Principal Software Engineer

Description

The company is an end-to-end space business that designs and builds rockets, spacecraft, and critical subsystems.

Its Space Systems division builds complete spacecraft, payloads, and components such as solar panels, flight software, star trackers, optical systems, separation systems, and radios. It has supported more than 1,700 missions, from interplanetary exploration and in-space manufacturing to national security work, with partners including NASA, the Space Development Agency, and the U.S. Space Force. Missions have reached the Moon and Mars.

This role sits in the optical systems group, which tackles space domain and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance problems for Department of Defense and Intelligence Community customers. The group builds on more than 20 years of electro-optical and infrared systems work.

You would be a Principal Software Engineer based in Chantilly, VA, designing flight software for spacecraft in Tranche 3 of the Space Development Agency's Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture.

Responsibilities

• Help build payload flight software for the Space Systems programs.
• Take novel algorithms and deploy them in harsh environments on sensor systems with tight size, weight, and power limits.
• Lead cross-functional teams in defining technical requirements and delivering integrated solutions.
• Guide technical work from requirements through implementation, testing, and deployment.
• Shape software architecture, design patterns, interfaces, and technical standards so solutions scale and stay easy to maintain and extend.
• Drive performance-focused programming across a range of accelerator technologies.
• Mentor engineers at every level, give technical guidance, and encourage continuous improvement.
• Plan technical work, estimate effort, identify risks, manage dependencies, and hit milestones, reporting status and risks to stakeholders.
• Work alongside a determined team that takes on hard problems in space.

Requirements

• Hold a bachelor's degree in computer science or computer engineering.
• Have 12+ years of embedded software engineering experience.
• Have designed complex multithreaded applications.
• Have designed flight software.
• Be able to obtain and keep a U.S. Government security clearance.
• Nice to have: familiarity with high-performance and parallel processing.
• Nice to have: exposure to novel architectures such as FPGA and CUDA.
• Nice to have: familiarity with flight software system management.
• Nice to have: experience with algorithm implementation.
• Nice to have: exposure to Python and MATLAB, which is highly desired.
• Nice to have: familiarity with numerical computing principles.

Conditions

The role may involve long periods of sitting, standing, walking, and computer work, plus occasional moderate noise, dust, and fumes in production areas.

The pay range is shown to meet Virginia pay transparency rules. Level and base salary are set case by case, based on job-related knowledge and skills, education, and experience.

Total compensation, including base and equity: $198,900 - $324,800 USD.

Base salary: $163,500 - $218,000 USD.

US offices only: to meet ITAR, you must be a U.S. citizen, a lawful permanent resident, a refugee or asylum holder admitted to the U.S., or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the State and/or Commerce Departments.

New Zealand offices only: background checks, including nationality checks, happen before any offer. You must be eligible to access ITAR-regulated equipment and data. You may be ineligible if you are not a citizen of Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, the European Union, or a NATO member, or if you hold ineligible dual citizenship or nationality.

Benefits

• Competitive base pay plus company stock as part of total compensation, giving you a direct stake in the company's results.
• Anticipated annual equity grant value depends on function, level, experience, and other factors; realized value depends on vesting and stock price.
• Employee Stock Purchase Program with a 15% discount on company stock.
• Top-tier medical plans, plus dental and vision coverage.
• Paid vacation and sick time, plus 11 paid holidays.
• Flexible spending and dependent care accounts.
• Paid parental leave.
• Disability and life insurance.
• 401(k) retirement plan with company match.
• Other discounts and perks.