Technical Program Manager Principal - Software Development

Application close date:

Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis until the requisition is closed.

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight! 

This role is part of Enterprise Technology (ET), where we’re developing the digital infrastructure needed to build the road to space, with an emphasis on digital capabilities required to advance Blue Origin’s mission. Enterprise Technology is the center of excellence for digital technology at Blue Origin, providing oversight and governance to align technology and business strategies.

In this role, you will lead and coordinate the release and deployment of large-scale systems to a variety of operational sites. You will manage internal and external stakeholders across engineering, supply chain, safety, operations, launch, maintenance, and corporate functions. You will be well-versed in all aspects of the systems you are responsible for, acting as a technical subject matter expert in support of cross-team collaboration efforts. You will track and report to executive audiences. As a Principal TPM, you will anticipate bottlenecks, provide escalation management, anticipate and make tradeoffs, and balance the business needs versus technical constraints. An ability to take large, complex projects and break them down into manageable pieces, develop plans, schedules and documentation to satisfy complex integration requirements and deliver them in a successful and timely manner is expected. Maturity, high judgment, negotiation skills, ability to influence, analytical talent and leadership are essential to success in this role.

In this role you will partner with strong technical leaders to drive the long-term vision of the organization, own delivery of cross organization initiatives, assist in developing and leading organization roadmaps, driving efficiency in processes, and delivering on goals. You understand, utilize and share program-management best practices. You may be assigned to manage the roadmap for an organization, which may include contributing to AOP narratives, and ownership of one or more organizational goals. As a Principal Technical Program Manager, you are accountable to the overall strategy as well as driving teams inside and outside your organization to deliver. You can define the program (mission, vision, tenets), set goals, analyze data, drive improvements that are quantified with metrics, and influence resource allocation. You understand the systems in your product or program space, their limitations, scaling factors, boundary conditions, and reasons behind architectural choices.

We are looking for someone to apply their technical expertise, leadership skills, and commitment to quality to positively impact safe human spaceflight. Passion for our mission and vision is required!

Key job responsibilities:

• Analyze product and technology service strategy and make strategic recommendations.

• Coordinate the design, development, testing, and deployment of features into production across multiple technical teams.

• Create and track project milestones, risks, and dependencies, and describe, own, and prioritize all technical requirements associated with delivery.

• Dive deep to understand the design details of the systems in your area, especially those related to customer interfaces and the expectations for system dependencies.

• Identify which existing systems or services require changes to implement new capabilities, and work with the SDM for each system to estimate the work involved.

• Own the implementation plan across teams and report on progress against technical milestones to stakeholders.

• Understand the significant business problems, automation limitations, scaling factors, boundary conditions, and reasons behind decisions.

• Demonstrate good judgment in how and when to escalate.

• Be data-oriented, regularly review metrics, and proactively seek out new and improved data/mechanisms for visibility.

• Keep programs aligned with organizational goals.

• Align stakeholder needs while driving mindful discussions that lead to crisp decisions.

• Partner with customers, internal/external teams, and/or engineering teams to determine which projects move forward and in what sequence.

• Write effective narratives and program updates, and present them effectively to stakeholders and the management team.

• Create plans with clear, measurable success criteria and return on investment, while overseeing the gap between teams, processes, and system architectures.

• Solve ambiguous problems and proactively identify and mitigate risks before they become roadblocks.

• Help teams and the organization reduce exposure to classic failure modes (e.g., requirements not sufficiently understood/documented, ineffective cross-team collaboration, long-term impacts from the use of third-party technologies, APIs not protected/hardened, insufficient testing/gaps in QA).

• Apply organizational expertise, excellent communication skills, leadership skills, and a commitment to quality to positively impact safe human spaceflight. Passion for our mission and vision is required!

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Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, computer science or equivalent

• 10+ years of technical product or program management experience working directly with software engineering and technology development teams

• 7+ years of working directly with engineering teams experience

• Experience managing programs across cross functional teams, building processes and coordinating release schedules

Desired:

• 5+ years of program management disciplines including scope, schedule, budget, quality, along with risk and critical path management experience

• 3+ years of software development experience

• Experience managing projects across cross functional teams, building sustainable processes and coordinating release schedules

• Experience defining KPI's/SLA's used to drive multi-million dollar businesses and reporting to senior leadership

• Proven track record of delivering results for large, cross-functional initiatives while managing multiple competing priorities.

• Excellent understanding of the organization’s goals and objectives.

• Experience with Confluence, JIRA

• Experience with data analysis to capture, process, and organize data to uncover actionable insights.

Culture Statement

Don’t meet all desired requirements? Studies have shown that some people are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single desired qualification. At Blue Origin, we are dedicated to building an authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every desired qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Export Control Regulations

Applicants for employment at Blue Origin must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (i.e. current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Background Check

• Required for all positions: Blue’s Standard Background Check
• Required for Certain Job Profiles:  Defense Biometric Identification System (DBIDS) background check if at any time the role requires one to be on a military installation
• Required for Certain Job Profiles: Drivers who operate Commercial Motor Vehicles with a Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW), Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) or combination of power unit and trailer that meets or exceeds 10,001 lbs. and/or transports placardable amounts of hazardous materials by ground in any vehicle on a public road while in commerce, may be subject to additional Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations including: Driver Qualification Files, Medical Certification (obtained before onboarding), Road Test, Hours of Service, Drug and Alcohol Testing, vehicle inspection requirements, CDL requirements (if applicable) and hazardous materials transportation/shipping training.
• Required for certain Job Profiles: Ability to obtain and maintain Merchant Mariner Credential, which includes pre-employment and random drug testing as well as DOT physical

Benefits

• Benefits include:  Medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability, 401(k) with a company match of up to 5%, and an Education Support Program.
• Stock Options for all regular employees (working at least 20 hours/week)
• Paid Time Off:  Up to four (4) weeks per year based on weekly scheduled hours, and up to 14 company-paid holidays.
• Dependent on role type and job level, employees may be eligible for benefits and bonuses based on the company's intent to reward individual contributions and enable them to share in the company's results, or other factors at the company's sole discretion. Bonus amounts and eligibility are not guaranteed and subject to change and cancellation. Please check with your recruiter for more details.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Blue Origin is proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer and is committed to attracting, retaining, and developing a highly qualified and dedicated work force. Blue Origin hires and promotes people on the basis of their qualifications, performance, and abilities. We support the establishment and maintenance of a workplace that fosters trust, equality, and teamwork. We provide all qualified applicants for employment and employees with equal opportunities for hire, promotion, and other terms and conditions of employment, regardless of their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin/ethnicity, age, physical or mental disability, genetic factors, military/veteran status, or any other status or characteristic protected by federal, state, and/or local law. Blue Origin will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state, and local laws, including the Washington Fair Chance Act, the California Fair Chance Act, the Los Angeles Fair Chance in Hiring Ordinance, and other applicable laws. For more information on “Know Your Rights,” please see here.

Affirmative Action and Disability Accommodation

Applicants wishing to receive information on Blue Origin’s Affirmative Action Plans, or applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in the application and/or interview process, please contact us at [email protected]. Please note this is a publicly managed inbox. Please do not include any personal medical information in your request.