Operations Engineer (Starshield)

SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

OPERATIONS ENGINEER (STARSHIELD)

Starshield is a satellite development program focused on efforts in Earth observation, communications, and hosted payloads that enable innovation in national security efforts.

As the Starshield constellation grows, so must the critical ground assets that support the constellation. The Ground Infrastructure team is looking for engineers who can own strategic planning, align resources with tasks, and optimize ground fleet operations. This role will require you to apply principles of operations engineering and data science to steer strategic decisions and accelerate team output. The ideal candidate is self-starting, eager to tackle a wide breadth of engineering problems, and able to fit seamlessly into multi-disciplinary teams.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Standardize how work is requested, planned, executed, and closed across all deployed ground infrastructure. Own work orders, work instructions, and work documentation.
• Provide engineering support for new infrastructure deployments and repairs to existing assets.
• Automate repetitive reliability tasks that scale with infrastructure expansion to reduce operational burden.
• Work alongside internal teams to uncover their needs and design technical approaches that closely align with their goals.
• Build prototypes/proof-of-concept applications that accelerate team progress with Spok/Grok.
• Identify electrical, mechanical, civil, and operations engineering issues, determine root causes, and develop solutions for both immediate mitigation and longer-term improvement of deployed ground infrastructure.
• Develop and implement dashboards and tools that forecast part demand, consumption, and fleet reliability.
• Analyze asset utilization data to inform upgrade or decommission decisions.
• Work closely with software teams to define and implement alerting systems for team assets.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline.
• 1+ years of experience in Excel, SQL, or Python/R for analysis or modeling dynamic systems.

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Proficiency with statistics, data analysis, cost/benefit analysis, and visualization.
• Experience with CAD software, Power BI, and discrete event modeling tools.
• Experience with inventory, production, and capacity planning (including MRP/ERP systems).
• Experience reading mechanical drawings, electrical one-lines, and OEM manuals, and writing a procedure a technician can follow without clarification.
• Experience overseeing contractors and vendors.
• Practical use of SQL, Power BI, scripting, or AI to remove clerk work from work orders, project managers, and reports, with judgment for when the right answer is a technician skill.
• Ability to work well in an integrated collaborative team environment, including frequent interactions with technicians, engineers, and leadership.
• Ability to work in fast-paced, high stress environments.
• Excellent written and communication skills.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be able to work extended hours and/or weekends as needed to meet major milestones.
• Must be able to work in extreme outdoor environments when needed — heat, cold, wind, rain.
• Must be able to lift 25 lbs. unassisted, climb ladders, and walk the sites that you support.
• Must be able to travel; up to 10% of the work week may require travel to other sites.
• An active clearance may provide the opportunity for you to work on sensitive SpaceX missions; if so, you will be subject to pre-employment drug and random drug and alcohol testing.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:

Pay Range:
Level 1: $100,000.00 - $130,000.00
Level 2: $115,000.00 - $160,000.00

Your actual level and base salary will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: job-related knowledge and skills, education, and experience.

Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package at SpaceX. You may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of company stock or long-term cash awards, as well as potential discretionary bonuses and the ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You will also receive access to comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, paid parental leave, and various other discounts and perks. You may also accrue 3 weeks of paid vacation and will be eligible for 10 or more paid holidays per year. Employees accrue paid sick leave pursuant to Company policy which satisfies or exceeds the accrual, carryover, and use requirements of the law.

Those with an active clearance will receive a 10% differential, up to an additional $20,000 annually, once officially briefed into a classified program.

ITAR REQUIREMENTS:

• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.

SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SpaceX is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX’s Affirmative Action Plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out to EEOCompliance@spacex.com.