Location: This role is based onsite at our Louisville, CO office.
Travel: Up to 10%, domestic or international.
Job ID: 578
The RoleAs a Staff Electrical Hardware Design Engineer, you will take ownership of full-cycle PCBA designs, from early concept to flight readiness. You will work cross-functionally with RF, mechanical, software, FPGA/SoC, and operations teams to bring high-reliability, space-ready electronics to orbit. You will guide the Electrical Engineering team on special topics and present across disciplines to help facilitate ideas, product readiness, and conduct reviews.
Responsibilities- Own the full electrical design lifecycle for complex spaceflight hardware: Concept of operations, requirements engineering, schematic capture, layout, bring-up, test, and manufacturing handoff
- Develop robust analog/digital designs for mission-critical systems under environmental and performance constraints
- Organize collaborative cross disciplinary design reviews sharing feedback and shaping solutions with a team of experienced engineers
- Provide critical input to schedule planning, hardware requirements, and process improvements
- Lead board-level bring-up and debugging, integrating firmware/software/FPGA with embedded systems
- Define test plans and verification strategies that meet flight readiness requirements
- Play a key role in scaling up our manufacturing facility bringing hardware from prototype to low-volume production
- Collaborate across teams- mechanical, RF, software, FPGA/SoC, and systems to ensure seamless integration
- Mentor early-career engineers contributing to internal process improvements and elevating the overall quality of the team
- Engage with external vendors and CMs, ensuring delivery quality, resolving DFM/DFT issues, and ensuring on-time delivery
- Drive failure analysis and root-cause investigations across flight or test anomalies
What Success Looks Like- You consistently deliver flight-quality hardware on schedule with minimal oversight
- You proactively identify and articulate system-level risks and drive mitigations early
- You communicate across hardware/software and cross-functional gaps with confidence and clarity
- You make thoughtful trade-offs in constrained environments and justify them with data
- You show curiosity about advanced areas like architecture optimization or radiation mitigation, even if they're outside your scope for now
- You exhibit advanced, wide-ranging experience in electrical engineering, using in-depth professional knowledge
- You get things done, align with stakeholders, and document concisely
Qualifications - Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering or related field
- 8+ years of experience designing and debugging PCBAs
- Proficiency in Altium Designer (or similar ECAD tools)
- Hands-on experience with lab instruments (oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, power analyzers, etc.)
- Solid understanding of digital buses (I2C, SPI, UART, RS422, CAN, USB, PCIe, Ethernet etc.)
- Familiarity with board bring-up, test planning, and design verification workflows
- Experience interacting with contract manufacturers, supporting DFM reviews, and resolving production issues
- Strong documentation habits and organizational skills
Required Qualification- Master's degree in electrical engineering or related field
- Experience designing for harsh environments (thermal, vacuum, vibration, etc.)
- Familiarity with high-speed design or impedance-controlled layouts
- Basic scripting or automation in Python or C for hardware test workflows
- Exposure to radiation effects and mitigation in electronic design
- Familiarity with EMI/EMC design practices and validation
- Familiarity with satellite electrical systems engineering (propulsion, (EPS) Electrical Power System, (GNSS) Global Navigation Satellite System, (ADCS) Attitude Determination and Control System, space robotics, etc)
- To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), Capella Employees must be a U.S. citizen, lawful U.S. permanent resident (i.e., current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State and/or the U.S. Department of Commerce, as applicable. Learn more about ITAR here.
Compensation The approximate base salary range for this position is $145,920 - $181,949. The total compensation package includes base salary, bonus, equity, and a range of benefits available on our career site.
Benefits/Perks In addition to an opportunity to take part in an innovative, collaborative and fast-growing business with a highly motivated and skilled team, we also take pride in taking care of our employees. Here are just a few ways that we show our appreciation:
- We provide extensive medical coverage, including strong vision and dental plans, flexible spending accounts, and additional supplemental health options.
- Stock option grants for new hires
- 401K Plan to invest in your long-term retirement goals
- Generous Parental Leave
- Paid Flexible Time Off Policy
- Lifestyle Spending Account
- Commuter & Parking Benefits
- Mental Health Resources
- Monthly Phone Stipend
- Daily provided lunches and stocked kitchens.
- Furry friends? We've got you covered with dog-friendly work environment & them with pet insurance options
