Director of Advanced Design

Anduril Anduril · Defense · Costa Mesa, CA · Air Dominance & Strike : Air Dominance & Strike Hardware : Air Vehicle Configuration

Director of Advanced Design for a defense technology company, overseeing conceptual design for Group 5 Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) and advanced missile platforms. Focuses on mission analysis, requirements development, and architecture selection, acting as a technical expert for early-phase pursuits and customer interactions. Requires strong leadership and deep understanding of aerospace hardware disciplines and system lifecycle development.

What you'd actually do

  1. Direct the end-to-end conceptual design process for UAV and missile platforms, including mission analysis, configuration trade studies, requirements development, and architecture selection.
  2. Serve as a technical expert for early-phase pursuits, shaping concept white-papers, customer proposals, and technology roadmaps, partnering with the chief engineering team.
  3. Collaborate with internal stakeholders to ensure alignment with technical feasibility, affordability, and customer mission needs.
  4. Support direct interactions with customers to translate mission requirements into design concepts.
  5. Act as a senior technical decision-maker, applying engineering intuition and prior experience to ensure effective design paths and avoid costly development missteps.

Skills

Required

  • conceptual or preliminary design of aerospace systems
  • technical leadership
  • aerospace hardware disciplines (aerodynamics, structures, propulsion integration, or electrical systems)
  • system architecture
  • mission requirements
  • full product lifecycle development
  • leading high-performance engineering teams
  • communication
  • collaboration

Nice to have

  • Advanced degree in Aerospace, Mechanical, Electrical Engineering or related field
  • rapid prototyping
  • iterative development environments
  • advanced design tools
  • simulation
  • test equipment

What the JD emphasized

  • technical leadership roles
  • technical leadership skills