Experience & Background

We are looking for someone with:

• A degree or equivalent experience in Systems, Aerospace, Electronic, Mechanical, Software Engineering, Robotics, Physics, or a related technical discipline.
• Significant engineering experience within complex multidisciplinary product development.
• Demonstrable experience leading cross-functional engineering teams or engineering functions.
• Strong technical credibility and the ability to operate effectively with senior engineers and technical specialists.
• Experience developing autonomous systems, UAVs, UxVs, robotics, or other intelligent electromechanical products.
• Experience within defence, aerospace, robotics, autonomous systems, or another safety/mission-critical environment.
• Experience delivering products combining hardware, software, sensors, communications, and control systems.
• Strong understanding of systems engineering principles, including requirements, architecture, interfaces, integration, and verification.
• Experience taking products through physical integration, test, and evaluation rather than purely software or desk-based development.
• Strong engineering delivery experience, including planning, prioritisation, resource allocation, technical risk, and programme execution.
• Experience working within a start-up, scale-up, or rapidly growing technology organisation, where priorities evolve quickly and leaders are expected to operate with significant autonomy.
• Experience building teams, developing engineering capability, and improving engineering ways of working.
• Strong communication, leadership, and stakeholder-management skills.

Particularly Relevant Experience

Experience in one or more of the following would be advantageous but not essential:

• UAV (or UxV) development and testing.
• Autonomous navigation, guidance, and control.
• Robotics and autonomous platforms.
• GNC, flight-control systems, or autopilots.
• Sensors, sensor fusion, computer vision, or AI/ML-enabled systems.
• RF communications, datalinks, or GNSS/GNSS-denied navigation.
• Embedded electronics and software.
• Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE).
• Hardware-in-the-loop or software-in-the-loop simulation.
• Defence product development, qualification, or certification.
• Transitioning products from prototype through NPI and low-rate production.
• Scaling engineering organisations through periods of rapid growth.
• Establishing engineering processes and governance within an early-stage or scale-up environment.

Personal Attributes

The successful candidate will be:

• A hands-on engineering leader who remains close to the technology and the engineering team.
• Comfortable operating with incomplete information and making pragmatic, well-reasoned decisions.
• Able to move confidently between detailed technical issues and wider programme, product, and business considerations.
• Highly collaborative and capable of bringing different engineering disciplines together around a common objective.
• Delivery-focused without introducing unnecessary bureaucracy or compromising appropriate engineering rigour.
• Comfortable challenging assumptions, making difficult decisions, and resolving complex technical or organisational issues.
• Able to create clarity and structure within a rapidly evolving environment.
• Able to motivate and lead teams.
• Proactive, adaptable, and effective in a fast-paced scale-up.
• Adaptable & Resilient: Stays calm and focused under pressure, adapting their approach as challenges arise.
• Motivated by building both high-performance products and a high-performance engineering organisation.

Security and Eligibility Requirement

Due to the nature of the work with the UK MOD, applicants must be a British Citizen (or Dual UK national with British citizenship) and eligible for UK Security Clearance (SC).

General Information

We believe in the value of working together in person and expect team members to be office-based for the majority of the working week. At the same time, we take a flexible pragmatic approach to working patterns, including start and finish times and remote working, to support a healthy work-life balance while meeting the needs of the team and project. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team where everyone is treated with respect and has the opportunity to contribute and succeed. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and are focused on creating a working environment where different perspectives, experiences, and ideas are valued.