Chief Engineer - Mission Delivery

About Forterra

At Forterra, we are unleashing autonomy at scale to transform the battlefield. Our mission is to build the foundational platforms that enable an intelligent ecosystem to coordinate, adapt, and execute with speed and precision even in the uncertainty and disruption of modern conflict. In an era marked by rapid technological change and evolving threats, we design for flexibility, survivability, and operational dominance.

Forterra delivers weapons, sensors, and battlefield effects through integrated autonomous networks reaching operational areas faster, safer, and without placing human lives at risk. Our systems operate with distributed control, dynamic routing, and real-time responsiveness, enabling sustained advantage across complex mission environments.

About the role

The Chief Engineer is accountable for delivery of assigned Forterra products and systems in accordance with customer contracts. They are responsible for the Scope, Schedule, Budget, and Quality associated with the contract and manages all aspects of the design and build process including—but not limited to— requirement specification, bill of material development, material procurement, manufacturing, commissioning, delivery, and customer acceptance. Additionally, this role is charged with defining the margin target for each project, developing and managing budgets, assessing and managing risk, monitoring non-conforming costs, and managing complex budgets that meets or exceeds margin and profit targets.   

To meet or exceed customer expectations the Chief Engineer partners with Integration and Growth Leads, and other cross-functional personnel prior to contract award to ensure a seamless transition from presales to execution. This transition—completed in accordance with the Forterra Product/Program Development Process (PDP)—occurs no later than the Kickoff Gate of the PDP lifecycle.  

The Chief Engineer organizes and leads teams consisting of software engineers, hardware engineers, technicians, commissioning personnel, and various other subject matter experts to deliver on contracts. The Chief Engineer regularly reports on progress, financial health, risk management, schedule attainment, and quality metrics throughout the lifecycle of the contract. The Chief Engineer is a member of the Forterra Engineering Leadership Team (SLT) and reports to the VP of Mission Delivery.    

What you'll do

• Ultimately, be responsible for everything that happens or fails to happen within assigned contract delivery associated with a Forterra program.  

• Be responsible for all aspects of systems, engineering, and delivery of complex hardware-software integrated engineered solution in support of program team objectives 

• Contribute to and exemplify process discipline codified in The Forterra Way (business and quality management system)  

• Manage a team of engineers, production technicians, and other technical and business resources to deliver successful implementations  

• Develop employees; train resources, plan and lead team members throughout contract delivery  

• Confirm scope of contract and deliverables   

• Develop and manage project and delivery schedules  

• Maintain budget, drive margin adherence, and manage contingency funds in accordance to adopted risk strategy  

• Rigorously enforce all Quality and Safety standards  

• Define work breakdown structure (WBS), processes and workflows, and reporting structure to optimize team performance and progress while delivering   

• Define and implement engineering, efficiency, and productivity improvements  

• Design and manage technical standards; lead the development of project execution strategies   

• Lead cross-functional efforts to develop tools sets and adopt new Forterra products and tools 

Minimum Qualifications

• BS or advanced degree in Engineering or Business Administration or equivalent combination of education and experience that includes both engineering and business management  

• Minimum 10+ years of experience in robotics, automotive, automation and/or defense technology market  

• Experience understanding and assessing technical concepts 

• Mastery of project and operations management relating to Scope, Schedule, Budget, and Quality  

• Experience managing large budgets ($20M or greater) for a technical product  

• Experience coordinating multiple internal and external teams  

• Ability to sustain periods of increased travel (up to 50%) that includes domestic and international travel 

Preferred Qualifications

• Understanding of the ground autonomy and defense contacting space including market drivers, trends, customer needs and sales processes 

• Project Management Certification from relevant standards-based organization such as PMI and/or Six Sigma Green Belt  

• Experience contributing to the development of business management systems or similar organizational level process governance   

• Familiarity with Enterprise Resource Platform (ERP) systems  

• Familiarity to Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems  

• Expert project management skills and familiarity with multiple project management disciplines and execution methodologies (eg. Agile, Design-Build, etc)  

• Experience managing complex selection processes and leading negotiations 

• Understanding and proficiency across wide expanse of business functions including manufacturing, production, supply chain, capital projects, inventory management, shipping/receiving, and financial analysis, accounting, and reporting 

• Ability to teach, coach, and mentor junior resources  

US Salary Range
 $200,000—$250,000
 

The salary range for this role is an estimate and is based on a wide variety of compensation factors. The salary offered to candidates will vary based on a variety of factors including (but not limited to) relevant work experience, education, specialized training, critical expertise, training, and more. Equity in Forterra is included in most of our full-time, high-demand roles and is therefore considered part of Forterra’s overall compensation package. In addition to base salary and equity, Forterra offers competitive benefits for full-time employees including:

• Premium Healthcare Benefits: Three plan options, including an HSA-eligible plan, with Forterra covering 80% of the plan premium for you and your dependents.  
• Basic Life/AD&D, short and long-term disability insurance plans 100% covered by Forterra, plus the option to purchase additional life insurance for you and your dependents.
• Extremely generous company holiday calendar including a winter break in December.
• Competitive paid time off (PTO) offering 20 days accrued per year.
• A minimum of 7 weeks fully paid parental leave for birth/adoption. 
• A $9k annual tuition reimbursement or professional development stipend.
• Fully stocked beverage refrigerators with all the Celsius your little heart desires. 
• 401(k) retirement savings plan, including traditional, Roth 401(k), and after-tax deferral with company match up to 4%.

Your recruiter will be able to share more information about our salary and benefits offering during the hiring process.  

CLEARANCE ELIGIBILITY - This position may require eligibility to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance. For more information about U.S. Security Clearances: click here.   

Forterra is an equal-opportunity employer, providing and promoting equal employment opportunity in all personnel practices. Forterrans are unique, talented individuals who are united through a shared passion to deliver autonomous systems that enable national resilience and a robust supply chain.  

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any factor, including veteran and disability status, and criminal history, in accordance with applicable local, state, and federal laws.

Forterra is also committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. Please let your recruiter know if you need an accommodation at any point during the interview process.

To see Forterra’s candidate data privacy policy, please visit Forterra Legal | Job Applicant Privacy Notice. 

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