Manager - Systems Engineering

MDA

• $102K — $160K *
Aerospace & Defense
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 10+ years of engineering and leadership experience, especially in the space industry or related fields.
  • Proficient in workforce planning, budgeting, and strategic leadership.
  • Proven success in implementing engineering process improvements and transformations.
  • Strong leadership, conflict resolution, and interpersonal skills.
  • In-depth understanding of systems engineering lifecycle processes and modern engineering practices.
  • Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or a relevant field.

Responsibilities

  • Lead and mentor a team of Systems Engineers for optimal performance.
  • Develop organizational structures and workforce strategies aligned with future needs.
  • Supervise recruitment, training, and employee engagement initiatives.
  • Manage resource forecasting and capacity planning for various programs.
  • Cultivate a high-performance culture emphasizing innovation and professional growth.
  • Oversee departmental budgets, capital investments, and engineering infrastructure.

Benefits

  • Opportunities for professional development and career advancement.
  • Engagement in pioneering projects in space and robotics technology.
  • Supportive of continuous learning and innovative practices.
  • Participation in advanced engineering initiatives that leverage emerging technologies.
Full Job Description
About you:

Are you an experience people manager with a strong background in Systems Engineer. Do you have a passion for leading high-performing teams and driving technological innovation? If so, we want you to join our Brampton team.

Who We're Looking For:

We're seeking a Manager, Systems Engineering, to lead a team of systems engineers working on state-of-the-art space and robotics technology. If you have a strong background in systems engineering and a passion for people management, professional development, and career advancement, this role is for you.

The Manager of Systems Engineering is responsible for leading and developing the Systems Engineering organization to ensure the technical capability, capacity, and leadership required to successfully deliver the company's products and programs. The Manager provides strategic direction for the department, driving operational excellence, workforce planning, process maturity, and continuous improvement. Through the leadership of Supervisors, Team Leads, and technical staff, the Manager ensures the organization maintains the skills, tools, methodologies, and governance frameworks necessary to meet current commitments while positioning the department to support future business growth and strategic objectives.

In this role you will:

  • Lead and develop a team of Systems Engineers.
  • Establish departmental organizational structures, workforce strategies, and succession plans aligned with business objectives and future capability needs.
  • Oversee recruitment, employee development, engagement, retention, performance management, and leadership development.
  • Support department-wide resource forecasting, capacity planning, and workforce allocation to enable Programs, Product Development, R&D, and Business Development.
  • Ensure the organization maintains the skills, competencies, and technical expertise required to support current and future business needs.
  • Foster a high-performance culture that promotes innovation, professional growth, employee engagement, and continuous learning.
  • Oversee engineering facilities, processes, tools, and infrastructure required to support departmental and program execution.
  • Organize Systems Engineering participation in proposal development and bid reviews to ensure technical solutions and cost estimates align with customer needs, competitive positioning, and business strategy.
  • Oversee departmental operating and overhead budgets, annual forecasting, spending priorities, and capital investment planning.
  • Develop and approve business cases for strategic investments in tools, infrastructure, and capability development.
  • Establish departmental strategic priorities, objectives, and performance metrics aligned with organizational goals.
  • Lead continuous improvement, modernization, and transformation initiatives, including Digital Engineering, MBSE, AI-assisted engineering, and next-generation engineering practices.
  • Implement and promote advanced engineering tools, techniques, and procedures to improve organizational effectiveness and competitiveness.


Key Responsibilities:

People/Resource Management:


  • Lead and develop a Systems Engineering organization through Team Leads, and technical staff.
  • Establish workforce, succession, and organizational capability strategies aligned with current and future business needs.
  • Oversee recruitment, talent development, employee engagement, retention, and performance management.
  • Direct department-wide resource forecasting, capacity planning, and workforce allocation across Programs, Product Development, R&D, and Business Development.
  • Foster a high-performance culture that promotes innovation, professional growth, and continuous learning.
  • Oversee departmental facilities, engineering tools, infrastructure, budgets, and capital investments.


Functional Leadership & Governance:

  • Establish and maintain Systems Engineering policies, processes, procedures, standards, and governance frameworks.
  • Ensure consistent implementation of Systems Engineering practices across programs and products.
  • Supports compliance with quality, regulatory, contractual, security, and customer requirements.
  • Monitor departmental performance metrics, quality objectives, audit findings, and corrective actions to drive continuous improvement.
  • Ensure adherence to company policies, processes, and health and safety requirements.


Technical Leadership:

  • Provide strategic technical leadership for the Systems Engineering organization.
  • Accountable for the establishment, maintenance, and evolution of Systems Engineering methodologies, standards, competency frameworks, and technical governance across the organization. Utilize subject matter experts to support decision making.
  • Identify organizational capability gaps and lead initiatives to strengthen technical competencies and engineering excellence.
  • Sponsor the adoption of emerging engineering methods, tools, and technologies to improve competitiveness and execution.
  • Support identification, escalation, and mitigation strategies for significant technical, operational, and organizational risks.


Business Leadership:

  • Organize Systems Engineering participation in proposal development, bid reviews, customer engagements, and strategic pursuits.
  • Partner with Engineering, Programs, Product Development, Operations, and Business Development leadership to align organizational priorities, resource requirements, and technical capabilities.
  • Support protection of intellectual property, including patents, trade secrets, and proprietary information.
  • Ensures the proper application of the company's collective agreements.
  • Establish departmental strategic priorities and lead transformation initiatives related to Digital Engineering, MBSE, AI-assisted engineering, and operational excellence.


Requirements:

  • Minimum 10 years of engineering and engineering leadership experience (organizational planning, budgeting, workforce development, performance management and mentorship), preferably in the space industry or a related field.
  • Experience in workforce planning, budgeting, organizational leadership, and strategic planning.
  • Demonstrated success implementing engineering process improvements and organizational transformation initiatives.
  • Demonstrated leadership, conflict resolution, and people skills.
  • Strong understanding of systems engineering lifecycle processes, requirements management, systems architecture, verification and validation, and modern engineering practices.
  • Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related discipline.


Comments/Special Considerations:

Successful candidates must obtain and hold security clearance at the reliability status level, and pass security assessment for the Controlled Goods Program (CGP).

The compensation range for this position is $102,000 - $160,000 annually. The specific compensation offered will be based on the qualifications and experience of the successful candidate.

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