Mission Management Lead

SEOPS; United States; Remote; USD 140,000 - 155,000; Full time

Job summary

SEOPS is seeking a Mission Management Lead to steer launch campaigns and oversee customer missions from contract award through launch readiness. You will lead Mission Managers and Integration Specialists, drive planning, and ensure safety and operational compliance.

This player-coach role blends hands-on mission planning with leadership, requiring extensive spaceflight experience, strong stakeholder engagement, and up to 30% travel.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Systems Engineering, Physics, or another technical field.
• 4+ years of aerospace or spaceflight industry experience.
• Direct experience supporting launch integration activities and launch campaigns.
• Experience leading complex mission, integration, or operational activities involving multiple organizations.
• Ability to travel up to 30%.
• U.S. Person status required in accordance with ITAR/EAR regulations.

Responsibilities

• Lead launch campaign planning and execution across an assigned rocket manifest.
• Direct on-site payload integration and mission execution activities during launch campaigns.
• Coordinate integration activities between customers, launch providers, engineering teams, mission assurance personnel, and launch site operators.
• Ensure customer missions satisfy all applicable integration, safety, readiness, and operational requirements.
• Lead resolution of launch campaign issues, integration anomalies, and mission execution challenges.
• Support review and assessment of customer safety packages, mission documentation, operational procedures, and readiness products.
• Evaluate mission compliance against launch provider, government, and site-specific integration requirements.
• Serve as the senior mission representative during critical mission execution events and launch campaign operations.
• Perform additional customer coordination, launch provider coordination, and mission support activities as required to meet mission-specific objectives and program needs.
• Directly supervise Mission Managers and Integration Specialists, including performance management, coaching, professional development, and workload assignment.
• Support recruiting, interviewing, onboarding, and training activities within the Mission Management organization.
• Establish team priorities, monitor resource utilization, and ensure consistent execution of department processes and standards.

Skills

Mission leadership

Cross-functional leadership

Customer engagement

Launch integration

Mission planning

Team development

Performance management

Workload planning

Written and executive communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering or related technical field

Job description

Salary Range:

$140,000 - $155,000 annually, plus eligibility for company benefits.

Location

Remote (25-30% Travel Expected)

Position Summary

The Mission Management Lead is responsible for leading the execution of an assigned launch vehicle manifest and overseeing customer missions from contract award through launch campaign completion. Serving as the senior mission management representative, this role provides leadership for mission execution, customer engagement, launch readiness, integration operations, and cross-functional coordination.

The Mission Management Lead directly supervises Mission Managers and Integration Specialists and is responsible for employee development, performance management, workload planning, hiring support, and team effectiveness. The role serves as the primary escalation authority for mission, schedule, technical, operational, and integration issues while ensuring customer missions are executed safely, efficiently, and successfully.

This is a player-coach leadership role that combines direct personnel management with active participation in mission planning, launch campaign execution, mission readiness activities, and customer support. Success requires significant experience in spaceflight missions, launch integration, and customer-facing aerospace operations, along with the ability to lead both people and programs in a fast-paced mission environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead launch campaign planning and execution activities across an assigned rocket manifest.
• Direct on-site payload integration and mission execution activities during launch campaigns.
• Coordinate integration activities between customers, launch providers, engineering teams, mission assurance personnel, and launch site operators.
• Ensure customer missions satisfy all applicable integration, safety, readiness, and operational requirements.
• Lead resolution of launch campaign issues, integration anomalies, and mission execution challenges.
• Support review and assessment of customer safety packages, mission documentation, operational procedures, and readiness products.
• Evaluate mission compliance against launch provider, government, and site-specific integration requirements.
• Serve as the senior mission representative during critical mission execution events and launch campaign operations.
• Perform additional customer coordination, launch provider coordination, and mission support activities as required to meet mission-specific objectives and program needs.
• Directly supervise Mission Managers and Integration Specialists, including performance management, coaching, professional development, and workload assignment.
• Support recruiting, interviewing, onboarding, and training activities within the Mission Management organization.
• Establish team priorities, monitor resource utilization, and ensure consistent execution of department processes and standards.

Required Qualifications

General Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Systems Engineering, Physics, or another technical field; equivalent experience may be considered.
• 4+ years of aerospace or spaceflight industry experience.
• Direct experience supporting launch integration activities and launch campaigns.
• Demonstrated experience supporting spacecraft integration and test (I&T), payload integration, spacecraft development, mission operations, or related spaceflight activities.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex mission, integration, or operational activities involving multiple organizations and stakeholders.
• Proven success managing multiple concurrent missions, technical projects, or campaigns.
• Ability to travel up to 30%.
• U.S. Person status required in accordance with applicable ITAR and EAR regulations.

Technical Requirements

• Working knowledge of systems engineering principles, requirements management, interface management, verification and validation, and mission readiness processes.
• Familiarity with government and spaceflight safety frameworks including: oSSCMAN 91-710 oNASA-STD-8719.24
• Experience supporting safety reviews, mission assurance activities, hazard assessments, operational risk assessments, or readiness reviews within aerospace or spaceflight programs.
• Demonstrated ability to review, interpret, and apply technical and operational requirements during mission execution and launch campaign planning.

Leadership Requirements:

• Experience serving as a mission lead, integration lead, program lead, or customer-facing technical leader.
• Experience supervising, mentoring, or developing technical professionals.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional technical teams through complex mission execution activities.
• Proven ability to proactively identify risks, develop mitigation strategies, and drive issues to closure.
• Strong customer relationship management and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Excellent written, verbal, and executive-level communication skills.

SEOPS offers a competitive and comprehensive benefits package designed to support the health, financial well-being, and long-term success of our employees and their families. Eligible employees receive access to multiple UnitedHealthcare medical plan options, including PPO and Health Savings Account (HSA) plans, along with 100% company-paid premiums for dental and vision coverage. We also provide company-sponsored life insurance, voluntary life and AD&D coverage, short- and long-term disability insurance, accident and critical illness protection, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offering confidential counseling and wellness resources. Employees may participate in pre-tax Health Savings Accounts (HSA) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA), as well as a 401(k) retirement plan with both traditional pre-tax and Roth contribution options and the opportunity for discretionary employer matching contributions. Additional wellness resources include 24/7 virtual healthcare, mental health services, fitness and wellness incentives, and legal and identity protection programs, reflecting our commitment to investing in the people who make mission success possible.

Because this role supports programs subject to U.S. government export control regulations, including ITAR and EAR requirements, only candidates who qualify as U.S. Persons are eligible for consideration.