As VP of Software Systems at Altaeros, you will spearhead the development of all customer-facing and internal software within Altaeros, including Aerostat Autopilot, our unique autonomous flight operations software and our network operation tools.

Your leadership will extend to every aerostat we fly, and the infrastructure used to develop, produce, and operate our next-generation autonomous airborne platform. As a member of the senior leadership team, you will report to the CEO/CTO and will work closely with the rest of the leadership team to build a high impact business.

The impact of your role will be felt in every mission we fly and even beyond our current plans, as your strategic direction will dictate the direction of our autonomous systems and the influence of software to expand their capabilities.

Joining Altaeros in this capacity offers a unique chance to make a change to a mature startup poised for rapid growth. Here, you will be able to have an impact on a highly innovative product in a dynamic and collaborative setting that fosters innovation, agility, and growth.

Our ideal candidate has a proven track record leading teams through the full product lifecycle of complex industrial software systems within a startup environment. You will thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic and multi-disciplinary environment, and must be comfortable making high-quality decisions, quickly, with less than complete information.

You must be capable of building and inspiring a world-class team and should be comfortable presenting novel ideas to a wide range of internal and external stakeholders.

Most importantly, you must have the right attitude to be a leader at Altaeros – passionate, nimble, creative and fun.

Key Responsibilities:

In this role, you will be an integral part of a small cohort of experienced leaders tasked with shaping the future of engineering at Altaeros.

• Report directly to the CEO/CTO.

• Partner with the VP Engineering – Hardware Systems in leadership of the Engineering group, ensuring Altaeros’ technology and engineering aligns with and supports the company’s strategic plan.

• Lead the architecture and design of Altaeros’ Aerostat Autopilot software; Automated Dispatch Control (ADC); AI Flight Director; and mission operation aspects of our products.

• Own our state-of-the-art system modeling capability including computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and model-based controls design (MBD), flight data analysis and validation of the system model and product design.

• Grow Altaeros’ capabilities in data engineering and machine learning.

• Serve as Product Owner for the Controls, Modeling and Data teams, managing roadmap and collaborating with other Product Owners, VP of Hardware, Services leads and stakeholders.

• Direct a highly skilled team of software, controls, aerodynamics and data engineers, who are responsible for the development of systems for Altaeros’ family of autonomous aerostats.

• Supervise, own, and manage the expansion of our software teams as we scale up.

• Identify and implement software and security engineering best practices, including software quality assurance practices, full lifecycle optimization, continuous improvement of development environment and new DEVSECOPS models.

• Design and implement processes, systems, and training to enhance the team and overall company efficiency.

• Evolve the software product roadmap and implement your vision for what you deem the “art of the possible” in the continuous development of an autonomous aerostat that combines field-proven capability with revolutionary autonomy, supporting key product offerings and critical user needs.

Qualifications:

• 10+ years proven leadership experience in industrial software technology development in a startup/growth stage environment, including integration of hardware and software (e.g. actuators, motors, sensors).

• Experience leading teams building robust software for critical systems e.g. aerospace applications, robotics, game engines, advanced networking systems, or autonomous vehicles.

• Strong management skills with the ability to create a culture of innovation.

• Strategic mindset, with a demonstrated ability to articulate a credible vision and clear plans to achieve that vision.

• Self-management/initiative and organization skills with a willingness to roll-up your sleeves whenever necessary.

• Full understanding of the issues of a production environment.

• Familiarity of compliance to standards and regulations, particularly the NIST Risk Management Framework but also ISO, ANSI and FIPS.

• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills.

• Experience with Ansys Fluent, Matlab, Simulink, B&R Industrial Automation or equivalent, C#, Labview, and Windows Services.

• BS or higher in Computer Science or equivalent field, or equivalent working experience.

• US Citizen, with ability to obtain a US Government security clearance.

• Altaeros is headquartered in Somerville, MA and our R&D facility is in Fremont, NH. All jobs require you to occasionally work onsite in one of these locations, and may also include travel to customer sites.