Principal Autonomous Systems Engineer

QinetiQ; Farnborough; On-site; GBP 62,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Matched pension and life assurance

Generous holiday allowance

Health Cash Plan

Private Medical Insurance

Dental Insurance

Employee discount portal

Armed Forces Covenant support

Volunteering opportunities

Job summary

QinetiQ Limited, Farnborough, is seeking a Principal Autonomous Systems Engineer to provide technical leadership across autonomy programmes, influence strategy and mentor engineering teams. You will guide customers to shape requirements and deliver cutting-edge autonomous capabilities across air or maritime domains.

The role will be a 70/30 split between leadership and technical delivery, with opportunity to drive business growth and engage stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Significant technical leadership experience within autonomy, robotics, defence, aerospace or related engineering environments.
• Strong understanding of autonomous systems, robotics, control systems or AI-enabled technologies.
• Experience leading complex technical programmes and engineering teams.
• Experience delivering customer-focused technical solutions.
• Strong understanding of systems engineering principles and governance.
• Experience supporting business growth and customer engagement.

Responsibilities

• Providing technical leadership across autonomy and autonomous systems programmes.
• Leading multidisciplinary engineering teams and mentoring senior engineers.
• Defining technical strategy and influencing future capability development.
• Engaging with customers and stakeholders to shape requirements and solutions.
• Supporting the development of autonomy software, modelling and simulation capabilities.
• Leading integration, demonstration and trial activities across defence programmes.

Skills

Technical leadership

Autonomy technologies

Programme leadership

Customer-focused solutions

Systems engineering

Business development

Education

Engineering/Physics/Applied Mathematics/CS degree

Job description

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Job Title: Principal Autonomous Systems Engineer

Location: Farnborough, England, United Kingdom

Role Type: Permanent – Full Time

Package: £62,250 - £69,750 (salary dependent on experience) + Benefits

Role ID: SF20873

Are you ready to be part of the future? At QinetiQ, we’re not just imagining tomorrow we are creating it. From cutting-edge defence technology to ground-breaking innovations our mission is to empower and protect lives. Join us as a Principal Autonomous Systems Engineer at our Farnborough site, where you will have the opportunity to work with cutting-edge technology in partnership with some of the most brilliant minds.

The Role

As a Principal Autonomous Systems Engineer, you'll provide technical leadership across autonomy programmes, influence strategic direction, mentor engineering teams and work directly with customers to deliver cutting‑edge autonomous capabilities.

Day-to-day, you'll lead multidisciplinary teams, shape future autonomy solutions, support business growth activities and guide the successful delivery of complex programmes across air or maritime autonomy domains. We expect your time to be split approximately 70% on leadership and 30% on technical delivery work.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Providing technical leadership across autonomy and autonomous systems programmes
• Leading multidisciplinary engineering teams and mentoring senior engineers
• Defining technical strategy and influencing future capability development
• Engaging with customers and stakeholders to shape requirements and solutions
• Supporting the development of autonomy software, modelling and simulation capabilities
• Leading integration, demonstration and trial activities across defence programmes

Essential experience of the Principal Autonomous Systems Engineer:

• Significant technical leadership experience within autonomy, robotics, defence, aerospace or related engineering environments
• Strong understanding of autonomous systems, robotics, control systems or AI-enabled technologies
• Experience leading complex technical programmes and engineering teams
• Experience developing and delivering customer-focused technical solutions
• Strong understanding of systems engineering principles and engineering governance
• Experience supporting business growth, customer engagement or strategic technical development

Essential qualifications for the Principal Autonomous Systems Engineer:

• Degree in Engineering, Physics, Applied Mathematics, Computer Science or another relevant STEM discipline
• Active SC clearance is desirable

We value difference and we don’t have a fixed idea when it comes to background or education, provided you can show the required level of experience and willingness to learn then we would like to hear from you.

This role is 37 hours per week based at our Farnborough site with a minimum average site attendance of three days per week. At our Farnborough site exciting work takes place at our state‑of‑the‑art facility, with high-energy laser technologies, our 5m pressurised wind tunnel which has a simulation capability that is unique in the UK and our large research and development projects is a real hub of creativity, research and innovation. Join our talented teams of Engineers, IT & Cyber Specialists, Project Managers, Group Functions Teams and many more to provide future defences in the UK.

Please note that all applicants for this role must be eligible for SC clearance, as a minimum.

At QinetiQ we are committed to building an inclusive, accessible and welcoming workplace where everyone feels valued and supported. We believe that a diverse mix of backgrounds, perspectives and experiences drives innovation and leads to better outcomes for our people, customers and communities. We encourage applications from all candidates and are a disability confident committed employer. If you have a disability or need any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please let us know by emailing [e-mail] . One of our recruitment team will contact you.

Many roles in QinetiQ are subject to national security vetting being completed, applicants who already hold the appropriate level of vetting may be able to transfer it upon appointment. A number of roles are also subject to additional restrictions, which means factors such as nationality or previous nationalities may affect the roles that you can be employed in.

Why Join QinetiQ?

As we continue to grow into new markets around the world, there’s never been a more exciting time to join QinetiQ. The formula for success is our appetite for innovation and having the courage to take on a wide variety of complex challenges.

As a QinetiQ employee, you’ll experience a unique working environment where teams from different backgrounds, disciplines and experiences enjoy collaborating widely and openly as we undertake this exciting and rewarding journey. Through effective teamwork, and pulling together, you’ll get to experience what happens when we all share different perspectives, blend disciplines, and link technologies; constantly discovering new ways of solving complex problems in a diverse and inclusive environment where you can be authentic, feel valued and realise your full potential. Visit our website to read more about our diverse and inclusive workplace culture . www.qinetiq.com/en/careers/life-at-qinetiq

• Matched contribution pension scheme, with life assurance
• Generous holiday allowance, with the option to purchase additional days
• Options to join Health Cash Plan, Private Medical Insurance and Dental Insurance
• Employee discount portal: Personal Accident Insurance, Travel Insurance, Restaurants, Cinema Tickets and much more
• We are proud to support the Armed Forces community by honouring the Armed Forces Covenant and maintaining our Gold Award standard in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme
• Volunteering Opportunities - helping charities and local community