Technical Lead (f/m/d) – Defense Tech

Lateration GmbH; Erding; Hybrid; EUR 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Lateration GmbH in Germany is seeking a Senior Engineer to own the technical direction and quality of complex hardware/software projects in a defense context. You will balance hands-on engineering with guiding other engineers as the main technical contact for the team and external stakeholders.

You will shape architecture, review work at checkpoints, manage technical risk, and coordinate with other Technical Leads and customers, while operating in a hybrid lab/office setting near Munich.

Qualifications

• Proven track record as a Senior Engineer leading complex hardware/software teams.
• Fluent English required; German language proficiency required for government/procurement documents.

Responsibilities

• Own the technical design and sign-off; choose architecture and document reasoning.
• Break down project scope into actionable tasks and run regular technical check-ins.
• Review engineers' work at checkpoints and provide written input for performance reviews.
• Manage technical risk with a running risk log and mitigation owners.
• Be the technical point of contact to clients and other departments; coordinate with other Technical Leads.

Skills

Leadership

Fluent English

German language

Tools

Jira

Git

CAD

Job description

Location: Erding / Greater Munich (Hybrid: on-site lab and workshop presence required)

The Mission & Role

Lateration's Mission : Our technologies help police and military forces make better decisions under pressure and operate more effectively in complex situations. Lateration develops next-generation systems that combine field sensors, secure communications, and intelligent data processing to provide reliable operational awareness in modern defence environments.

Your Mission : You own the technical direction and quality of a pr oject, from design decisions through delivery. You balance hands-on engineering work with guiding and reviewing the technical work of other engineers on the project, acting as the main technical point of contact for both the team and external stakeholders.

What You Will Do

Ownership: Own the technical design and sign-off. Choose the architecture/design approach for the project, document the reasoning, and approve any major technical decision before it's implemented.

Break down and guide the work: Turn the project scope into a task breakdown engineers can act on, and hold regular technical check-ins (separate from PM status meetings) to catch issues early.

Review and give feedback on engineers' work: Check work at key checkpoints (not just at the end ), and provide written technical input for each engineer's performance review.

Manage technical risk: Maintain a running risk log for the project (unproven components, integration unknowns, etc.) with mitigation owners and dates, and flag anything that could affect timeline or budget before it becomes a surprise.

Be the technical point of contact: Represent the project's technical side to clients/other departments, and coordinate directly with other Technical Leads on shared interfaces or dependencies.

Your first 5 months – What You’ll Be Proud to Have Achieved

Taken full technical ownership of at least one project: signed off on the architecture/design approach and documented the reasoning behind key decisions.

Established a running technical risk log and a rhythm of technical check-ins, catching at least one issue early enough that it didn't affect timeline or budget.

Reviewed engineers' work at defined checkpoints and delivered written technical input for at least one performance review cycle.

Built a working relationship with other Technical Leads on shared interfaces or dependencies, resolving at least one cross-project technical question.

Become the trusted technical point of contact for your project — for the team as well as for clients or other departments.

Who We Are Looking For

Experience: Proven track record as a Senior Engineer leading complex hardware/software teams — ideally within defense, aerospace, deep tech, or critical infrastructure.

Project and engineering tools: Comfortable working with tools like Jira, Git, and CAD software, with enough hands-on familiarity to use them day-to-day, not just review outputs from others.

The decision maker: You understand the questions and give answers. You are also able to identify potential technical risks and elaborate plans to mitigate them.

Communication: Flawless German is required to navigate government authorities and formal procurement documents, alongside fluent English for our international engineering team.

Clearance

Due to the nature of our work, you must be eligible for a German security clearance (SÜ2/Ü2). Generally, this requires German citizenship or long-term residency within EU/NATO countries.

Why Join Us?

Mission with Real Impact: Your technical decisions directly shape the systems that protect police and military personnel in the field.

Operational Scope: You own the technical direction of a project end-to-end — from architecture decisions to final delivery — with the authority to sign off on what gets built.

Cross-Functional Exposure: You work closely with engineers, other Technical Leads, and external stakeholders, coordinating shared interfaces and dependencies across projects.

Strong Team & Collaboration: Hybrid working model, close collaboration and a team that values reliability over politics.

• Mission with Real Impact: Your technical decisions directly shape the systems that protect police and military personnel in the field.

• Operational Scope: You own the technical direction of a project end-to-end — from architecture decisions to final delivery — with the authority to sign off on what gets built.

• Cross-Functional Exposure: You work closely with engineers, other Technical Leads, and external stakeholders, coordinating shared interfaces and dependencies across projects.

• Strong Team & Collaboration: Hybrid working model, close collaboration and a team that values reliability over politics.

Flexible & Supportive Environment: Hybrid setup with flexible working hours, a strong team culture, and a shuttle service from Erding station to our HQ

Contact

For information and questions: [e-mail]

About us

Lateration builds technology where failure is not an option.

We don't develop theoretical concept studies: We build field-ready systems that give armed forces an unfair tactical advantage. As a VC-backed defense tech startup headquartered in Munich, we deliver the communications and positioning backbone for critical defense programs. Our hardware and software ecosystems secure operational superiority under intense electronic warfare conditions: from GPS-denied navigation and tactical mesh networks to precise friend-or-foe identification. We are scaling our team from 40 to 70+ specialists and are looking for people who take full ownership at the system level. We don't need seat-fillers — we need builders who solve complex problems and bring uncompromising functional maturity directly to the field.