Technical Project Manager Long Beach, California, United States

Vast Space LLC; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 123,000 - 174,600; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

100% medical, dental, and vision coverage

Generous paid time off

Free snacks and onsite barista

Job summary

Vast Space LLC located in Long Beach is seeking a full-time Technical Project Manager. This role involves leading complex projects across diverse teams to ensure the success of the product while prioritizing safety and quality.

The ideal candidate should hold a B.S. in mechanical, aerospace, or a related field, with at least 2 years of relevant experience. A comprehensive benefits package and competitive salary range from $123,000 to $174,600 are offered.

Qualifications

• 2+ years of successful contributions in an engineering discipline.
• Experience with project management and reporting tools.
• Demonstrated success in delivering a product to market.

Responsibilities

• Lead complex, multi-disciplinary projects from start to finish.
• Drive product development by partnering with stakeholders.
• Manage scope, schedule, cost, and priorities across projects.

Skills

Project management

Technical leadership

Cross-functional teamwork

Education

B.S. degree in mechanical, aerospace, or related engineering field

Tools

MS Project

JIRA

SmartSheet

Confluence

Job description

At Vast, our mission is to contribute to a future where billions of people are living and thriving in space. Vast is developing next-generation space stations to ensure a continuous human presence in space for America and its allies, enabling advanced microgravity research and manufacturing, and unlocking a new space economy for government, corporate, and private customers. Using an incremental, hardware-rich and low-cost approach, Vast is rapidly developing its multi-module Haven Station. Haven Demo’s 2025 success made Vast the only operational commercial space station company to fly and operate its own spacecraft. Next, Haven-1 is expected to become the world’s first commercial space station when it launches, followed by additional Haven modules to enable permanent human presence by 2030. Our team is all-in, committed to executing our mission safely and on time. If you want to work with the most talented people on Earth furthering space exploration for humanity, come join us.

Position

Technical Project Manager, reporting to the Senior Manager of Technical Projects, full‑time, exempt, located in Long Beach.

Responsibilities

• Leverage technical experience to lead complex, multi‑disciplinary projects from start to finish with extreme ownership, managing the critical development of hardware, software, and artifacts for product and mission success across departments, including electrical, mechanical, industrial design, and mission operations.
• Drive and support product development success by prioritizing safety and quality of product while maintaining a tight timeline and partnering with internal and external stakeholders.
• Act as a single point of contact for driving progress and managing scope, schedule, cost, and priorities across various technical development projects. Report status and risk to program stakeholders.
• Ensure schedules and program documents are complete, current and available for staff and leadership review using concise and effective communication.
• Apply first principles approach to problem solving, conflict resolution, and decision making.
• Demonstrate and lead with urgency across all initiatives.

Minimum Qualifications

• B.S. degree in mechanical, aerospace, or related engineering field.
• 2+ years of demonstrated successful contributions in an engineering discipline (e.g., design, analysis, manufacturing, or similar).
• Demonstrated successful contributions to end‑to‑end product lifecycle management (evidence of delivering a product or initiative to market).
• Experience with project management and reporting tools (e.g., MS Project, SmartSheet, JIRA, Confluence).

Preferred Skills & Experience

• M.S. degree in mechanical, aerospace, or related engineering field.
• 1+ years of cross‑functional technical leadership (e.g., project engineering, systems engineering, or engineering management).
• Demonstrated success in delivering at least one product to market as a technical contributor or lead.
• Demonstrated NPI experience or development and delivery of space flight hardware preferred.
• Experience and acumen across business units in addition to engineering disciplines.
• Ability to think strategically and execute cross‑disciplinary tactical plans.
• Ability to travel up to 15% of the time.
• Willingness to work overtime, or weekends to support critical mission milestones.

Additional Requirements

• Ability to travel up to 15% of the time.
• Willingness to work evenings and/or weekends to support critical mission milestones.
• Ability to lift up to 25 lbs unassisted.
• Specific certifications, as appropriate.

Pay Range

• Technical Project Manager II: $123,000 - $174,600
• Senior Technical Project Manager: $133,000 - $190,000

Compensation & Benefits

Base salary varies depending on job‑related knowledge, education, skills, experience, business needs, and market demand. Full‑time employees also receive company equity and a comprehensive benefits package, including 100% medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents; generous paid time off (up to 20+ days of vacation for exempt staff and up to 10+ days for non‑exempt staff, with the ability to cash‑out unused vacation annually); paid parental leave; short and long‑term disability insurance; life insurance; a 401(k) retirement plan; ClassPass credits; personalized mental healthcare through Spring Health; discounts and perks. Food perks include free snacks, drip coffee & onsite barista, cold drinks, and dinner meals, with lunch subsidized.

U.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS

The person hired will have access to information and items subject to U.S. export controls, and therefore must either be a “U.S. person” as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.62 or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. This status includes U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

Vast is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Vast is governed on the basis of merit, competence, and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.