Senior PM - Space Sensing & Domain Awareness (TS/SCI)

Rocket Lab Corporation; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 153,000 - 230,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company stock

Industry-leading benefits

Stock Purchase Program

Job summary

Rocket Lab in Long Beach, CA is seeking a Senior Program Manager II for Space Sensing & Domain Awareness (TS/SCI). You will own the technical roadmap for EO/IR sensing payloads, from prototype to flight production, and lead multiple programs with Chief Engineers to navigate trade-offs in pointing stability and reliability.

You will build a culture of bold decisions, manage critical supplier relationships, and coordinate cross-functional teams to drive schedule, cost, and performance in a

Qualifications

• 8+ years of aerospace program management experience.
• Evidence you moved hardware and software from prototype toward scalable, flight-ready production.
• Understanding EO/IR sensing, optical payloads, or focal plane arrays.
• Active TS/SCI clearance.

Responsibilities

• Build and lead the team that takes EO/IR sensing payloads from concept through qualification and flight.
• Lead multiple active programs, make architectural calls with Chief Engineers, manage trade-offs in pointing stability and jitter.
• Coach and develop the next generation of program and team leaders while protecting schedule and margin.
• Manage high-stakes subcontracts and suppliers as strategic partners essential to the mission.
• Synchronize cross-functional teams across optics, electronics, software, and data chain to maintain speed and quality.
• Serve as primary POC for assigned U.S. Government tracking, warning, and surveillance customers and support proposals.

Skills

Aerospace program management

Technical ownership

EO/IR sensing knowledge

Risk identification & mitigation

TS/SCI clearance

Education

Bachelor’s degree in physics, math, science, or other technical discipline

Job description

Rocket Lab in Long Beach, CA is seeking a Senior Program Manager II for Space Sensing & Domain Awareness (TS/SCI). You will own the technical roadmap for EO/IR sensing payloads, from prototype to flight production, and lead multiple programs with Chief Engineers to navigate trade-offs in pointing stability and reliability.

You will build a culture of bold decisions, manage critical supplier relationships, and coordinate cross-functional teams to drive schedule, cost, and performance in a