Quality & Reliability Leader, Aerospace Systems

Northwood Space; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Job summary

Northwood Space seeks a hands-on, system-oriented Head of Quality & Reliability to design and grow a world-class quality organization as we scale from development to production. You will embed quality across the lifecycle and drive mission-critical reliability for aerospace systems.

You will architect and implement a comprehensive QMS, lead AS9100 certification, and partner with Engineering, Manufacturing, and Production to ensure product integrity and operational excellence while enabling fast

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a technical discipline such as mechanical, electrical, or aerospace engineering.
• 8+ years in manufacturing quality, quality engineering, or reliability engineering.
• 3+ years leading teams or cross-functional quality initiatives.
• Experience in high-reliability industries (aerospace/defense).
• Strong background in DFMEA, Control Plans, DOE, Six Sigma, and reliability methods.
• Track record building or scaling quality systems in high-complexity environments.

Responsibilities

• Build, implement, and continuously improve the Quality Management System (QMS).
• Lead AS9100 certification activities, audits, and continuous improvement.
• Own core quality processes: document control, configuration management, nonconformance, CAPA, audits.
• Collaborate with Engineering, Manufacturing, Integration & Test, and Production to embed quality.
• Develop quality plans, process controls, acceptance criteria, and manufacturing quality strategies.
• Lead root cause investigations and continuous improvement to reduce defects and improve yields.
• Establish quality and reliability metrics, reporting systems, and data-driven improvements.
• Develop and execute the company’s reliability strategy including qualification testing.
• Drive manufacturing quality best practices: FMEA, FRACAS, fault analysis, lifecycle risk management.
• Build and lead a high-performing Quality & Reliability organization across functions.

Skills

Quality engineering

DFMEA

AS9100

Leadership

Root cause analysis

Process improvement

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical/Electrical/Aerospace Engineering

Job description

Northwood Space seeks a hands-on, system-oriented Head of Quality & Reliability to design and grow a world-class quality organization as we scale from development to production. You will embed quality across the lifecycle and drive mission-critical reliability for aerospace systems.

You will architect and implement a comprehensive QMS, lead AS9100 certification, and partner with Engineering, Manufacturing, and Production to ensure product integrity and operational excellence while enabling fast