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Salary: USD 163,500 - 245,250 / annual
Rocket Lab is seeking a Principal Program Manager to serve as the program authority for one of their most sensitive next-generation mission platforms. Based at Rocket Lab's global headquarters in Long Beach, CA, you will own the technical roadmap and all major programmatic decisions from prototype through flight qualification and into responsive production.
Key Responsibilities:
- Command the full lifecycle of highly maneuverable, time-critical mission platforms from blank-sheet concept through qualification, responsive production, and flight operations
- Lead multiple active programs simultaneously, making sound architectural decisions with Chief Engineers and navigating complex trade-offs in guidance and control, autonomy, and propulsion systems
- Build and develop an engineering culture where strong people take smart risks and the best ideas win; coach and develop the next generation of program and team leaders
- Own program P&L on a Firm Fixed Price basis: build accurate forecasts, hit revenue and margin milestones, prepare credible budgets, and make defensible Make/Buy decisions
- Manage high-stakes subcontracts and suppliers as strategic partners, protecting schedule and margin
- Synchronize cross-functional teams across hardware, software, guidance/navigation/control, and mission assurance to clear roadblocks and maintain speed and quality
- Serve as primary point of contact for assigned U.S. Government national security customers; partner with Business Development and Strategy on proposals and technical narratives
Rocket Lab's Space Systems team has enabled more than 1,700 missions, ranging from interplanetary exploration and in-space manufacturing to national security and defense initiatives. The team has built spacecraft, payloads, and components for missions to the Moon and Mars, working with partners including NASA, the Space Development Agency, and the U.S. Space Force.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in physics, math, science, or other technical discipline
- 12+ years of experience in the aerospace/space industry
- 8+ years of technical program management experience
- Active TS/SCI clearance (required)
- Depth in at least one of the following domains: prototype-to-flight transition (proven record of taking integrated hardware/software systems from early prototypes to fully qualified, flight-ready platforms); EO/IR and optical payloads (understanding of EO/IR sensing, optical payload architectures, or focal plane arrays); production engineering (familiarity with takt time, line-of-balance, design-for-manufacturing principles, and learning-curve economics); manufacturing risk reduction (experience identifying tooling, supply-chain, or yield risks and neutralizing them before they impact throughput); or advanced sensing and comms (understanding of RADAR, SAR, or advanced communication system architectures)
- Experience identifying technical, schedule, or supply-chain risk and neutralizing it before it impacts the mission
Nice-to-Have Qualifications:
- Production velocity playbook for transitioning low-volume prototypes into responsive production without sacrificing mission reliability
- Deep experience navigating National Security Space (NSS) and time-critical mission sets
- Demonstrated success negotiating, capturing, and executing large U.S. Government contracts
- Master's degree in engineering or related field
- Systems engineering fluency (trade studies, interface control, requirement integrity) and proficiency with Jira, Confluence, and ERP systems
Note: This position requires U.S. citizenship, lawful permanent residency, or eligible authorization under ITAR regulations. The role may involve prolonged periods of sitting, standing, walking, computer work, and occasional exposure to moderate levels of noise, dust, and fumes in production areas.
