Principal Engineering Manager

Position Summary

At Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company (EBAD), our products perform in environments where technical rigor, reliability, and safety are essential. The Principal Engineering Manager leads EBAD's Principal Engineering organization and strengthens technical capability across the broader Engineering function.

This senior engineering leader develops EBAD's most experienced technical talent, builds the next generation of technical leaders, and improves how Engineering solves complex, high-consequence problems. The role ensures EBAD has the right expertise, methods, and technical discipline while building scalable organizational capability rather than dependence on a small number of individual experts.

What You'll Do

Build and Lead the Principal Engineering Organization

• Lead, coach, and develop the Principal Engineering team, with clear expectations, development plans, mentoring responsibilities, succession strategies, and accountability for results.

• Build the technical-leadership pipeline by enabling Principal Engineers to mentor and develop engineers across the organization and by identifying critical capability gaps.

Strengthen Problem-Solving and Safety Capability

• Build Engineering problem-solving capability through effective use of EBAD's structured problem-solving methodology, ensuring significant technical problems are clearly defined, analyzed with data, resolved to root cause, and sustained.

• Strengthen product and process safety expertise and ensure appropriate technical rigor is integrated into design reviews, qualification activities, and critical program decisions.

Improve Technical Capability and Results

• Identify and close systemic capability gaps across the product-development lifecycle by improving engineering standards, methods, reviews, tools, and technical practices, with measurable reduction in development and qualification test failures, late discovery of technical issues, and recurring failure modes.

• Provide senior technical judgment on complex engineering challenges by challenging assumptions, evaluating risk, and ensuring the right multidisciplinary expertise is engaged.

• Use the EBAD Operating System (EBOS) to reinforce effective operating cadence, visual management, standard work, knowledge sharing, and continuous improvement within Principal Engineering.

Influence Across the Business

• Partner across Development Engineering, Systems Engineering, Chief Engineering, Program/IPT leadership, Operations, Quality, Technology, Business Development, and customers to align technical decisions with manufacturability, testability, reliability, safety, cost, schedule, and customer outcomes.

• Support critical technical reviews, failure investigations, program decisions, proposals, and customer engagements.

• Translate complex technical considerations into clear risks, recommendations, and business implications for senior leaders, customers, and cross-functional partners.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Chemical, Aerospace Engineering, Physics, or another relevant technical discipline. An advanced degree is preferred.

• At least 10 years of progressive engineering experience supporting complex aerospace, defense, or similarly demanding engineered products.

• Demonstrated success leading, coaching, developing, and holding highly experienced engineers or senior technical professionals accountable, including succession and capability development.

• Strong technical credibility across the product-development lifecycle, from design and analysis through manufacturing, qualification, and production.

• Experience leading multidisciplinary resolution of complex technical problems using structured, data-driven problem-solving methods.

• A track record of improving engineering standards, design practices, technical reviews, or development processes.

• Sound technical judgment, including the ability to challenge assumptions, evaluate risk, and guide decisions when information is incomplete.

• Strong influence and communication skills, with the ability to align technical experts, business leaders, customers, and cross-functional teams.

Experience That Would Set You Apart

• Experience with energetics, ordnance, aerospace electronics, satellite systems, launch vehicles, or other high-consequence aerospace and defense products.

• Experience developing a Principal Engineering, Chief Engineering, Technical Fellow, or similar technical-leadership organization.

• Product and process safety, reliability, qualification testing, or complex failure-investigation experience.

• Experience working within a mature continuous-improvement or business operating system.

• Direct experience supporting aerospace and defense customers, proposals, or critical technical reviews.

Additional Requirements

• Must have or be able to obtain a U.S. Department of Defense security clearance.

• Must be eligible to support U.S. Department of Defense and ITAR-controlled programs.

Why This Role Matters