Surveillance & Navigation Architecture Performance Associate Director

aero; United States; On-site; USD 190,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

The Aerospace Corporation is seeking an Associate Director to lead the Position, Navigation, and Timing portfolio within SNAPD. The role involves managing a front office and section, coordinating across PNT mission areas, and directing analyses to deliver context-informed insights.

The position requires a current TS/SCI clearance, US citizenship, and a strong background in MS&A, PNT, and geolocation. Onsite work is expected in El Segundo, CA or Colorado Springs, CO.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in aerospace, astronautical, electrical engineering, CS, physics, math or related field.
• 10 years leading MS&A teams and translating customer needs into analyst instructions.
• Strength in PNT architecture performance evaluations, geolocation, or signals analysis.
• Able to adapt communication styles for staff, collaborators, and customers.
• Requires TS/SCI clearance; U.S. citizenship is required.

Responsibilities

• Partner with the director to grow the organization and engage with customers.
• Guide MS&A capabilities to support research, development, and acquisition decisions.
• Lead and mentor multi-discipline teams across programs and offices.
• Staff projects by coordinating resources and ensuring quality of work products.
• Maintain strong relationships with government customers and peers.

Skills

MS&A leadership

PNT architecture evals

Geolocation / signals analysis

Strategic communication

Team mentoring

Education

Bachelor's degree in aerospace/engineering or related field

Graduate degree (preferred)

Job description

The Aerospace Corporation is the trusted partner to the nation's space programs, solving the hardest problems and providing unmatched technical expertise. As the operator of a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC), we are broadly engaged across all aspects of space- delivering innovative solutions that span satellite, launch, ground, and cyber systems for defense, civil and commercial customers. When you join our team, you'll be part of a special collection of problem solvers, thought leaders, and innovators. Join us and take your place in space.

The Enterprise Effects Division (EED) drives integration of Aerospace's strategic capabilities across the national space enterprise. The division leverages a broad array of engineering disciplines against a dynamic portfolio of programs, customers, and national challenges. EED spans the capability lifecycle from concept and architecture design to performance assessment to application of space-enabled mission effects.

The Surveillance and Navigation Architecture Performance Department (SNAPD) in the Integrated Performance Subdivision aspires to be the premier force advising the evolution of national security and civil space enterprises, leveraging our modeling and simulation (M&S) expertise to evaluate end-to-end architecture performance.

We are seeking an Associate Director to lead our Position, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) portfolio. This role will be responsible for managing and developing personnel across a front office and section, coordinating across PNT mission areas, building department capabilities and skillsets, and directing analyses that empower our teams to deliver differentiated and context-informed insights.

Work Model:

This full-time position requires 100% onsite work in El Segundo, CA or Colorado Springs, CO .

What You'll Be Doing

• Partnering with the director to cultivate a vision for the organization, including identifying opportunities for growth, engaging with customers to facilitate that growth, and developing new areas of technical expertise to meet evolving need across a geographically distributed team
• Guiding the development of MS&A capabilities and products to support recommendations for research, development, and acquisition decisions of legacy and emerging space-based architectures
• Fostering a center of excellence for the following mission areas: geo-spatial intelligence, signals intelligence, space surveillance, positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) systems, and signals integrity, supporting defense, intelligence, and civil capabilities
• Leading aggressive hiring and workforce development initiatives to support growing customer demand, building sustainable talent pipelines in hard-to-recruit disciplines and developing staff through mentoring and coaching
• Building and maintaining a strong base of customers and collaborators for the office through effective working relationships with colleagues and government customers
• Creating an organization that promotes innovation, developing and maintaining relationships with peer organizations, creating and leading teams of multi-discipline analysts
• Coordinating complex technical tasks across multiple programs , managing resources to efficiently staff and execute projects, and ensuring quality and accuracy of work products
• Working closely with the broader subdivision and division leadership team to cultivate an effective, efficient, and cohesive national organization
• Monitoring, directing, and improving the organization's processes, functions, compliance, and safety awareness

What You Need to be Successful:

Minimum Requirements for an Associate Director :

• Bachelor's degree with demonstrated experience or graduate degree in aerospace, astronautical, or electrical engineering, computer science, physics, operations research, mathematics, or a related field of science or engineering from an accredited institution
• 10 years demonstrated experience leading MS&A teams, coordinating complex technical tasks among team members, and translating customer needs into viable instructions for analysts /development teams
• Demonstrated strength in position, navigation, and timing architecture performance evaluations , geolocation, or signals analysis and integrity
• Ability to flex communication styles for productive interactions with staff, collaborators, and customers
• This position requires a current and active TS/SCI clearance, which is issued by the U.S. government. U.S. citizenship is required to obtain a security clearance

How You Can Stand Out

It would be impressive if you have one or more of these:

• A graduate degree or extensive work experience in the fields of study mentioned above
• Knowledge across Intelligence Community or U.S. Department of Defense business practices, acquisition policies, or space mission portfolios
• Experience working in or directly supporting program offices, especially in technical areas related to GPS or PNT