Mechanical Hardware Engineering Manager

Key Responsibilities and Tasks

• Lead Mechanical Hardware Development: Manage the end-to-end hardware development lifecycle, ensuring alignment with project and system requirements, dependencies, and co-engineering activities. Embed and drive key mechanical engineering processes and best practices (e.g., DFx, DFMEA) while ensuring compliance with company standards.
• Develop the Engineering Environment: Tailor mechanical engineering processes, tools, and practices to meet project and business needs.
• Team & Resource Management: Lead the day-to-day activities of a team of engineers, allocating and prioritising work, managing resources across projects, and ensuring delivery against cost, schedule, and milestone commitments.
• Architecture & Planning: Collaborate with Technical Authorities and stakeholders to define system architecture, identify resource requirements, and develop detailed delivery plans.
• Work Package & Bid Management: Act as Work Package Manager when required, leading cross-functional delivery, bid generation, estimating activities, and providing mechanical engineering consultancy.
• Technical Leadership: Provide technical guidance, manage risks and challenges, and lead investigations, reviews, fault-finding, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with systems, electronics, software, safety, and other disciplines to develop effective engineering solutions.
• People Development: Support the growth of the wider mechanical engineering team through coaching, mentoring, performance and development discussions, peer reviews, and process improvements.

About You

At Thales, we are committed to equal opportunities and welcome all talented individuals to consider joining our team. So even if you don't match every statement below but feel you have some of the experience, knowledge or skills needed for this role, we encourage you to apply. It will take all of us working together to deliver solutions to the world’s most critical challenges.

• Acquired a Bachelor's or master’s degree in mechanical engineering (or equivalent higher-level qualification) with proven experience leading mechanical design and engineering teams to deliver complex projects and programmes.
• Proven expertise across the full mechanical product lifecycle, from bid and concept development through design, integration, qualification, verification, validation, and in-service support, with a strong understanding of engineering lifecycle processes.
• Demonstrated success in delivering innovative technical solutions while balancing cost, schedule, quality, and risk, with the confidence to challenge existing approaches and influence engineering processes and ways of working.
• Proven ability to manage multiple projects, resources, and stakeholders simultaneously, providing technical oversight, governance, assurance, and audit support to ensure successful delivery outcomes.
• Demonstrated strong collaboration, communication, and customer engagement skills, with experience working effectively across multidisciplinary teams and internal and external stakeholders.
• Proven experience selecting and implementing engineering technologies, tools, and methods, including Mechanical CAD platforms such as CATIA, Creo, or equivalent, and contributing to the development of engineering policies, standards, and best practices.
• Demonstrated commitment to people and organisational development through mentoring and coaching engineers, with knowledge of structured engineering management systems (e.g., Chorus 2.0 or ISO 9001-compliant processes), Lean and Agile methodologies, and ideally Chartered Engineer status and experience leading geographically dispersed teams.

If you're an experienced Mechanical Engineering leader looking to combine technical excellence, people leadership, and strategic influence in a role where your work truly matters, we'd love to hear from you!

Security Clearance Requirement: Due to the nature of the work that we do at Thales, many of our roles are subject to security restrictions. This role requires Security Clearance (SC). It would be advantageous if currently held, however, if not currently held, it is a requirement that the successful applicant undergo, achieve, and maintain SC Clearance prior to commencing employment. To be eligible for full SC, you generally need to have resided in the UK for the last 5 years. In some circumstances, a minimum of 3 years’ residence in the UK over the last 5 years may be accepted, with additional overseas checks. Please visit the UKSV website for further guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels.

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At Thales, we ensure equal opportunities, pay and working conditions for all. The benefits we offer include private medical insurance, buying or selling annual leave, cycle to work schemes, employee discounts, paid volunteering day, stocks and shares, annual bonus and much more depending on the role. Read more about our benefits here. We are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued for who they are and the unique strengths they bring. Discover more about our programmes, employee networks, wellbeing policies, and inclusive features here.

If this role isn’t quite right for you, we encourage you to join our talent community where your details will be shared with our recruitment teams for other potential opportunities. Join the Talent Community here.

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