Senior Laser Communications Program Lead

Rocket Lab

Long Beach (CA)

On-site

USD 117,000 - 196,000

Full time

9 days ago

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Job summary

Rocket Lab’s Space Systems team is seeking a Senior Program Manager I for Laser Communications at our Long Beach, CA HQ. You will own customer outcomes, drive multi-site programs from kickoff to on-orbit checkout, and partner with product, engineering, and operations to ensure on-time delivery and technical success.

You will manage scope, risk, and cost while enabling rapid, high-rate production of optical terminals for constellations and government customers.

Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Physics, or Math.
Track record leading a complex hardware program to delivery under pressure.
Experience managing program cost, EAC, and changes with finance and product teams.
Proven ability to move hardware from prototype to qualified, rate-production delivery.
Experience with export controls and ITAR/EAR compliance.
Strong customer-facing delivery with milestone reviews and acceptance.
U.S. Person status or ability to obtain security clearance preferred.
Experience coordinating across multiple sites and continents.

Responsibilities

Lead terminal programs from award through qualification, production at rate, delivery, and on-orbit checkout, ensuring plan adherence and stakeholder commitments.
Coordinate with chief engineers on link performance, data rate, SWaP, environmental qualification, and interoperability.
Own delivery profiles, identify supplier/test-capacity risks, and drive closure with Operations and Product teams.
Partner with Supply Chain to manage critical suppliers as strategic partners to maintain on-schedule delivery.
Own program startup, baselining, milestone reviews, ITAR obligations, customer acceptance, and closeout across U.S. and European sites.
Serve as the trusted customer contact through milestone reviews, campaigns, acceptance, and pricing/configuration discussions.
Mentor peers, raise standards for customer engagement and develop next-gen program leaders.