Principal Electrical Engineer I - Phased Array Unit Lead

Roman Health Pharmacy LLC; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

CesiumAstro seeks a highly skilled Principal Electrical Engineer to lead the design, development, integration, test, and flight qualification of advanced spaceborne payloads. The Unit Lead role focuses on Ka-band AESAs, combining technical accountability with project management in a fast-paced startup environment.

The Unit Lead coordinates RF, digital, power, mechanical, thermal, software, and systems engineers, maintains schedule accountability, and guides transition to volume production with

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Electrical Engineering or related field.
• 9+ years of engineering experience in electronics hardware development.
• Hands-on experience with active phased array antennas.
• Expertise in antennas and board-level RF electronics.
• Strong familiarity with power/digital support circuitry and design for manufacturability.
• Experience testing active antennas, including measuring EIRP and G/T.
• Leadership experience mentoring multidisciplinary engineering teams.
• Strong knowledge of systems engineering practices, requirements flowdown, verification/validation, and configuration management.
• Excellent communication skills with ability to present complex technical information to diverse audiences.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the AESA Unit Lead and primary technical point of contact for the box throughout the product development lifecycle.
• Lead the end-to-end engineering effort for the box, including architecture, design, prototyping, integration, test, environmental qualification, and flight readiness.
• Coordinate and direct a team of RF, digital, power, mechanical, thermal, software, and systems engineers to ensure consistent and timely technical execution.
• Hold schedule accountability for the box development.
• Develop and review payload control schemes, internal data interfaces, command & telemetry architecture, and firmware/software integration as needed.
• Manage all flight qualification activities, including environmental test planning (thermal vacuum, vibration, shock, EMC), margin assessment, and final acceptance testing.
• Own the transition to volume production, including manufacturability, testability, and customer-facing documentation.
• Generate and maintain box-level documentation: requirements, ICDs, block diagrams, test plans, verification matrices, risk registers, and design reviews.
• Interface with spacecraft systems engineering, mission assurance, manufacturing, vendors, and test facilities.
• Drive root cause analysis, anomaly resolution, and technical risk mitigation throughout development and test campaigns.
• Communicate status, technical trades, risks, and design decisions to internal leadership and external customers.

Skills

Electrical Engineering

Leadership

Mentoring

Systems engineering

RF electronics

Antenna design

Design for manufacturability

Technical communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree or higher in Electrical Engineering

Tools

Active phased array antennas

Environmental testing

TVAC / vibration testing

Job description

Please Note: To conform with the United States Government Space Technology Export Regulations, the applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., conditional resident, asylee or refugee (protected individuals as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3)), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

We are seeking a highly skilled Principal Electrical Engineer to lead the design, development, integration, test, and flight qualification of advanced spaceborne payloads.

This post focuses on the role of Unit Lead (aka Responsible Engineer) in our Phased Array product line, focusing on Ka-band Active Electronically Steered Arrays (AESAs). CesiumAstro AESAs are state‑of‑the‑art electronics assemblies consisting of an antenna element array, RF electronics, digital array control, and power conversion – engineered into a single box using a modular but optimized approach.

The Unit Lead is responsible for both technical definition and execution of a new AESA product. This combines deep, multi‑disciplinary technical accountability with responsibility for on‑time schedule execution. The project may include the development of new active antenna modules, new RF and power/digital backplanes, new array control and power conversion, and/or new software features, coming together into a qualified, customer‑ready product.

The Unit Lead is the leader of the multidisciplinary technical team, the primary point of contact for the program manager, and often a key interface point for our customers. Success in this role requires deep expertise in technical topics as well as project management, leadership, and communication in a fast‑paced startup environment.

JOB DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Serve as the AESA Unit Lead and primary technical point of contact for the box throughout the product development lifecycle.
• Lead the end‑to‑end engineering effort for the box, including architecture, design, prototyping, integration, test, environmental qualification, and flight readiness.
• Coordinate and direct a team of RF, digital, power, mechanical, thermal, software, and systems engineers to ensure consistent and timely technical execution.
• Hold schedule accountability for the box development.
• Develop and review payload control schemes, internal data interfaces, command & telemetry architecture, and firmware/software integration as needed.
• Manage all flight qualification activities, including environmental test planning (thermal vacuum, vibration, shock, EMC), margin assessment, and final acceptance testing.
• Own the transition to volume production, including manufacturability, testability, and customer‑facing documentation.
• Generate and maintain box‑level documentation: requirements, ICDs, block diagrams, test plans, verification matrices, risk registers, and design reviews.
• Interface with spacecraft systems engineering, mission assurance, manufacturing, vendors, and test facilities.
• Drive root cause analysis, anomaly resolution, and technical risk mitigation throughout development and test campaigns.
• Communicate status, technical trades, risks, and design decisions to internal leadership and external customers.

JOB REQUIREMENTS AND MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Electrical Engineering or a related field.
• 9+ years of engineering experience in electronics hardware development.
• Hands‑on experience with related technologies such as active phased array antennas.
• Expertise in antennas and board‑level RF electronics.
• Strong familiarity with power/digital support circuitry and design for manufacturability.
• Experience testing active antennas, including measuring EIRP and G/T.
• Leadership experience, including mentoring or leading multidisciplinary engineering teams.
• Strong knowledge of systems engineering practices, requirements flowdown, verification/validation, and configuration management.
• Excellent communication skills with ability to present complex technical information to diverse audiences.

PREFERRED EXPERIENCE

• Proven experience executing or overseeing flight qualification and environmental test campaigns (TVAC, vib/shock, EMC, radiation considerations).
• Experience managing hardware/software product development projects.
• Experience with radiation‑tolerant design.
• Experience with high‑rate manufacturing, rapid development cycles, and/or NewSpace ecosystems.
• Prior role as a Responsible Engineer, Technical Lead, IPT Lead, or Chief Engineer on flight hardware.
• Experience in high‑frequency antenna design e.g. Ka band.
• Experience mentoring less‑experienced project engineers and design engineers in associated discipline.
• High energy and a “get it done” attitude.

CesiumAstro considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the role and associated responsibilities, a candidate’s work experience, education/training, and key skills. Full‑time employment offers include company stock options and a generous benefits package including health, dental, vision, HSA, FSA, life, disability and retirement plans.

CesiumAstro is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected Veteran Status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.