Senior Technical Project Manager @ VAST

At Vast, our mission is to contribute to a future where billions of people are living and thriving in space. We are building artificial gravity space stations, allowing long-term stays in space without the adverse effects of zero-gravity. Our initial crewed space habitat will be Haven-1, scheduled to be the world’s first commercial space station when it launches into low earth orbit in August 2025. Our team is all-in, committed to executing our mission safely and on time. If you want to work with the most talented people on Earth furthering space exploration for humanity, come join us.

Vast is looking for a Senior Technical Project Manager, reporting to the VP, Station Engineering, to support the development of the systems that will be required for the design and build of artificial-gravity human-rated space stations. This will be a full-time, exempt position located in our Long Beach location.

A successful candidate will have a strong technical foundation and are natural motivators, cross-functional relationship builders, and champions for driving the right level of process to ensure smooth and predictable program execution in a fast-paced innovative environment.

Responsibilities:

Leverage your technical expertise to lead complex, multi-disciplinary hardware projects from start to finish, managing multiple critical hardware work streams including electrical, mechanical, industrial design and other aspects of hardware development
Work closely with both internal teams and external vendors to deliver hardware and solutions on tight timelines
Act as a single point of contact for driving scope, schedule, cost, and resource management
Report out program status and risk to program stakeholders
Ensure program documents are complete, current and available for staff and leadership review
Contribute to resource planning to ensure program success
Establish standard reports to provide concise and effective communications to key stakeholders on program status, issues/risks, and accomplishments
Apply first principles approach to problem solving tight timelines, design changes, and material management

Minimum Qualifications:

Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, or related discipline
5 years of experience in technical program management
4 years of experience with project management and reporting tools (i.e., MS Project, SmartSheet, JIRA, Confluence)

Preferred Skills & Experience:

Track record of launching space flight hardware or other similar hardware/software devices from concept to production
Experience managing design releases, validation test plans, build execution and supply chain management
Ability to multitask in a dynamic environment with shifting priorities and changing requirements
Ability to think strategically and tactically and to build consensus to make programs successful

Additional Requirements:

Ability to travel up to 15% of the time

Salary Range: California

$150,000—$180,000 USD

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

Base salary will vary depending on job-related knowledge, education, skills, experience, business needs, and market demand. Salary is just one component of our comprehensive compensation package. Full-time employees also receive company equity, as well as access to a full suite of compelling benefits and perks, including: 100% medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents, flexible paid time off for exempt staff and up to 15 days of vacation for non-exempt staff, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, free catered meals and snacks and beverages, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, One Medical membership, ClassPass credits, personalized mental healthcare through Spring Health, and other discounts and perks.

U.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS

The person hired will have access to information and items subject to U.S. export controls, and therefore, must either be a “U.S. person” as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.62 or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. This status includes U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

Vast is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Vast is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Compensation Overview

6 month growth

1 year growth

2 year growth