SlipstreamJobs tracks this role from the company's public career site. Apply directly on the employer's site.
Gecko Robotics is seeking a Product Strategist in Aeromechanical Engineering to support U.S. Navy manufacturing programs. This role combines hands-on aircraft engineering with customer-facing technical leadership, working at the intersection of Gecko's wall-climbing robotics, sensors, and AI-powered data platform with defense aerospace customers.
You will serve as a peer to senior customer and stakeholder engineering leadership, translating their needs into practical solutions. Your work will span two primary areas: (1) program execution (~67% of time) supporting a major defense aircraft program through reverse engineering, structural design, GD&T automation, and related workflows; and (2) broader aerospace product direction and go-to-market support (~33% of time).
Key responsibilities include:
**Engineering Execution:** Provide hands-on aircraft engineering support including CAD model creation and review, drawing and scan data interpretation, and assessment of geometry, tolerances, materials, and design intent. Translate customer requirements and technical standards into clear engineering and software requirements. Own assigned technical work packages including scope, schedule, risk, and quality management.
**Methods Development & Qualification:** Develop and qualify novel analytical methodologies, design tools, and engineering toolchains. Build and defend the technical case for using these methods with internal and external stakeholders including chief engineering, quality, and airworthiness functions.
**Customer Engagement & Technical Leadership:** Lead technical discussions with customer engineering teams, program offices, and primes. Clarify needs, resolve technical questions, and build confidence in Gecko's work. Use customer feedback to shape product priorities and support follow-on work.
**Product & Go-to-Market Support:** Contribute to aerospace product strategy through technical discovery, early concepts, demonstrations, and proposals.
**Coaching & Enablement:** Mentor team members in aircraft structures, engineering toolchains, design reviews, and customer processes.
Expect approximately 20% travel to customer and program sites. Regular in-office presence is expected as part of Gecko's in-person operating culture.
**Requirements:**
- B.S. in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering, or equivalent engineering experience
- 8+ years in aerospace mechanical design or structural engineering, including hands-on responsibility on new-build or modification aircraft programs
- Strong hands-on CAD skills and fluency across mechanical engineering toolchains (PLM/PDM, finite-element modeling)
- Strong command of aircraft structures, GD&T, metrology, tolerance stack-ups, and design conventions
- Experience developing new analytical methods, design tools, or engineering approaches and carrying them through validation and formal acceptance
- Fluency in aircraft development lifecycle including requirements, design, and related reviews (SRR, SDR, PDR, CDR)
- Demonstrated ability to scope technical work, make tradeoffs, and deliver to schedule
- Practical software fluency and ability to work effectively with software engineers
- Eligibility to access export-controlled information
- Must qualify as a "U.S. person" (U.S. citizen, national, lawful permanent resident, refugee, or asylee) due to government contractual requirements
**Preferred Skills:**
- Advanced degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering
- Background at aerospace prime, tier 1 supplier, or government customer
- Experience with applied R&D or technical proposals; familiarity with government contracting
- Eligibility for security clearance
- Experience with aircraft materials, manufacturing processes, and non-destructive testing (NDT)
- Composite structures experience
- Reverse engineering, digital-twin, or digital-engineering exposure
