engineering foundation (in science, embedded, electronics, or hardware) that allows you to challenge assumptions, earn technical credibility, and guide senior domain experts.
• Execution Discipline & Delivery Risk Management: Proven success establishing team cadence and decomposing complex requirements into actionable backlogs, with the ability to proactively track cross-team dependencies, eliminate delivery bottlenecks, and make pragmatic trade-offs across scope, schedule, and quality in fast-evolving environments.
• People leadership and coaching: Experience formally managing engineers, with a structured approach to mentoring, performance management, and career development.
• A PhD, or equivalent industry experience, in atomic, molecular, and optical physics or a closely related discipline.
• Hands‑on experience with quantum sensor hardware, such as lasers, optics, electro‑optical systems.
• Experience with products integrating custom physical sensors, embedded electronics, and real‑time processing.