The Aerospace Corporation is the trusted partner to the nation’s space programs, solving the hardest problems and providing unmatched technical expertise. As the operator of a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC), we are broadly engaged across all aspects of space— delivering innovative solutions that span satellite, launch, ground, and cyber systems for defense, civil and commercial customers. When you join our team, you’ll be part of a special collection of problem solvers, thought leaders, and innovators. Join us and take your place in space.
Job Summary
Contested space isn't a future problem — it's happening now, and the integration challenges are as complex as anything in the national security space enterprise. If you want a role where the stakes are real, the problems are unsolved, and your work directly shapes how the U.S. Space Force closes critical capability gaps, this is it.
The Defense Systems Group (DSG) provides analysis-based decision support to senior leaders on space architectures, policy and strategy, development planning, system of systems engineering, and threat reduction to help shape the future space missions across the national security space (NSS) enterprise. DSG is unique at Aerospace as it not only directly supports major customers, including US Space Force, U.S Space Command, Air Force Materiel Command, and senior leadership at the Pentagon, but also provides a broad range of services and support across the national space enterprise, maintaining vertical responsibilities with customers but also horizontal, matrixed responsibilities across the corporation. DSG also assists the Space Force Space Systems Command (SSC) in the conception, design, acquisition, launch and operations of satellite, launch vehicle, ground control, and range systems.
Aerospace is seeking a driven, technically rigorous leader to head the Space Control Department within the Mission Integration Subdivision, supporting the Space Systems Integration Office (SSIO). This role calls for sound judgment, decisive action amid uncertainty, and the ability to build trust and influence across government and partner teams.
As the Systems Director of the Space Control Department, you'll lead a talented team of mission engineers working some of the hardest integration problems in space control, coordinating closely with Command, Control, Communications and Battle Management (C3BM) to drive mission engineering and integration across these mission threads. Your team will identify the risks, issues, and gaps standing between today's architecture and tomorrow's required capability — then do something about it, driving real change through collaboration with partners across the national security space enterprise and establishing enterprise requirements. Your team provides the technical leadership for the Integrated Assessment, giving senior leaders the definitive answer on whether — and how well — critical mission threads will close. You'll shape architecture, inform the enterprise schedule, and lead your team's transition toward digital engineering, ensuring the Department's work is represented in cutting-edge digital models. This is high-visibility, high-impact work, done shoulder-to-shoulder with government counterparts who are counting on Aerospace's independent, objective leadership to get it right.
If you're the kind of leader who thrives when the path isn't fully mapped out, who builds strong relationships because you genuinely want to solve problems with others and who is ready to lead a team at the center of one of the most important missions in national security space, we want to hear from you.
This position requires full-time on-site presence at our facility in El Segundo, CA — working directly alongside our government customers and partner teams.
What You'll Be Doing
Lead Systems of Systems Engineering for contested space mission threads, identifying risks, issues, and gaps (RIGs), and advocate across enterprise…