Sr. Director, Systems Engineering

Sr. Director of Systems Engineering 

Intuitive Machines - West is currently seeking a Sr. Director of Systems Engineering with world-class systems engineering skills to join our team in Palo Alto, CA. This senior leadership position is responsible for strategic systems engineering, technical excellence, and organizational development across the company-wide portfolio of programs. This person will lead systems engineering strategy, establishing enterprise-level processes and standards, and ensure technical execution excellence across a diverse set of missions and customers.  Examples include lunar exploration, communication, and remote sensing for commercial and government customers. 

Leadership & Organization Development 

• Lead, mentor, and develop a multi-program systems engineering organization supporting spacecraft development across Intuitive Machines - West's portfolio 

• Build and sustain a high-performing systems engineering culture emphasizing technical rigor, innovation, and continuous improvement 

• Establish career development frameworks and technical excellence pathways for systems engineers at all levels 

• Participate in recruiting, interviewing, and hiring processes to grow organizational capability 

• Foster cross-program collaboration and knowledge sharing to maximize organizational learning 

Strategic Systems Engineering 

• Define and champion systems engineering vision, strategy, and roadmap aligned with company growth objectives 

• Establish enterprise-level systems engineering processes, standards, tools (including artificial intelligence applications), and best practices adaptable across diverse mission types (lunar, LEO/GEO satellites, cislunar infrastructure, national security space) 

• Lead transformation initiatives to keep Intuitive Machines - West at the forefront of aerospace systems engineering approaches 

• Drive adoption of model-based systems engineering (MBSE) and digital engineering practices 

• Ensure consistency in systems engineering approaches while enabling program-specific tailoring 

Technical Leadership & Oversight 

• Provide senior technical oversight ensuring quality, rigor, and discipline across all programs 

• Lead critical technical reviews, trade studies, and decision-making processes for high-impact, high-complexity initiatives 

• Advise executive leadership on technical risks, opportunities, and strategic program positions 

• Participate in and support Quality team to drive significant Material Review Boards (MRB) and Failure Review Boards (FRB) 

• Formulate resolutions to complex technical challenges spanning development and production environments 

Program Support & Execution 

• Support program systems engineering teams across the company in: 

• Requirements development, decomposition, validation, and verification 

• System architecture definition and interface management 

• Trade studies optimizing technical performance, mass, power, thermal, cost, schedule, and risk 

• System budget development and margin allocation strategies 

• Heritage application and technology insertion decisions 

• Verification planning and execution 

• Drive risk management process including identification, assessment, and mitigation of risks and opportunities.  Provide recommendations to program leadership based on balancing technical, cost, and schedule risk.  Ensure development teams manage technical risks and opportunities, with appropriate mitigation plans and retirement strategies 

• Validate that AIT verification plans and results fully confirm compliance with customer requirements 

Customer & Stakeholder Engagement 

• Work effectively with internal and external customers to understand system needs and mission objectives 

• Provide technical interface leadership with customers, including DoD, NASA, commercial partners, and international entities 

• Support business development activities with technical insights for new pursuits 

• Build and maintain strong relationships across Engineering, PMO, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Quality organizations 

Mission & Requirements Engineering 

• Support Mission Architecture team with studies and concept development for new opportunities as  

• Guide requirements formulation appropriate to mission scope, development level, and customer needs 

• Ensure proper requirement flow-down from customer needs through subsystem specifications 

• Champion balanced approaches addressing cost, technical performance, schedule, and risk throughout all development phases 

Minimum Requirements: 

• Must be a US Citizen with ability to obtain and maintain a TS/SCI security clearance 

• Bachelor's degree in engineering discipline or equivalent technical degree 

• Minimum of 12 years of engineering experience in aerospace systems engineering, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, or related discipline 

• Minimum of 8 years in technical leadership roles with demonstrated people leadership and organizational development experience 

• Experience leading systems engineering across multiple programs 

• Experience with complex aerospace systems including mechanical, electrical, thermal, propulsion, and software subsystems 

• Demonstrated expertise conducting complex trade studies optimizing technical performance, mass, power, thermal, cost, schedule, and risk 

• Experience with requirements development, decomposition, and verification across system lifecycles 

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Active TS/SCI security clearance 

• Master's degree or higher in Engineering, Physics, or related technical field; MBA or technical management degree a plus 

• Deep knowledge of commercial space architectures, missions, systems, requirements, and acquisition methods 

• Deep knowledge of USG space architectures, missions, systems, requirements, and acquisition methods 

• Experience working with agile development teams, understanding of software architecture as relevant to mission needs, close collaboration with software teams, and software requirements decomposition 

• Experience with diverse mission types: lunar systems, GEO/LEO satellites, cislunar infrastructure, Earth observation, communications, interplanetary  

• Working knowledge of MBSE tools and digital engineering approaches 

• Expertise in applicable aerospace standards (NASA, MIL-STD, ECSS, AIAA, IEEE, etc.) 

• Outstanding written and verbal communication with executive presence 

• Superior customer relationship building ability and business acumen 

• Strong written and verbal presentation skills for technical and non-technical audiences 

• Strategic thinking with ability to adapt to changing constraints, requirements, and organizational dynamics 

• Strong team building and mentoring capabilities with proven success developing technical talent