Industry Practice Lead - Aerospace

The Role

• Own Luminary's aerospace vertical end-to-end as a consultative, outcome-based sale: client development, engagement scoping, deal closure, account expansion
• Engage at CEO, CTO, and Chief Engineer level across aerospace primes, commercial aviation companies, space launch and satellite companies, and federal agencies like the FAA and NASA
• Sell outcomes, not tools: structure and scope $1M-$10M+ Physics AI programs that transform how customers solve mission-critical design, manufacturing, operational, and sustainment problems
• Develop the engagement thesis for each target account: what problem, what outcome, what value, what proof point, what expansion path
• Work hand-in-hand with Lead Delivery Engineers to ensure value delivery and translate engagement learnings into repeatable practice IP
• Build and maintain executive relationships across NASA leadership, FAA, aerospace research labs, and C-suite at primes and aerospace tech
• Shape Luminary's aerospace market strategy: which programs, which buyers, which procurement vehicles, in what order
• Inform product roadmap based on client needs, competitive dynamics, and procurement realities
• Build the aerospace practice: engagement frameworks, case studies, reference architectures, pricing models, team composition templates
• Reports to Head of Sales. Sits on the leadership team and partners directly with the CEO on aerospace accounts, strategy, and roadmap

You

• 10+ years in aerospace, aviation, or space technology, including experience leading complex technical engagements with C-suite and senior industry stakeholders
• A consultative seller who leads with business outcomes and the transformation our technology delivers, not product features or tools; a top-tier strategy or management consulting background is a strong plus but not required (MBB not necessary) — this is an engineering-led consultative sale
• Track record of personally developing and leading $5M+ client relationships with aerospace, aviation, or space industry executives
• Skilled at structuring ambiguous problems: decomposing a client's operational challenge into a scoped engagement with clear deliverables, timelines, and value metrics
• Comfortable as the senior person in the room with chief engineers, program executives, and aerospace company CEOs
• Have built or significantly grown a practice, business line, or sector offering, not just delivered within one
• Understand aerospace procurement and programs: commercial aircraft and engine programs, FAA/EASA certification, NASA acquisition, SBIR/STTR, IDIQ, FAR
• Comfortable selling a capability into white space where requirements don't yet exist, not responding to defined RFPs
• Can operate at both the strategic layer (which programs, which customers, what sequence) and the execution layer (scoping calls, pricing, SOW drafting, delivery oversight)
• U.S. person status for ITAR/EAR-controlled programs, with ability to obtain a security clearance for classified space programs
  
  

Nice to Have

• Existing relationships with NASA centers (JPL, Marshall, Glenn), FAA, commercial aviation OEMs, or space launch and satellite program managers
• Experience bringing AI/ML, simulation, or digital engineering capabilities into aerospace contexts
• Prior experience at an aerospace OEM, airline, or space agency in a senior engineering or program leadership role
• Background in engineering, CFD, computational physics, simulation, or modeling & simulation for aerospace applications

Not This Role If You

• Come from pure enterprise SaaS with no aerospace or aviation context
• Need a large team, lots of marketing air cover, and inbound pipeline to succeed
• Default to small pilots to avoid executive-level conversations
• Treat client development as proposal writing rather than relationship and thesis building
• Are looking for a role where someone else defines the engagement and you deliver it
• Can't explain why physics matters to an aerospace engineer or a CEO
• Sell product features and tools rather than the business outcomes and transformation our technology delivers

Comp

• Base + meaningful equity + deal-based variable
• Early leadership role in a category-defining Physics AI company
• Direct access to CEO and Executive Team