Senior Space Sensing Programs Lead

Rocket Lab USA; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 115,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company equity

Excellent benefits

401(k) with company match

Paid time off

Job summary

Rocket Lab USA in Long Beach, CA seeks a Senior Technical Program Manager for Space Sensing & Domain Awareness. You own the technical roadmap for EO/IR payloads, guiding from prototype to flight production with high ownership.

You will coordinate cross-functional teams, manage key subcontractors, and maintain strong relationships with government customers. Base pay ranges with comprehensive benefits are provided.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in physics, math, science, or other technical discipline.
• 5+ years of program management experience.
• Owns a technical program end-to-end under real pressure.
• Moves hardware/software from prototype to flight-ready production.
• Understanding EO/IR sensing, optical payloads, or focal plane arrays.
• Identifies and neutralizes technical/schedule/supply-chain risk.
• Active TS/SCI clearance.

Responsibilities

• Build and lead the team from concept to flight qualification and production.
• Manage multiple programs, make architectural calls with engineers.
• Foster a culture that backs bold decisions and rapid iteration.
• Forge and manage high-stakes subcontracts and suppliers.
• Synchronize cross-functional teams across optics, electronics, software, data chain.
• Interface with US government customers and contribute to proposals.

Skills

Program management

Technical leadership

Systems engineering

EO/IR sensing

Risk management

TS/SCI clearance

Cross-functional leadership

Education

Bachelor's in a technical field

Master's in Engineering/Optics (nice to have)

Tools

Jira

Confluence

ERP

Job description

Rocket Lab USA in Long Beach, CA seeks a Senior Technical Program Manager for Space Sensing & Domain Awareness. You own the technical roadmap for EO/IR payloads, guiding from prototype to flight production with high ownership.

You will coordinate cross-functional teams, manage key subcontractors, and maintain strong relationships with government customers. Base pay ranges with comprehensive benefits are provided.