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Salary: USD 175,000 - 210,000 / annual
Firestorm Labs, a Series A VC-backed defense technology company, is seeking an experienced Director of Quality to lead quality strategy and operations in San Diego. The company is building distributed, mission-adaptive unmanned systems and expeditionary manufacturing capabilities for defense customers.
In this leadership role, you will own Firestorm's quality management system and lead the organization toward AS9100 compliance and certification within your first 90 days. You will build and scale the quality organization from a small core into distinct functions: Quality Engineering, Supplier Quality, and Inspection. You will report to the VP of Manufacturing initially, with plans to establish an independent quality organization.
Key responsibilities include:
- Defining quality vision, objectives, and roadmap aligned with production ramp and business growth
- Building, hiring, and developing the quality team with clear growth paths
- Owning the complete AS9100 implementation, including document control, internal audits, management review, and certification audits
- Establishing supplier quality standards, qualification processes, audits, and performance monitoring
- Implementing closed-loop NCMR, MRB, and RCCA processes with verified root causes
- Partnering with engineering and manufacturing on quality-by-design initiatives (APQP, PFMEA, control plans, first article inspection)
- Serving as primary quality interface with defense customers, government representatives, and third-party auditors
- Defining and reporting quality KPIs (DPPM, first pass yield, cost of poor quality, CAR closure)
- Ensuring measurement systems (MSA, gage R&R) support production ramp and product evolution
- Leading customer source inspections, certification audits, and regulatory audits
- Driving continuous improvement culture across Operations, Supply Chain, and Engineering
The role involves up to 20% travel to domestic and international sites. Position is onsite at San Diego headquarters; relocation assistance available.
REQUIREMENTS:
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Industrial, Aerospace, Manufacturing, or related discipline), or 20+ years progressive experience in discipline
- U.S. Person status as defined by 22 CFR § 120.62 (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, asylee, or refugee) due to ITAR regulations
- 15+ years progressive quality experience in aerospace, defense, or precision manufacturing
- 5+ years leading quality teams, including managing engineers, inspectors, and/or managers
- Experience building and implementing AS9100 or equivalent quality management system from ground up through certification
- Experience leading AS9100 certification, customer, and/or regulatory audits
- Experience managing supplier quality programs (audits, SCARs, supplier development)
- Strong command of quality tools and methodologies: RCCA (8D, 5-Why, Fishbone), APQP, FMEA, control plans, SPC, MSA
- Excellent communication and executive presence; ability to influence cross-functional leaders, suppliers, and customers
- Security clearance eligibility (U.S. citizenship required to obtain and maintain)
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:
- AS9100 Lead Auditor certification
- ASQ Certified Manager of Quality/Organizational Excellence (CMQ/OE), Certified Quality Engineer (CQE), or Certified Quality Auditor (CQA)
- Six Sigma Black Belt or equivalent continuous improvement training
- Experience with DoD contract quality requirements and DCMA/regulatory agency audits
- Experience with unmanned systems, electromechanical assemblies, or mixed hardware/software builds
- Experience managing quality across multiple sites, including international locations
- Experience implementing digital quality tools, eQMS, or MES platforms
- Startup or high-growth company experience
