Director of Avionics Hardware DevelopmentAbout the Role As Director of Avionics Hardware Development, you will own all electrical hardware design, build, and test across every avionics subsystem - RF, Power, GNC, Compute, and I/O - for Varda's satellite bus, reentry capsule, and pharmaceutical payloads. You will lead a multi-disciplinary team of engineers through the full product lifecycle: from feasibility and architecture through prototype development, qualification, manufacturing, and flight. This is a hands-on leadership role where your technical judgment and strategic decision-making directly determine mission success.
Responsibilities Technical Leadership - Own the end-to-end avionics hardware development program across all subsystems (RF, power electronics, digital/compute, GNC sensors and actuators, I/O, and harnessing)
- Drive hardware from concept through schematic and layout review, prototyping, environmental qualification (thermal, vibe, shock, TVAC, EMI), and flight acceptance
- Define the hardware and technology roadmap - maximize reuse, drive common circuit implementations across subsystems, and increase development speed through simplification
- Establish and enforce design rules, review gates, and development processes that ensure consistency and quality as the team and mission cadence scale
- Collaborate cross-functionally with flight software, GNC, structures, thermal, integration & test, and mission operations to define system architecture and resolve interface challenges
- Anchor hardware designs to derived requirements and engineering objectives, perform trades and analyses (link budgets, power models, EMC assessments) to retire risk early
Production & Scaling - Hit Varda production milestones to maintain and increase mission cadence
- Build and advocate for infrastructure to support environmental testing, component qualification, and manufacturing at scale
- Develop robust work instructions, test software suites, and reliable test execution to transition designs from development to repeatable, high-rate production
Team Building & Mentorship - Grow and lead the avionics hardware team - recruit top talent, set team structure, and allocate resources to meet company objectives
- Mentor engineers at all levels, investing in their technical development and career growth
- Foster a collaborative, high-ownership culture where engineers operate with autonomy and urgency
Qualifications Required - Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, or a related field
- 10+ years of experience developing electronic hardware for mission-critical applications in harsh environments (space, aviation, defense, or robotics)
- Demonstrated experience leading and managing multi-disciplinary hardware engineering teams (5+ direct/indirect reports)
- Deep technical fluency across at least three of: power electronics, compute, RF, mixed-signal design, or GNC sensor and actuators
- Track record driving hardware through the full product lifecycle - from requirements and architecture through qualification, manufacturing, and operations
- Experience with environmental test campaigns (thermal cycling, TVAC, vibe, shock, EMI/EMC) and space qualification standards
Preferred - Experience at a high-cadence aerospace organization
- Hands-on experience with spacecraft avionics systems - flight computers, power distribution, RF communications, GPS, IMUs, reaction wheels, or similar
- Experience scaling a hardware team or product line from prototype to production volumes
Pay Range- Salary range: $192,500-$245,971
- This role is on-sitein El Segundo, CA
- Leveling and base salary is determined by job-related skills, education level, experience level, and job performance
- You will be eligible for long-term incentives in the form of stock options and/or long-term cash awards
ITAR Requirements- Varda, like all employers, must ensure that its employees working in the United States are lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. Additionally, our employees are exposed to and have access to certain export-controlled items. At present, some of our technology to which employees have access requires a license to be exported to individuals other than "U.S. Persons" as defined in U.S. export regulations. Because our employees are provided access to export-controlled items, our current policy is to only hire "U.S. persons" who are permitted to have access to our technology without an export license.
"US person" means: U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident, or protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3) (i.e., individual admitted to the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum in the U.S.)
Learn more about the ITAR here.
Benefits- Exciting team of professionals at the top of their field working by your side
- Equity in a fully funded space startup with potential for significant growth (interns excluded)
- 401(k) matching (interns excluded)
- Unlimited PTO (interns excluded)
- Health insurance, including Vision and Dental
- Lunch and snacks provided on site every day. Dinners provided twice a week.
- Maternity / Paternity leave (interns excluded)
