Senior Systems Engineer

Leonardo; City of Edinburgh; Hybrid; GBP 45,000 - 55,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus scheme

Private healthcare

Dental

Family cover

Tech & lifestyle discounts

Gym memberships

Learning credits

Flexible hours

Hybrid working

Refer a friend

Job summary

Leonardo UK in Edinburgh is seeking a Senior Systems Engineer to shape Through-Life Services for the UK’s next‑generation combat aircraft. You will apply MBSE and systems engineering to deliver sustainable, high‑value support concepts that underpin front‑line capability.

Join an integrated team, collaborate with partners and stakeholders, develop architectures and use cases, and drive risk mitigation to support UK defence capability.

Qualifications

• Experience capturing and analysing stakeholder needs for future service solutions.
• Experience applying MBSE to develop service and product architectures.
• Experience generating Use Cases and conducting Functional Analysis.
• Experience managing requirements and maintaining traceability.
• Understanding of the engineering lifecycle and early decision impacts.
• Ability to perform trade studies balancing competing constraints.
• Strong interpersonal and collaboration skills across organisations.

Responsibilities

• Identify and engage stakeholders for TLS elements and define engagement strategies.
• Elicit and mature stakeholder needs to define optimal capability solutions.
• Contribute to concepts and architectures for Through-Life Support with SMEs.
• Conduct system functional analysis and architecture refinement.
• Apply appropriate MBSE techniques to problem definition within the team.
• Define Use Cases to inform Functional Analysis and system architecture.
• Coordinate inputs from internal and external stakeholders and deliver high-quality reports.

Skills

Stakeholder engagement

MBSE

Use Cases

Requirements management

Engineering lifecycle

Trade studies

Collaboration

Tools

MBSE tools

Job description

Job Description

At Leonardo, we’re offering a fantastic opportunity for a Senior Systems Engineer to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of Through‑Life Services for the UK’s next‑generation combat aircraft. Step into a position where your System engineering expertise and collaborative mindset will directly influence the future of UK defence capability.

Your Impact

As part of a dynamic and highly integrated team, you’ll contribute to the development of innovative Through‑Life Service solutions, working at the forefront of a cutting‑edge combat air programme. You’ll collaborate closely with engineering specialists, international industry partners and wider stakeholders to influence early support design decisions, shape advanced support concepts, and deliver sustainable, high‑value solutions that will underpin front‑line operations for decades to come.

If you thrive on complex challenges, value deep collaboration and want your work to have tangible operational impact, this is where you can truly make a difference.

What you’ll do as a Senior Systems Engineer

• Identify and engage a complete set of stakeholders for the Through‑Life Services (TLS) element of the programme, and support the development of an effective stakeholder engagement and communication strategy.


• Elicit, analyse and mature stakeholder needs—prioritising, balancing and trading off interests and influence to define optimal capability solutions.


• Contribute to the creation of concepts and architectures for the Through‑Life Support solution, collaborating closely with product design teams and functional SMEs (e.g., supportability, obsolescence, data).


• Conduct system functional analysis, modelling and architecture development/refinement as required.


• Ensure effective application of appropriate tools and techniques for problem definition within the team.


• Support the definition and establishment of Use Cases to inform Functional Analysis and help derive the logical architecture of the solution.


• Work closely with internal and external stakeholders to ensure alignment between the TLS architecture and wider programme elements.


• Identify and elevate emerging issues, contribute to risk assessment activities, and help shape mitigation strategies and opportunity exploitation.


• Coordinate multi‑stakeholder inputs and deliver clear, high‑quality reports and presentations for customers and industry partners.


• Build and maintain strong relationships across and beyond the line of business, actively promoting best practice adoption

What you’ll bring

• Experience capturing and analysing stakeholder needs to guide the development of service solutions suitable for future operational environments.


• Experience applying Model‑Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) approaches to develop service and product system architectures in response to stakeholder requirements.


• Experience generating Use Cases and conducting Functional Analysis to support requirements refinement and validation.


• Experience managing requirements and maintaining traceability throughout the engineering lifecycle.


• A solid understanding of the engineering lifecycle and how early technical decisions impact later development and support phases.


• The ability to balance competing needs and constraints using structured methods such as trade studies.


• Strong interpersonal and collaboration skills, with the ability to influence, communicate effectively and adapt to changing programme demands.


• The ability to work confidently with internal and external stakeholders across diverse organisations, disciplines, backgrounds and levels of seniority.


• A commitment to maintaining engineering best practice, including seeking insight from academia, industry benchmarks and wider external sources.


• The ability to explore and articulate the problem space objectively, without bias toward predetermined solutions.


• An appreciation of how systems integrate into a broader capability enterprise—such as system‑of‑systems relationships and dependencies on personnel, training and infrastructure.


• A self‑motivated mindset with strong problem‑solving skills and the drive to take complex issues through to resolution.

Security Clearance

This role is subject to pre‑employment screening in line with the UK Government’s Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS). An additional range of Personnel Security Controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV) may apply, this could include meeting the eligibility requirements for The Security Check (SC) or Developed Vetting (DV). For more information and guidance please visit: https://careers.uk.leonardo.com/gb/en/security-and-vetting

Salary Range

• Senior Engineer £45,000 to £55,000

Leonardo UK operates a grade-based salary framework with broad bands. The salary range shown reflects the approved grade band for this role, or a narrower hiring range published within that band, and is benchmarked against the external market. Exceptions above the standard range are managed through governance controls to protect internal equity.

Why join us

At Leonardo, our people are at the heart of everything we do. We offer a comprehensive, company-funded benefits package that supports your wellbeing, career development, and work–life balance. Whether you’re looking to grow professionally, care for your health, or plan for the future, we’re here to help you thrive.

Time to Recharge: Enjoy generous leave with the opportunity to accrue up to 12 additional flexi-days each year.

Secure your Future: Benefit from our award-winning pension scheme with up to 15% employer contribution.

Your Wellbeing Matters: Free access to mental health support, financial advice, and employee-led networks championing inclusion and diversity (Enable, Pride, Equalise, Armed Forces, Carers, Wellbeing and Ethnicity).

Rewarding Performance : All employees at management level and below are eligible for our bonus scheme.

Never Stop Learning : Free access to 4,000+ online courses via Coursera and LinkedIn Learning.

Refer a friend: Receive a financial reward through our referral programme.

Tailored Perks : Spend up to £500 annually on flexible benefits including private healthcare, dental, family cover, tech & lifestyle discounts, gym memberships and more.

Flexible working: Flexible hours with hybrid working options. For part time opportunities, please talk to us about what might be possible for this role.

For a full list of our company benefits please visit our website.

Leonardo is a global leader in Aerospace, Defence, and Security. Headquartered in Italy, we employ over 53,000 people worldwide including 8,500 across 9 sites in the UK. Our employees are not just part of a team—they are key contributors to shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety.

At Leonardo we are committed to building an inclusive, accessible, and welcoming workplace. We believe that a diverse workforce sparks creativity, drives innovation, and leads to better outcomes for our people and our customers. If you have any accessibility requirements to support you during the recruitment process, just let us know.

Primary Location

GB - Edinburgh

Contract Type

Employee-Permanent

Hybrid Working

Hybrid