Job SummaryDeep Fission is seeking a Director of Drilling to own the well construction program that takes our borehole reactor emplacement from design into the field, building the drilling function around it from first principles. Deep Fission places reactors in engineered boreholes a mile underground, in deep, large-diameter, hard-rock wells outside the range of conventional onshore drilling programs - which means this role gets to solve construction problems that standard onshore programs never encounter.
Key Responsibilities- Well Delivery & Execution
- Own well delivery - safety, well integrity, control of work, cost, and schedule - from the first wells through repeatable, at-scale drilling operations.
- Direct large-diameter borehole construction, and identify and field-prove novel drilling techniques, including air / percussion hammer drilling in hard rock and reverse-flood / reverse circulation methods.
- Lead the drilling input to Deep Fission's first-of-a-kind well permitting process and regulatory submissions.
- Organizational Build-Out
- Build and scale the drilling organization, recruiting and leading the engineering and field teams needed to grow from the first wells to a multi-well, multi-rig program.
- Stand up drilling and safety management systems, standards, and procedures from first principles for a high-consequence, regulated environment.
- Engineering & Technical Standards
- Produce drilling programs, basis of design, procedures, and well control philosophy for Deep Fission's large-diameter geometry, partnering with specialist support where needed.
- Own the drilling budget within the approved envelope and authority limits, together with procurement and contractor accountability, and enforce cost, scope, and schedule discipline.
Required Skills & Experience- Bachelor's degree in Petroleum, Mechanical, or a related Engineering discipline.
- 15+ years of progressively responsible onshore drilling experience, including direct leadership of multi-well or multi-rig programs.
- Demonstrated record of building drilling organizations, engineering teams, and management and safety systems from the ground up, with the ability to scale them as the program grows.
- Operational depth, with direct accountability for delivering wells safely and economically.
- Command of well design, casing, mud, and cement programs, well control, and cost control.
- Demonstrated judgment applying rigorous, risk-based engineering, quality, and HSE controls in high-consequence operations.
- Current IADC or IWCF well control certification.
- Demonstrated HSE leadership record in drilling operations.
- Ability to lead effectively in a distributed organization.
- Must be a U.S. person eligible to meet DOE Export Control requirements under 10 CFR 810.
- Ability to work independently in a remote-first, cross-functional environment with senior stakeholders.
- Willingness to travel domestically for team offsites, training sessions, and site visits as required, with up to 20% travel anticipated.
Preferred Skills & Experience- Advanced engineering degree.
- Large-diameter and hard-rock drilling experience.
- Experience with reverse-flood / reverse circulation and air / percussion hammer drilling techniques.
- Prior experience scaling a drilling program from single-rig to multi-rig operations.
- Commercial or private-sector experience, ideally in a high-growth or newly public company.
Key Competencies- Well Delivery Ownership - Drives well construction from design through safe, economic execution, holding the line on integrity, cost, and schedule at once.
- Organizational Building - Builds drilling teams, systems, and standards from first principles, and scales them as the program grows.
- Technical Judgment in High-Consequence Operations - Applies rigorous, risk-based engineering and HSE judgment to a first-of-a-kind drilling program.
- First-of-a-Kind Problem-Solving - Comfortable solving construction problems that standard onshore programs do not encounter, without established precedent to lean on.
- Cross-Functional & Regulatory Collaboration - Partners across engineering, licensing, and regulatory teams to support well permitting and first-of-a-kind submissions.
