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CesiumAstro is seeking a Senior Engineering Manager for RF Hardware to lead a growing team developing high-performance electronics for satellite, UAV, and launch vehicle communication systems. This is a deeply technical management role focused on leading 8–12 RF hardware engineers (distributed across Austin, Westminster, and El Segundo) while maintaining hands-on technical involvement through design reviews, mentorship, and occasional direct contribution to high-risk designs.
You will be accountable for technical quality and on-time delivery of RF hardware from architecture through production, including phased arrays, beamforming networks, RF front-ends, and software-defined radios. Success means your team consistently delivers high-quality, manufacturable hardware on schedule; engineering quality improves as the organization scales; teams benefit from shared engineering practices and reusable components; and you build a stronger engineering organization with emerging technical and people leaders.
Key responsibilities include:
- Maintain technical integrity for board-level RF electronics development across the company
- Establish and scale RF hardware development processes, including signal chain design, simulation, and PCB standards for dense, high-layer-count boards
- Conduct detailed technical reviews and mentorship through architecture and design reviews, identifying risks early and ensuring cross-disciplinary SME engagement (digital, RF, power, firmware, mechanical)
- Occasionally contribute directly to RF designs to close gaps in high-risk or schedule-critical programs
- Lead or support complex debug efforts involving RF electronics
- Ensure designs are buildable and testable at scale using DFM and DFT best practices
- Drive disciplined handoff from engineering to manufacturing through collaboration with manufacturing engineering, supply chain, and production test
- Ensure designs meet quality, reliability, and scalability requirements for aerospace and defense environments
- Partner with Supply Chain on component availability, lifecycle risk mitigation, and cost awareness
- Drive design reuse, modular architectures, and platform commonality across products
- Build, scale, and lead a high-performing RF hardware engineering team
- Lead hiring, performance management, career development, coaching, and succession planning
- Provide one-on-one coaching and deep technical guidance
- Plan and manage budgets for staffing, lab equipment, capital equipment, and design/simulation software
- Maintain strong working relationships across Engineering, Quality, and Operations
Requirements:
- Bachelor's degree or higher in Electrical Engineering (required)
- Minimum 9 years of direct board-level RF hardware engineering experience, preferably in aerospace environments
- 2–5 years of small-team technical leadership or engineering management experience preferred but not required
- Demonstrated deep expertise in RF board design, including strong working knowledge of digital and power electronics
- Experience supporting design for manufacturability (DFM), design for test (DFT), and transition from development to production
- Proven ability to conduct rigorous technical reviews, mentor engineers, and communicate effectively across disciplines
- Ability to balance rigor with execution speed in a fast-paced development environment
- Proficiency with RF simulation and analysis tools such as Pathwave System Design (SystemVue), RF Synthesis (Genesys), and HFSS
- Deep hands-on experience with schematic capture and PCB layout tools such as Altium
- Strong technical and non-technical communication skills
Note: Applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, conditional resident, asylee, refugee, or eligible to obtain required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State due to space technology export regulations.
