Senior Manager, Test and Evaluation, Mission Systems

ABOUT THE TEAM

The Mission Systems Test & Evaluation team owns the characterization, integration testing, and field validation of Anduril's sensor and payload portfolio - the systems that shape how every Anduril product perceives and acts on the battlespace. We answer the questions that decide whether a sensor is ready to ship: what does it actually see, where does it break, and how does it behave when integrated with the rest of the mission system.

ABOUT THE JOB

The Mission Systems T&E team is scaling to match the growth of Anduril's sensor and payload programs. We're looking for a Senior Manager, Test & Evaluation to join our team in Costa Mesa, CA. In this role, you will own the T&E strategy and execution for a portfolio of Mission Systems sensor and payload programs. You will lead a team of test engineers, run field campaigns at operationally representative ranges, and hold the technical bar for data quality when programs are pushing to ship. This will require deep sensor test experience, the judgment to prioritize the tests that actually reduce risk, and the leadership to grow a team that can operate across multiple sensor modalities. If you have run test campaigns on payload-class systems in austere environments and want to build the T&E function for one of the most active sensor portfolios in defense, this role is for you.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Own all results of your team, both the good and the bad.
• Own T&E strategy and execution for a portfolio of Mission Systems sensor and payload programs
• Lead by example. Be willing to dive into the technical work with you team and complete individual contributor work when required.
• Define the roadmap, resources, and technical approach — and provide clear situation reports and resource requests to leadership.
• Lead a team of T&E engineers — hire, mentor, and set the technical bar for how sensor testing is done at Anduril, fostering a culture of high performance, continuous learning, and rapid iteration.
• Build test plans that answer real engineering questions: sensor performance envelopes, environmental sensitivities, integration failure modes, and mission-representative scenarios.
• Run field campaigns at internal and external test ranges. Own the safety case, risk mitigation posture, data collection plan, and post-test analysis — collaborating closely with range safety officers and regulatory teams.
• Manage budgets, lab and shop resources, and project timelines across multiple parallel test efforts.
• Manage and evolve your teams organizational structure to match both T&E engineering needs and the needs of your business lines
• Partner with product line leadership, program managers, design teams, and cross-functional stakeholders to phase T&E into schedules without becoming the bottleneck. Champion an agile, low-bureaucracy approach that adheres to essential safety and regulatory requirements.
• Drive the test data pipeline — what gets captured, how it's processed, and how findings get back to engineering fast enough to matter.
• Represent T&E in program reviews, TRB/SRBs, and customer test events.
• Accountable for all administrative requirements for the members of your team (time cards, finance approvals, PTO, etc).

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's or advanced degree in EE, physics, aerospace, or a related technical field from an accredited institution.
• 10+ years in test engineering, systems T&E, integration & test, or flight test, with progressively increasing scope
• 3+ years managing engineering teams, including hiring, performance management, and technical mentorship
• Willingness to travel up to 50% during critical test phases
• Possess a Top Secret US Security clearance, with eligibility for SCI access
• Aptitude for leadership and desire to be a people leader first, manager second.
• Deep experience testing sensor or payload systems - EO/IR, radar, RF/EW, LADAR, or comparable
• Experience producing or leading teams to produce customer facing test process deliverables (test plans, test reports, data analysis, etc.) and demonstrated maturity to articulate deliverable to a variety of stakeholders.
• Experience conducting safety planning or risk management
• Hands-on with wiring diagrams, signal chains, networking basics, and HW-vs-SW failure isolation
• Must be able to take guidance or intent and turn it into actionable results with a team
• Must possess the ability to understand new concepts quickly and solve problems across a variety of engineering areas
• Experience working with cross-functional engineering teams and external customers; demonstrated ability to collect differing opinions and reconcile them in order to achieve agreement on what ‘right’ looks like.
• Able to work extended hours on test sites or in support of testing as required.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Leadership training (Education, employer provided, or self-study).
• Prior sensor T&E experience at a defense prime, DoD lab, or defense startup.
• Background across two or more sensor modalities (e.g., EO/IR plus radar, or LADAR plus RF)
• Experience with the Department of War or Government Agencies
• Experience working with FAA and/or FCC compliance requirements
• Experience with EW system, Imaging system, or Battle Space Management systems design and employment
• Experience and working knowledge of radio frequency theory and/or communication physics
• Experience and working knowledge of networking (TCP/IP, routing, switching) and/or various communication protocols (Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, LAN, WAN, etc.)
• Experience and working knowledge of a programing language (C++, Python, MATLAB, etc)
• Experience utilizing a Linux Operating System (Ubuntu, Debian, etc) or using Command Line Interface with another operating system