Senior Staff Electrical Engineer

Senior Staff Electrical Engineer

Location: Louisville, CO or San Francisco, CA, USA

Responsibilities:

Own the full electrical design lifecycle for complex spaceflight hardware, from concept and requirements engineering through schematic capture, layout, bring-up, testing, manufacturing handoff, and in-orbit debugging.

Develop robust analog and digital designs for mission-critical systems operating under demanding environmental and performance constraints.

Organize cross-disciplinary design reviews, share feedback, and help shape technical solutions.

Provide input into schedule planning, mission requirements, and system requirements.

Lead hardware requirements and process improvements involving Altium, design for manufacturing (DFM), and design for test (DFT).

Lead board-level bring-up and debugging while integrating firmware, software, FPGA, and embedded systems.

Define test plans and verification strategies required for flight readiness.

Help scale manufacturing operations by taking hardware from prototypes into low-volume production.

Lead collaboration across mechanical, harness, RF, software, FPGA/SoC, and systems engineering teams.

Mentor early- and mid-career electrical engineers.

Work with external vendors and contract manufacturers to maintain delivery quality, resolve DFM/DFT issues, and support on-time delivery.

Lead failure analysis and root-cause investigations for flight and test anomalies.

Identify system-level risks early and drive mitigation strategies.

Make engineering trade-offs in constrained environments and support decisions with data.

Contribute to architecture optimization and radiation mitigation efforts as needed.

Qualifications:

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or a related field.

10+ years of experience designing and debugging PCBAs.

Proficiency with Altium Designer or similar ECAD tools.

Hands-on experience with laboratory instruments such as oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and power analyzers.

Strong understanding of digital buses, including I2C, SPI, UART, RS422, CAN, USB, PCIe, and Ethernet.

Familiarity with board bring-up, test planning, and design verification workflows.

Experience working with contract manufacturers, supporting DFM reviews, and resolving production issues.

Strong documentation, organization, communication, and cross-functional collaboration skills.

Ability to work independently while coordinating effectively with multidisciplinary teams.

Preferred:

Master's degree in Electrical Engineering or a related field.

Experience designing electronics for harsh environments, including thermal, vacuum, vibration, and radiation conditions.

Familiarity with high-speed design and impedance-controlled layouts.

Basic Python or C scripting and automation for hardware test workflows.

Knowledge of radiation effects and mitigation techniques in electronic design.

Familiarity with EMI/EMC design practices and validation.

Familiarity with satellite electrical systems, including electrical power systems (EPS), global navigation satellite systems (GNSS), attitude determination and control systems (ADCS), propulsion, and space robotics.

Benefits and Compensation:

Base salary range of $167,808 to $219,704 per year.

Medical, dental, and vision insurance.

401(k) matching.

Unlimited paid time off.

Paid holidays.

Parental and adoption leave.

Legal insurance.

Home technology stipend.

Final compensation depends on education, qualifications, experience, location, market data, and internal equity.

Other Information:

Work location: Louisville, Colorado, or San Francisco, California.

Hybrid work arrangement with the option to work remotely a few days per week.

Travel: Up to 10%, domestic or international.

This position involves U.S. export-controlled technology and government contract restrictions.

Candidates must meet applicable U.S. export-control requirements, including U.S. Person requirements or obtain the necessary government authorization.