Technical Program Manager

Cowboy Space; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 157,000 - 184,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity in Cowboy Space Corp.

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) retirement savings plan

Paid time off

10 paid holidays per calendar year

Paid parental leave

Relocation assistance

Lunch in the office and stocked pantry

Job summary

Cowboy Space Corp. is seeking a Technical Program Manager to drive a launch vehicle program from early development through production. You’ll own the master schedule, track costs, run standups and reviews, and keep senior engineers sequenced and unblocked.

You will coordinate across propulsion, structures, avionics, and vehicle design while communicating status up and down the organization. A background in aerospace or related fields is preferred and strong communication is essential.

Qualifications

• 2–5 years of experience in program management, systems engineering, or technical operations.
• Strong technical intuition; understand propulsion relevance to the vehicle schedule.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.
• Bias toward action and ability to chase answers without waiting.
• Comfortable operating with ambiguity and incomplete information.
• Experience with scheduling tools such as MS Project or Smartsheet.
• Highly organized with attention to detail.

Responsibilities

• Own and maintain the integrated program schedule across propulsion, structures, avionics, and vehicle design.
• Track costs against budget and flag variances early.
• Run standups, syncs, and program reviews; keep them short and useful.
• Broker resolutions when team deliverables block others.
• Sequence work so long-lead items and design reviews occur in the right order.
• Create and maintain clear documentation: decision logs, action items, interface agreements.
• Communicate status up, down, and sideways; avoid surprises.

Skills

Program management

Systems engineering

Technical operations

Aerospace knowledge

Technical intuition

Communication

Proactiveness

Ambiguity handling

Organizational skills

Scheduling tools

Tools

MS Project

Smartsheet

Job description

Cowboy Space Corp. is building the infrastructure to power and connect the orbital economy. Our satellites operate in Low Earth Orbit to collect sunlight and enable a new class of capabilities—from powering on-orbit compute, to transmitting energy via infrared lasers (space-to-earth and space-to-space), to delivering secure, high-bandwidth optical data. By rethinking how energy and data are generated and distributed in space, we’re unlocking entirely new ways to operate both in orbit and on Earth.Founded in 2024 by Baiju Bhatt (co‑founder of Robinhood), Cowboy Space Corp. is backed by leading investors and built by a team from top aerospace and defense organizations. We’re moving quickly to solve complex technical challenges and build a new category of space infrastructure.

About the Role

We’re looking for a Technical Program Manager to be the connective tissue across our engineering team. You will help drive a launch vehicle program from early development through production. This role is a hands‑on coordination job where you’re making sure nothing falls through the cracks. You'll own the master schedule, drive cost tracking, and most importantly, keep a small team of senior engineers sequenced and unblocked. The engineering leadership knows what needs to be done. We need someone who will relentlessly track progress, flag conflicts early, and make sure the right conversations happen at the right time.

What You’ll Do

• Own and maintain the integrated program schedule across propulsion, structures, avionics, and vehicle design
• Track costs against budget and flag variances early
• Run standups, syncs, and program reviews — keep them short and useful
• Be the person who notices when Team A's deliverable is blocking Team B and brokers the resolution before it becomes a problem
• Sequence work across disciplines so that long‑lead items, test campaigns, and design reviews happen in the right order
• Create and maintain clear documentation: decision logs, action items, interface agreements
• Communicate status up, down, and sideways — no one should be surprised

Basic Qualifications

• 2‑5 years of experience in program management, systems engineering, or technical operations — aerospace preferred but not required
• Strong technical intuition — you don't need to run CFD but you need to understand why a turbopump test matters to the vehicle schedule
• Exceptional communication skills, especially written
• Bias toward action — you chase answers, you don't wait for them
• Comfortable operating with ambiguity and incomplete information
• Experience with scheduling tools (MS Project, Smartsheet, or similar)
• Organized to a fault — nothing gets lost in your world

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience at a startup or small hardware company where you wore multiple hats
• Familiarity with rocket propulsion or launch vehicle development
• Experience cost/schedule tracking frameworks
• Background in systems engineering or integration roles

Compensation and Benefits

The salary range for this position is $157,000 – $184,000 annually. The actual base salary offered will depend on factors such as job‑related skills, experience, qualifications, and internal equity.

• Equity in Cowboy Space Corp.
• Employees and their eligible dependents may enroll in medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) retirement savings plan
• Paid time off
• 10 paid holidays per calendar year
• Paid parental leave
• Relocation assistance if applicable
• Daily lunch in the office and a fully stocked kitchen with beverages and snacks

ITAR Requirements

Export Control Requirement: To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), applicants must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about ITAR here.

Disclaimer

This job description is a summary of the primary duties and responsibilities of the job and position. It is not intended to be a comprehensive or all‑inclusive listing of duties and responsibilities. Contents are subject to change at Cowboy Space Corp.’s discretion.

Cowboy Space Corp. is an equal employment opportunity employer. We consider individuals for employment or promotion according to their skills, abilities and experience. Cowboy Space Corp. is committed to complying with all applicable laws prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, religious creed, age, national origin, ancestry, physical, mental or developmental disability, sex (which includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and medical conditions relating to pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding), veteran status, military status, marital or registered domestic partnership status, medical condition (including cancer or genetic characteristics), genetic information, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, as well as any other category protected by federal, state or local laws.