SlipstreamJobs tracks this role from the company's public career site. Apply directly on the employer's site.
Xona Space Systems is building Pulsar, an advanced satellite-based positioning and navigation system (PNT) infrastructure in Low Earth Orbit designed to provide centimeter-level precision globally. As Director of Flight Software Engineering, you will lead the embedded flight software organization responsible for the onboard software powering the Xona satellite bus and the growing Pulsar constellation.
You will own the complete flight software lifecycle: architecture design, team leadership, delivery execution, and operational support. Your responsibilities include leading and growing a team of embedded developers and verification & validation engineers; defining scalable onboard software architecture and interfaces in partnership with systems, avionics, payload, GNC, and ground segment teams; and owning end-to-end delivery from requirements through launch and on-orbit operations, including hardware-in-the-loop validation.
You will establish and continuously improve software development practices—configuration management, CI/CD pipelines, unit testing, code quality, and documentation—that scale with constellation growth and support over-the-air updates. You will drive quality, reliability, and process maturity by measuring team output against program commitments and implementing improvements that reduce risk and cost. You will also build a high-performing organization through hiring, coaching, individual development plans, and fostering a culture of ownership and technical excellence.
Minimum qualifications: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related STEM field; 10+ years of professional software engineering experience in embedded, real-time, or high-reliability systems; 3+ years of people leadership experience managing software engineers or technical leads; demonstrated experience leading software architecture and delivery for complex systems in aerospace, automotive, defense, or similar domains; hands-on background with modern software practices including CI/CD, configuration management, and automated testing.
Preferred qualifications include 5+ years developing or leading embedded/flight software in aerospace or space systems; direct experience taking satellite or spacecraft software from early design through launch and on-orbit operations; experience architecting or managing software for multi-satellite fleets with over-the-air updates and fault management; familiarity with real-time operating systems, space flight software frameworks (cFS, F´), C/C++, and hardware/software integration & test environments; and a track record of building high-reliability processes in fast-moving hardware/software organizations.
U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent resident status required to comply with space technology export regulations.
