Sr. Manager, Electrical Systems

The Electrical Systems Manager is responsible for directing and integrating all electrical engineering activities across a complex aerospace development program. This role serves as the senior electrical engineering authority for the program and provides technical leadership, execution oversight, and cross-functional coordination for electrical design, systems integration, verification, test, and electronics test equipment development. The Electrical Systems Manager ensures the electrical architecture, avionics hardware, power systems, interfaces, integration strategy, and verification approach collectively satisfy program requirements, technical performance objectives, and customer expectations.

This role operates as a key member of the program's engineering leadership team and works closely with program management, chief engineering, firmware engineering, manufacturing, quality, supply chain, and customer representatives.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership

• Provide overall leadership and direction for all electrical engineering activities on the program.
• Establish and maintain the electrical engineering technical baseline across design, integration, verification, and test.
• Ensure electrical subsystem designs meet performance, reliability, safety, EMI/EMC, power, thermal, and environmental requirements.
• Lead technical decision-making, trade studies, design reviews, and engineering risk assessments.
• Drive timely resolution of complex technical issues affecting cost, schedule, performance, or integration.

Team and Organizational Management

• Lead a multi-disciplinary electrical engineering organization composed of functional leads in design engineering, electrical systems engineering, electrical test, and test equipment development
• Align engineering priorities, staffing, and technical execution across integrated product teams.
• Mentor senior engineers and technical leads while fostering strong engineering rigor and accountability.
• Support staffing plans, organizational development, and engineering process improvement initiatives.

Design and Systems Integration

• Oversee development of avionics hardware, electrical architectures, power distribution systems, harnessing, interfaces, and embedded electronic assemblies.
• Ensure configuration control and disciplined change management throughout development.
• Coordinate interfaces between mechanical, electrical, firmware, manufacturing, and systems engineering teams.
• Ensure requirements traceability and verification planning are fully integrated into design activities.

Verification, Test, and Test Equipment Oversight

• Oversee electrical verification and validation activities including bench testing, subsystem integration testing, environmental testing, EMI/EMC qualification, and system-level verification.
• Direct development of electronics test equipment, automated test systems, hardware-in-the-loop solutions, and laboratory integration capabilities required to support development and qualification activities.
• Review and approve test objectives, procedures, instrumentation plans, and anomaly resolution efforts.
• Ensure analytical predictions, laboratory data, and qualification test results are properly correlated and dispositioned.

Program Execution

• Support program planning, cost estimation, schedule development, and risk management activities.
• Track engineering execution against milestones and technical performance measures.
• Provide regular status updates to program leadership and customers regarding technical progress, risks, and mitigation strategies.
• Support major program reviews including SRR, PDR, CDR, TRR, and qualification reviews.

Customer and Supplier Engagement

• Serve as a primary technical interface for electrical engineering matters with customers, suppliers, and partners.
• Support supplier technical oversight, design reviews, and issue resolution activities.
• Participate in customer briefings and technical interchange meetings.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related technical discipline.
• 15+ years of aerospace or defense engineering experience with increasing technical leadership responsibility.
• Experience leading integrated electrical engineering teams through development, integration, and test phases.
• Strong background in avionics systems, electrical design, power systems, verification, integration, and electronics test equipment.
• Experience with aerospace development lifecycle processes and formal engineering reviews.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional technical teams in a complex development environment.
• Strong communication, organizational, and technical decision-making skills.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Electrical Engineering or related technical discipline.
• Experience supporting spacecraft, launch systems, missiles, aircraft, propulsion systems, or other complex aerospace platforms.
• Familiarity with model-based systems engineering and digital engineering environments.
• Experience with EMI/EMC qualification testing, automated test equipment development, and hardware failure investigations.
• Experience managing engineering costs, schedule, staffing, and technical performance metrics.
• Active or previously held U.S. security clearance.

Desired Leadership Characteristics

• Strong system-thinking mindset
• Technical credibility with senior engineering staff
• Ability to balance execution urgency with engineering rigor
• Collaborative leadership style across integrated teams
• Decisive problem-solving under schedule pressure
• Commitment to quality, safety, and mission success