The Opportunity:
The Senior Applications Engineer role is an opportunity to serve as a technical leader and subject matter expert, supporting advanced defense systems with a specialization in simulation, timing, or navigation. This role is pivotal in driving our success in selling, implementing, and supporting our R-PNT and GNSS simulation products. This role extends to leading product integrations, complex product planning & deployments, supporting customers nationwide while also mentoring Applications Engineers. The ideal candidate will be an experienced engineer who wants to deepen technical impact, influence best practices and help grow a generation of technical experts.
How you will contribute:
- Provide technical assistance for sales activities including identifying current and future customer requirements through interactive discussions, implementations and configuration support
- Provide prompt product, service, and technical information in response to customer inquiries.
- Collaborate with Sales & Program Management to grow the business while ensuring high customer satisfaction
- Capture and relay customer insights to Engineering and Product Management to ensure seamless deployments and timely resolution of complex challenges as well influence future roadmap decisions and design improvements
- Organize and deliver pre-sales product demonstrations and training sessions on systems understanding & performance, proper system operation, maintenance and safety protocols for current and prospective customers, as well as sales and new team members
- Perform on-site demonstrations, training, evaluations, testing, installation, troubleshooting, and system integration.
- Diagnose complex technical issues and develop solutions to maintain system uptime and reliability
- Oversee the development of technical assets, such as demo environments, Proof of Concept initiatives, and enablement materials, to enhance internal and customer-facing resources
- Collaborate closely with the local & remote Applications Engineering team to support advanced integration and testing, leading hands-on integration and testing efforts with software and hardware designs to verify system performance, reliability, and compliance
- Serve as a primary escalation point for critical/high-visibility technical engagements, such as complex customer infrastructure, complex troubleshooting, Proof of Concept initiatives, pre-deployment planning and high-stakes demonstrations
- Contributes to process improvement and helping define standards, documentation, and training materials for Applications team
- Provide advanced technical training and support to local & field Applications Engineers, enabling them to train additional technical experts
- Serves as an informal leader and mentor within Applications, supporting technical growth and knowledge development across the team
- Travel nationwide to provide onsite support and execution, not limited to a single region
- Acts as the Technical Subject Matter Expert (SME) for assigned products/technologies (e.g., simulation, timing, and navigation)
- Document testing & field activities, prepare reports, and maintain accurate records for compliance and quality assurance.
What you bring to Safran Federal Systems:
- Bachelor's degree in engineering, computer science, or a related field preferred. A combination of education and experience will be considered.
- Minimum 5 years of experience in a customer-facing technical role (e.g., Applications Engineering, Sales Engineering, Field Support), within a defense or high-reliability environment is preferred
- Proven proficiency in GPS/GNSS receivers, simulators, inertial navigation fundamentals, or oscillator holdover timing
- Strong background in conceptualizing, planning, and delivering technical solutions
- Demonstrates strong technical judgment and decision-making in high-pressure environments, ensuring mission-critical systems are supported effectively
- Brings a collaborative, proactive mindset, bridging, applications, engineering, programming and product teams to deliver reliable customer outcomes
- Prior military experience or intimate knowledge of US Defense industry preferred
- Experience with lab environments, hardware testing, and multi-sensor PNT integration
- Ability to innovate, be agile, independently manage tasks, and collaborate effectively in a team setting
- Excellent communication skills for interfacing with diverse audiences and driving technical discussions
- Demonstrated track record of progressive leadership.
- Ability to obtain and maintain a secret level security clearance. An active clearance is preferred but not required.
- Ability & willingness to travel, up to 25% within the USA, to support on-site demonstrations, integrations, trade shows, and customer engagements as needed
- Demonstrated track record utilizing superior customer service skills to advance sales capabilities to external customers
- Ability to handle complex problems with analytical thinking skills and engage with
Please note this description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice
