Sr. Manager, Hardware Engineering

AeroVironment • Pottstown, PA

22h • $139,371 - $197,400

About The Position

The Sr. Manager, Hardware and Systems Engineering is a pivotal leadership role responsible for the physical architecture and cross-functional integration of VideoRay’s world-class underwater robotic systems. As a key member of the Engineering Leadership team, you will translate our strategic technology roadmap into high-performance reality, ensuring our Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) remain the most capable and portable systems in a competitive global market. You will lead a multidisciplinary team of Mechanical, Electrical, and Systems Engineers, fostering a culture of technical excellence, rapid prototyping, and rigorous validation. Your mission is to scale the organization’s capabilities to meet the demanding needs of our Commercial and Defense customers.

Requirements

• Experience: 12+ years of progressive engineering experience, with at least 5+ years in a formal leadership or management role overseeing multidisciplinary hardware and systems teams.
• Education: BS in Electrical, Mechanical, Aerospace, or other Engineering Disciplines (Master’s degree preferred).
• Industry Background: Proven experience in Aerospace, Defense, or Subsea/Robotics hardware development. Familiarity with ruggedized electronics and systems operating in harsh environments is highly preferred.
• Lifecycle Expertise: Demonstrated success taking complex hardware from initial concept through design, integration, environmental testing (Vibration, Thermal, Pressure), and into high-rate production.
• Process Knowledge: Strong understanding of Systems Engineering principles (requirements traceability, risk management, and interface control).
• Systems Thinker: Proven ability to transform "tribal knowledge" into scalable, documented processes and formal engineering procedures.
• Pragmatic Problem Solver: Experience managing the balance between rapid innovation and the necessity of disciplined documentation and configuration management.
• "Player-Coach" Mentality: Willingness to roll up sleeves to assist the team in solving immediate technical hurdles while simultaneously building the long-term systems to prevent them.
• Communication: Exceptional ability to translate complex technical challenges into actionable business insights for executive leadership.
• Citizenship: U.S. Citizenship is required due to defense contract requirements

Responsibilities

• Leadership & Talent Development: Lead, mentor, and inspire a high-performing team. Drive professional growth through active coaching, ensuring the team remains at the forefront of subsea engineering innovation.
• Operational Excellence: Develop and implement standardized engineering tools and "best-in-class" processes (CAD/EDA, JAMA, PDM, PLM, Simulation) to streamline the transition from concept to production.
• Strategic Resource Management: Manage staffing levels, budgets, and resource allocation to align with the Annual Operating Plan (AOP) and research, development, and production goals.
• Agile Project Oversight: Drive Agile methodologies within hardware development to ensure rapid iteration, sustaining product support, and timely execution of complex engineering programs.
• Technical Stewardship: Provide deep technical guidance in the design of pressure-tolerant housings, power distribution, propulsion systems, and sensor integration.
• Operational Maturity: Lead the "formalization of the informal" by resolving technical debt, legacy drawing inaccuracies, and undocumented design decisions.
• Process Standardization: Establish rigorous process and procedures for engineering changes (ECO/ECN), version control, and peer reviews to ensure scalable, production-ready quality.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Serve as the primary bridge between Business Leads, Product, Engineering, Production, and External Stakeholders to ensure customer requirements are met with precision and reliability.
• Maturity of Disciplines: Continuous improvement of hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing, systems integration, and environmental qualification.
• Other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• AV offers an excellent benefits package including medical, dental vision, 401K with company matching, a 9/80 work schedule and a paid holiday shutdown.
• For more information about our company benefit offerings please visit: http://www.avinc.com/myavbenefits.
• We also encourage you to review our company website at http://www.avinc.com to learn more about us.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager