Technical Program Manager

LeoLabs, Inc.; Washington; On-site; USD 95,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

LeoLabs, Inc. is seeking a Technical Program Manager/Lead Systems Engineer located in the Washington, D.C. metro area to lead mission-critical programs enhancing radar systems and software platforms for government and commercial customers. This role combines technical leadership, systems engineering, and customer engagement responsibilities.

The candidate will manage cross-functional teams and ensure successful technical solutions delivery. Strong program management and technical expertise are essential. This position offers opportunities to work on challenges at the forefront of aerospace and national security.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience managing technical programs or complex technology initiatives.
• Demonstrated ability to manage competing priorities and deliver results in dynamic environments.
• Excellent organizational, communication, presentation, and leadership skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead technical program execution ensuring alignment with customer requirements.
• Serve as primary contact for customer stakeholders on programmatic and technical matters.
• Track program performance against technical, schedule, and contractual objectives.

Skills

Program management expertise

Technical leadership

Systems engineering

Customer engagement

Multidisciplinary team coordination

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Aerospace Engineering, or related technical discipline

Tools

Program management software

Radar systems

Job description

Washington DC Metro

Why LeoLabs?

At LeoLabs, we’re building the living map of activity in space. Through our proprietary global radar network and AI-enabled analytics platform, we collect millions of measurements daily on more than 25,000 objects in low Earth orbit (LEO). Our radar‑powered intelligence protects billions in assets, monitors adversarial behavior, and ensures safe operations for commercial and government missions.

We’re not just building technology, we are redefining global security, safety, and transparency in space. As orbital activity accelerates and threats grow more complex, LeoLabs is a trusted partner for Space Domain Awareness, Space Traffic Management, and Satellite Operations for top‑tier space operators and allied defense organizations.

If you're looking to work on mission‑critical challenges at the forefront of aerospace, national security, and AI, your impact starts here.

LeoLabs is seeking a Technical Program Manager (TPM)/Lead Systems Engineer to lead the technical execution of mission‑critical programs advancing next‑generation radar systems, software platforms, and data solutions for government and commercial customers supporting Space Domain Awareness (SDA), Space Superiority, and Missile Warning missions. The TPM will serve as the primary liaison between customers, engineering teams, and program stakeholders, ensuring successful delivery of technical solutions while managing scope, schedule, risk, and performance objectives.

This role combines technical leadership, systems engineering, customer engagement, and program execution responsibilities. The successful candidate will serve as the technical authority responsible for translating mission requirements into executable system solutions while supporting customer interactions and program delivery.

This position will work directly with the Technical Director of Radar Systems Engineering and partner closely with Mission Architecture and Mission Integration leadership.

The ideal candidate combines strong program management expertise with a deep technical background, enabling them to effectively coordinate multidisciplinary teams and drive successful outcomes across software, hardware, data, and operational domains.

Key Responsibilities

• Technical Leadership
• Lead systems engineering activities for strategic programs
• Lead technical program execution from initiation through delivery, ensuring alignment with customer requirements, contractual obligations, and company objectives
• Serve as the primary point of contact for customer stakeholders on programmatic and technical matters
• Coordinate cross-functional teams including software engineering, systems engineering, radar engineering, product management, operations, and data science
• Develop and maintain integrated program plans, schedules, milestones, dependencies, and resource forecasts
• Manage technical risks, issues, assumptions, and dependencies while driving mitigation strategies and corrective actions
• Track program performance against technical, schedule, and contractual objectives and communicate status to leadership and customers
• Facilitate technical reviews, design reviews, program management reviews, and customer briefings
• Support requirements management, technical planning, system integration, testing, deployment, and operational readiness activities
• Collaborate with business development and capture teams to support proposals, technical volumes, solution development, and follow‑on opportunities
• Ensure effective communication and coordination across internal and external stakeholders throughout the program lifecycle
• Drive continuous process improvement initiatives to enhance program execution and delivery effectiveness
• Lead technical reviews and design activities
• Assess performance impacts and technical trades
• Evaluate detection, tracking, and characterization performance
• Support sensor performance validation

Program Execution

• Partner with Program Manager to ensure technical execution
• Identify and mitigate technical risks
• Coordinate engineering teams and technical work products
• Participate in customer technical exchanges
• Present technical analyses and recommendations

Mission Integration

• Coordinate with Mission Architecture and Mission Integration teams
• Support demonstration planning and execution
• Ensure technical solutions align with mission outcomes

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Aerospace Engineering, Physics, Systems Engineering, or a related technical discipline
• 7+ years of experience managing technical programs, engineering projects, or complex technology initiatives
• Experience leading multidisciplinary teams in software, systems engineering, aerospace, defense, or related technical environments
• Strong understanding of systems engineering, software development lifecycles, technical integration, and program management methodologies
• Experience managing customer‑facing technical programs with multiple stakeholders
• Excellent organizational, communication, presentation, and leadership skills
• Demonstrated ability to manage competing priorities and deliver results in dynamic environments
• S. citizenship and ability to obtain and maintain any required security clearances

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting Department of Defense, U.S. Space Force, Intelligence Community, NASA, or other national security customers
• Familiarity with Space Domain Awareness (SDA), Space Situational Awareness (SSA), radar systems, sensor networks, space operations, or command‑and‑control systems
• Experience managing software‑intensive, data‑intensive, or mission systems programs
• Project Management Professional (PMP), Agile, Scrum, or equivalent certification
• Experience with cloud‑based architectures, data platforms, and modern software delivery practices
• Active U.S. security clearance
• Master's degree in Engineering, Systems Engineering, Computer Science, Business Administration, or a related discipline

Work Location

Washington, D.C. metro area preferred. This role requires periodic travel to customer locations, LeoLabs offices, and industry events as required.

This position is associated with a prospective customer contract and is contingent upon contract award, customer approval, funding availability, and successful execution of all contractual requirements. LeoLabs may extend contingent employment offers to qualified candidates prior to contract award to support program readiness and staffing planning.

Any contingent offer of employment will remain subject to final contract award, program authorization, funding, and satisfaction of all pre‑employment requirements. Upon contract award and receipt of all necessary approvals, contingent offers may be converted to regular employment offers and candidates will be provided with an official start date.