Senior Instrument Technical Program Manager

ArcTern Ventures; Mountain View (CA); On-site; USD 186,000 - 202,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401k retirement plan

Disability and life insurance

Paid vacation and holidays

Paid parental leave

Unlimited sick time

Job summary

Muon Space seeks a Senior Instrument Technical Program Manager to own the end-to-end delivery of EO/IR remote sensing instruments from concept through environmental testing to flight delivery. You will join at the intersection of systems engineering, hardware engineering, and mission management in a fast-paced startup-like environment.

The ideal candidate has a strong technical foundation in space-based optical payloads and proven program execution skills, with experience leading

Qualifications

• PhD with 3+ years in imaging/IR sensors; or MS with 6+ years; or BS with 8+ years, with 3+ years in TPM/leadership.
• Direct experience with LE0 EO/IR instruments, including sensor architectures, FPAs, and IDCAs.
• Expert-level PM tools (Jira, Confluence, MS Project/Smartsheet) with schedule and critical path analyses.
• Familiarity with structured root cause analysis methodologies in a hardware environment.
• Excellent communication, organization, and presentation skills for a fast-paced environment.
• TS/SCI clearance strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

• Own the integrated master schedule, budget, and risk register for the EO/IR instrument; drive risk mitigation and change control boards.
• Translate architectures, error budgets, and ICDs into execution plans with the ISE; lead instrument-level design reviews (PDR/CDR).
• Act as the primary programmatic interface to the Mission TPM and Spacecraft TPM for integration and verification.
• Coordinate with internal teams and matrixed HW resources to secure Optical/Optomechanical staffing and AIT throughput.
• Partner with Supply Chain to manage external vendors and critical optical component suppliers.
• Identify bottlenecks and lead root-cause analyses when hardware anomalies arise, tracking corrective actions.

Skills

EO/IR experience

Program management

PM tools

Root cause analysis

Strong communication

TS/SCI preferred

Education

Ph.D. in related field

M.S. in related field

B.S. in related field

Tools

Jira

Confluence

MS Project

Job description

About the role

Muon seeks a Senior Instrument Technical Program Manager (TPM) to join our team. In this role, you will own the end-to-end delivery of state-of-the-art electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) remote sensing instruments. As an Instrument TPM, you sit at the critical intersection of systems engineering, hardware engineering, and mission management. You are not a passive status aggregator—you will bring a "Total Ownership" mentality to drive the integrated master schedule, budget, and risk posture of the instrument payload from concept through environmental testing and flight delivery. The ideal candidate brings a deep technical foundation in space-based optical payloads combined with world-class program execution skills to navigate a fast-paced, matrixed environment.

Responsibilities

• Own the integrated master schedule, budget, and risk register for the EO/IR instrument, driving the risk mitigation process and leading change control boards to ensure flight delivery milestones are met.
• Partner closely with the Instrument Systems Engineer (ISE) to translate technical architectures, error budgets, and interface control documents (ICDs) into logic-linked execution plans, and own the programmatic preparation, execution, and documentation for instrument-level design reviews (PDR/CDR).
• Act as the primary programmatic interface to the Mission TPM and the Spacecraft TPM to ensure seamless vehicle integration, schedule alignment, and requirement verification.
• Synchronize internal instrument organization resources (Scientists, Systems Engineers, Lab Manager) and coordinate with the broader HW Engineering organization to secure matrixed Optical/Optomechanical resources, ensuring optimal staffing and AIT throughput.
• Partner with the Supply Chain group to manage external vendors and critical component suppliers for optical components and subsystems.
• Identify critical bottlenecks ahead of need to force decisions, and lead the programmatic coordination of root cause analyses when hardware anomalies arise, tracking corrective actions to closure while minimizing critical path impact.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. and 3+ years of experience developing imaging systems and infrared remote sensing instruments within a multi-disciplinary environment; or M.S. and 6+ years industry experience; or B.S. and 8+ years industry experience. Must have at least 3+ years specifically in a technical program management or engineering leadership role.
• Direct technical experience with LEO EO/IR remote sensing instruments, including a working knowledge of sensor architectures, focal plane arrays (FPAs), and integrated dewar cooler assemblies (IDCAs).
• Expert-level proficiency in program management tools (e.g., Jira, Confluence, MS Project or Smartsheet) with a demonstrated ability to build logic-linked schedules and critical path analyses.
• Familiarity with structured root cause analysis methodologies in a high-performance hardware environment.
• Exceptional communication, organization, and presentation skills suited for a fast-paced, startup-style environment.
• Ability to obtain TS/SCI security clearance strongly preferred.

Nice-to-have Skills

• Hands-on familiarity with precision optical assembly, alignment, cleanroom operations, and space environmental testing (TVAC, random vibration).
• Experience with scripting or database languages (Python, Julia, SQL) for program data integration and metric dashboarding.
• PMP certification or equivalent program management credentials.

Salary

The salary range for this role is $186,000 - $202,000, plus a competitive equity grant and comprehensive benefits package. Final compensation will be determined based on skills, qualifications, experience, and geographic location as assessed during the interview process.

About Muon Space

Founded in 2021, Muon Space is an end-to-end Space Systems Provider that designs, builds, and operates LEO satellite constellations delivering mission-critical data. Our revolutionary, integrated technology stack enables customers to optimize every dimension of their missions for faster time-to-orbit and superior constellation remote sensing performance. Our state-of-the-art facility in the heart of Silicon Valley is optimized for manufacturing spacecraft and rapid, flexible payload integration at scale. From climate monitoring to national security, Muon Space is dedicated to delivering Earth Intelligence for a safer and more resilient world.

Taking Care of Our Team

• medical, dental, and vision insurance
• a 401k retirement plan
• short & long term disability and life insurance
• three weeks paid vacation for new employees, along with 12 paid holidays, unlimited sick time and paid parental leave

Muon is dedicated to creating a diverse and dynamic company and workforce. We believe in equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, age, national origin, citizenship, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, or gender identity. We value diversity in the workplace, and that starts with our applicants. In addition, if you need a reasonable accommodation as part of your application for employment or interviews with us, please let us know.

ITAR/EAR Requirements

This position requires access to export controlled information. To conform to U.S. Government export regulations applicable to that information, applicant must either be (A) a U.S. person, defined as a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (green card holder), (iii) refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, (B) eligible to access the export controlled information without a required export authorization, or (C) eligible and reasonably likely to obtain the required export authorization from the applicable U.S. government agency. The Company may, for legitimate business reasons, decline to pursue any export licensing process.