Director of Engineering — Spacecraft Systems Lead

Stanford Climate Ventures; El Segundo, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 270,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical/Vision/Dental

PTO

401k

Stock options

Job summary

General Galactic seeks a Director of Engineering in Los Angeles to lead technical teams across mechanical, electrical, software, propulsion, and test disciplines. This senior role combines hands-on engineering leadership with strategic direction, shaping product and mission fleet while maintaining rigorous execution.

You will mentor engineers, drive critical design decisions, and uphold high standards in a fast-paced startup environment that seeks to redefine human operations beyond Earth.

Qualifications

• BS, MS, or PhD in aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, computer science, or related field.
• 6+ years of experience developing complex aerospace, defense, or other high-performance hardware/software systems.
• Demonstrated ability to solve hard technical problems and make decisions under uncertainty.
• Experience hiring or mentoring exceptional engineers.
• Strong first-principles engineering judgment and rigorous analysis.

Responsibilities

• Own engineering execution and logistics across vehicles, missions, and product lines.
• Serve as a senior technical decision-maker across multiple engineering domains.
• Recruit, mentor, and lead engineers across software, avionics, mechanical, propulsion, and tests.
• Personally contribute to critical technical work.
• Drive architecture decisions with business and customer-facing teams.
• Architect and maintain engineering processes and practices.
• Maintain startup pace and high quality of execution.
• Set and oversee engineering standards.
• Foster ownership, speed, and high standards through first-principles reasoning.

Skills

Leadership

Systems thinking

First principles

Mentoring

Education

PhD in aerospace engineering

MS in aerospace engineering or related

BS in engineering

Job description

General Galactic seeks a Director of Engineering in Los Angeles to lead technical teams across mechanical, electrical, software, propulsion, and test disciplines. This senior role combines hands-on engineering leadership with strategic direction, shaping product and mission fleet while maintaining rigorous execution.

You will mentor engineers, drive critical design decisions, and uphold high standards in a fast-paced startup environment that seeks to redefine human operations beyond Earth.