Mission Management, Software Engineering Manager

Blacksky Holdings LLC; United States; On-site; USD 165,000 - 205,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

PTO & holidays

401(k) plan

Employee stock

Job summary

BlackSky is seeking a Mission Management, Software Engineering Manager in the United States to lead and scale a multidisciplinary team responsible for autonomous satellite operations planning. You will partner with flight ops, flight software, and product leadership to align priorities with business goals and mission objectives.

You will drive architectural direction for constellation orchestration, establish robust engineering processes, and foster a culture of collaboration, safety, and

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in computer science, mathematics, physics, statistics, or related computational field.
• Eight+ years in software engineering, including complex distributed or autonomous systems.
• At least two years leading engineering teams with formal leadership responsibilities.
• Strong programming background in Go, Python, or C++ with architectural guidance.
• Experience deploying microservices in cloud and on-prem Kubernetes.
• CI/CD, testing, version control, and operational best practices.

Responsibilities

• Build, lead, and develop the Mission Management engineering team for autonomous satellite operations planning.
• Drive prioritization and planning across projects to align with business goals and customer commitments.
• Partner with flight ops, ground software, mission planning, and product teams to clarify requirements and priorities.
• Provide technical direction and architectural guidance for orchestrating constellation activities.
• Improve engineering processes: design reviews, code reviews, testing, safety, and readiness.
• Foster on-call culture and incident response for live systems.
• Drive roadmaps, resource allocation, and multi-project execution.
• Hire, onboard, coach, and evaluate engineers; emphasize collaboration and accountability.
• Perform other leadership tasks to ensure team success and mission objectives.
• Support launch and early operations of new satellites.

Skills

Go

Python

C++

AWS

GCP

Azure

Kubernetes

CI/CD

Distributed systems

Leadership

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in CS/Math/Physics/Computational field

Tools

Terraform

Ansible

Kubernetes

Nomad

Git

Job description

Mission Management, Software Engineering Manager

About Us:

BlackSky is a real-time intelligence company. We own and operate the world's most advanced space-based intelligence platform and provide customers satellite imagery, automated analytics and high-frequency monitoring of strategic locations, economic assets and events from around the globe. BlackSky is trusted by the most demanding allied military and intelligence organizations and commercial companies to deliver foresight into critical matters that affect national security and the economy. BlackSky's data enables governments and businesses to see, understand and anticipate change as it happens, giving them the ultimate strategic advantage so they can act quickly. Our global team works with cutting-edge technology to make a difference around the world and prides itself on being people-first, customer-focused and fun.

This role is strongly preferred to be in the Seattle, WA area.

Who you are:

• An effective people manager who is excited to guide, coach, and scale a team.
• A technical leader who can provide clear architectural direction while empowering engineers to make informed decisions and grow their expertise.
• An organized planner who can translate evolving priorities into clear roadmaps, break work into actionable tasks, and drive predictable execution.
• A collaborator who has experience partnering with cross functional teams across an organization.
• A dependable executor who drives clear priorities, sets realistic expectations, and ensures the team delivers highquality results consistently.
• A culture builder who values collaboration, inclusivity, psychological safety, and continuous improvement - and actively models those behaviors.

Responsibilities:

• Build, develop, and lead the Mission Management engineering team responsible for autonomous satellite operations planning.
• Work with leadership to drive prioritization and planning across Mission Management projects with regards to commercial and program objectives, ensuring engineering efforts stay aligned with business goals, customer commitments, and mission operations.
• Partner with various teams such as flight operations, flight software, ground software, mission planning, systems engineering, product, and program leadership to clarify requirements, align priorities, and maintain a strong end-to-end understanding of system behavior.
• Provide technical direction and architectural guidance for orchestrating constellation activities.
• Establish and continuously improve engineering processes including design reviews, code reviews, testing practices, system and satellite safety considerations, and operational readiness.
• Foster a healthy on-call culture and ensure effective support of live operational systems, including incident response, root cause analysis, and long-term corrective actions.
• Drive roadmap planning, resource allocation, and execution across multiple projects, balancing rapid iteration with long-term reliability and availability.
• Hire, onboard, coach, and evaluate engineers, emphasizing skill development, collaboration, and accountability.
• Perform other leadership tasks as required to ensure the success of the team and mission.
• Support Launch and Early Operations of new satellites.
• Other responsibilities as assigned.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree or higher in one of the following fields: computer sceince, mathematics, physics, statistics, or another computational field.
• A minimum of eight (8) years of professional experience in software engineering, including experience building or operating complex distributed, autonomous, or mission critical systems.
• At least two (2) years of experience leading engineering teams as a people manager or technical lead with formal leadership responsibilities.
• Strong technical background in one or more programming languages (e.g., Go, Python, C++), with the ability to provide architectural guidance and review complex designs.
• Experience developing and deploying microservices in cloud environments (e.g., AWS, GCP, Azure) and on-premises Kubernetes based systems.
• Solid understanding of CI/CD pipelines, automated testing strategies, version control, and operational best practices.
• Demonstrated ability to manage priorities, coordinate across teams, and deliver results in fast-paced environments with operational dependencies.
• Excellent communication, collaboration, and conflict resolution skills, especially in cross functional settings.
• Some programs this role supports may req uire the candidate to be a U.S. citizen.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's degree (or higher) in a relevant technical field.
• Experience managing teams working with infrastructureascode tools (e.g., Terraform, Ansible), container orchestration (e.g., Kubernetes, Nomad), or distributed systems.
• Knowledge of system safety, fault tolerance, redundancy, and recovery strategies in autonomous or operationally sensitive environments.
• Background in satellite operations, ground stations, or aerospace domains (e.g., orbital mechanics, attitude dynamics, and satellite systems).
• Experience with automation of complex systems (satellite, vehicle fleets, drones, etc.).
• Expertise in software/hardware performance characteristic.
• Knowledge of geospatial systems or data.
• Prior experience aligning engineering execution with both commercial production SLAs and programspecific requirements, deliverables, or milestones.

Life at BlackSky for full-time benefits-eligible employees includes:

• Medical, dental, vision, disability, group term life and AD&D, voluntary life and AD&D insurance
  • BlackSky pays 100% of employee-only premiums for medical, dental and vision and contributes $100/month for out-of-pocket expenses!
• 15 days of PTO, 11 Company holidays, four Floating Holidays (pro-rated based on hire date), one day of paid volunteerism leave per year, parental leave and more
• 401(k) pre-tax and Roth deferral options with employer match
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• Employee Stock Purchase Program
• Employee Assistance and Travel Assistance Programs
• Employer matching donations
• Professional development
• Mac or PC? Your choice!
• Awesome swag

The anticipated salary range for candidates in Seattle, WA is $165,000-205,000 per year. The final compensation package offered to a successful candidate will be dependent on specific background and education. BlackSky is a multi-state employer, and this pay scale may not reflect salary ranges in other states or locations outside of Seattle, WA.

BlackSky is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law.

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

EEO/Pay Transparency Statements: https://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/posters/pdf/eeopost.pdf https://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/posters/pdf/OFCCP_EEO_Supplement_Final_JRF_QA_508c.pdf