Vice President of Engineering

Surlamer’ s affiliate, a venture‑backed aerospace and defense technology company, is looking to recruit a Vice President of Engineering. The startup company designs and manufactures autonomous UAV systems for commercial use and for military mission‑critical logistics. This position requires operating at the intersection of mechanical engineering, robotics, embedded systems, and autonomy in high‑reliability environments.

You will serve as both an external technical leader, working with customers, partners, and the Board, and an internal execution leader, guiding product design through shop‑floor troubleshooting, shaping the technical roadmap, and delivering mission‑ready UAV systems.

Engineering Leadership & Strategy

• Set and execute engineering vision, structure, and strategy across mechanical, electrical, embedded, and flight software
• Design and communicate the long‑term engineering roadmap to executive leadership and the Board
• Build and lead high‑performing teams with clear accountability and technical standards

Technical Program Management & Execution

• Oversee end‑to‑end engineering program execution, including planning, resourcing, scheduling, and milestone delivery
• Establish and track engineering KPIs for team and program performance
• Own configuration management, design reviews, change control, and engineering documentation
• Provide senior technical direction across UAV structures, propulsion, sensors, avionics, and embedded and flight software
• Operate hands‑on as needed in CAD, PCB design, and PX4 flight control environments
• Lead system integration, RAMS (FMEA, fault tree, reliability), sensor and payload integration, and test, validation, and certification readiness

Customer, Partner & Board Engagement

• Serve as the primary technical representative with customers, partners, and the Board
• Communicate technical strategy, status, risks, and tradeoffs and lead resolution of technical issues and evolving requirements

• Advanced degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Robotics, or a closely related field
• 8+ years of engineering experience in aerospace, defense, robotics, or high‑reliability autonomous systems
• 5+ years of direct engineering leadership experience managing multidisciplinary teams and programs from design through deployment
• Strong communication skills and experience interfacing with customers and Boards in high‑stakes environments

• UAV systems including mechanical structures, propulsion, and sensors
• Electrical systems and PCB design
• Embedded software and flight control systems such as PX4, C++, and RTOS

• Sensor and payload integration including radios, cameras, GPS, magnetometers, and IMUs
• Technical program management including milestone planning, resource tracking, and cross‑functional execution
• Configuration management and version control for hardware and software systems
• RAMS analyses including FMEA, fault tree analysis, and reliability modeling
• KPI development and engineering team performance tracking

• Advanced degree or continued technical training
• Familiarity with CAD, Altium, PX4, and aerospace test and certification workflows
• Experience with Development (Dev) through security (Sec) to operations (Ops) Dev Sec Ops  and automated development pipelines
• Understanding of commercial UAV markets and regulatory frameworks including FAA, FCC, CE, and UL
• Cloud integration experience, such as AWS, Azure, or SAP S/4
  
  HANA

• $200K per year, plus equity participation