Director of Engineering, Rocket Motor Systems

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.

ABOUT THE TEAM

The Anduril Rocket Motor Systems (RMS) team is on a mission to build next generation solid rocket motors for a safer, more connected world. To achieve our vision of becoming a large-volume provider of tactical rocket motors, we will develop differentiated products and services that maximize our customers’ capabilities, and we will establish and maintain a reputation of Quality and Reliability.

ABOUT THE JOB

As the Director of Engineering, your role is to provide strategic oversight and tactical management for our engineering teams. In this critical leadership position, you will be responsible for developing new rocket motor products and enabling the scaling of high-volume rocket motor production. You will ensure rigorous engineering development processes are in place, driving the consistent delivery of superior quality products. This role guarantees the fulfillment of manufacturing's capacity commitments while advancing digital tools and methodologies to improve design, analysis, and execution. Success in this role requires an innovative and adaptable approach to solving complex design and manufacturing challenges in a highly dynamic environment.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

• Own the tactical execution of product development work, ensuring the timely delivery of high-quality engineering products.
• Cultivate a proactive, responsive team culture emphasizing ownership, quality, and appropriate engineering rigor (balancing speed with precision).
• Set clear goals, objectives, and performance expectations for teams and individuals; conduct regular performance reviews and provide constructive feedback.
• Manage and prioritize team resource allocation to effectively support multiple product development programs, balancing competing priorities.
• Recruit, hire, and retain top-tier engineering talent, providing coaching, mentorship, and career development opportunities.
• Ensure alignment between product and technical roadmaps and overall business objectives.
• Establish and champion a Design Engineering Center of Excellence, driving the creation, documentation, and adoption of engineering best practices and processes across functional areas.
• Identify and advocate for new tools, technologies, and capabilities (e.g., advanced simulation software, novel test equipment, material characterization techniques) to support future product design needs.
• Establish and monitor Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to measure team effectiveness, responsiveness, and the impact of process improvements.
• Serve as the primary escalation point for technical roadblocks, resource conflicts, and complex interdisciplinary challenges.
• Be ultimately accountable for the quality, accuracy, and timeliness of all team deliverables, including design and analysis reports, test plans, material specifications, and technical recommendations.
• Ensure critical knowledge is captured and institutionalized by overseeing the documentation of design, analysis, test results, and material data to shorten future design cycles.
• Collaborate with the Director of Chief Engineering to communicate portfolio strategy, major product milestones, accomplishments, and significant risks to executive leadership.
• Build and maintain strong strategic partnerships with senior leaders in Program/Technical Program Management, Manufacturing, and Supply Chain for smooth, end-to-end product delivery.
• Proactively communicate the portfolio's execution status, resource constraints, and key successes to all stakeholders, ensuring alignment on priorities and deliverables.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical, Industrial, or Electrical Engineering (or related technical field).
• Proven experience (typically 8+ years) in engineering leadership and management roles, with a focus on end-to-end technical delivery.
• Demonstrated experience in developing and scaling complex hardware products, specifically rocket motors or similar high-volume, high-precision systems.
• Strong background in establishing and optimizing rigorous engineering development processes, quality assurance, configuration management, and V&V strategies.
• Exceptional leadership skills with a track record of building, mentoring, and inspiring high-performing engineering teams.
• Excellent leadership, communication, interpersonal, and project management, and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic environment with an innovative and adaptable approach to complex problem-solving.
• Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearance.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience with solid rocket motors.

US Salary Range

$219,000—$290,000 USD

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including:

Benefits

At Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you’re supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits.

Protecting Yourself from Recruitment Scams

Anduril is committed to maintaining the integrity of our Talent acquisition process and the security of our candidates. We've observed a rise in sophisticated phishing and fraudulent schemes where individuals impersonate Anduril representatives, luring job seekers with false interviews or job offers. These scammers often attempt to extract payment or sensitive personal information.

To ensure your safety and help you navigate your job search with confidence, please keep the following critical points in mind:

• No Financial Requests: Anduril will never solicit payment or demand personal financial details (such as banking information, credit card numbers, or social security numbers) at any stage of our hiring process. Our legitimate recruitment is entirely free for candidates.

• Please always verify communications:
  • Direct from Anduril: If you receive an email from one of our recruiters, it will only come from an @anduril.com address.
  • Via Agency Partner: If contacted by a recruiting agency for an Anduril role, their email will clearly identify their agency. If you suspect any suspicious activity, please verify the agency's authenticity by reaching out to contact@anduril.com.

• Exercise Caution with Unsolicited Outreach: If you receive any communication that appears suspicious, contains grammatical errors, or makes unusual requests, do not engage. Always confirm the sender's email domain is @anduril.com before providing any personal information or clicking on links.

• What to Do If You Suspect Fraud: Should you encounter any questionable or fraudulent outreach claiming to be from Anduril, please report it immediately to contact@anduril.com. Your proactive caution is invaluable in protecting your personal information and upholding the security and trustworthiness of our recruitment efforts.

Data Privacy

To view Anduril's candidate data privacy policy, please visit https://anduril.com/applicant-privacy-notice/.

By submitting your application, you consent to Anduril Industries using a third-party service provider to conduct pre-employment risk, integrity, and due diligence screening and assessing potential risks as part of your application process. This third-party service provider provides risk-intelligence services that may include analysis of sanctions and watchlists, adverse media, public-record information, and other lawful open-source or commercial data sources. This third-party service provider does not act as a consumer reporting agency. Use of this provider helps to ensure compliance with applicable laws and protect technology, intellectual property, and organizational security.