Low Earth orbit is open for business. Varda is accelerating the development of commercial space infrastructure, from in-orbit pharmaceutical processing to reliable and economical reentry capsules.
From life-saving pharmaceuticals to more powerful fiber optics, there is a world of products used on Earth today that can only be manufactured in space. Varda is accelerating innovation in the orbital economy by creating both the products and infrastructure needed so space can directly benefit life on Earth. Our mission is to expand the economic bounds of humankind.
Our team is uniquely suited to accomplishing this goal, with leadership and staff comprised of veterans from SpaceX, Blue Origin, major pharmaceutical companies and Silicon Valley. Varda was founded in January 2021 by Will Bruey and Delian Asparouhov with significant backing from world class investors including Khosla Ventures, Lux Capital, Founders Fund, Caffeinated Capital, General Catalyst, and Also Capital.
Varda is headquartered in El Segundo, California, where we have offices and a production facility where our vehicles, equipment, and materials are built, integrated, and tested. Varda also has offices in Washington, DC and Huntsville, AL.
Join Varda, and work to create a bustling in-space ecosystem.
As Director, Hosted Payload Engineering at Varda, you will lead the engineering execution of our hypersonic reentry testbed payload and microgravity hosted payload business lines. This role combines deep technical authority with team leadership, product definition, and customer delivery responsibility. You will own the successful execution of multiple concurrent hosted payload missions, delivering flight hardware that operates in orbit, survives hypersonic reentry, and returns to Earth—reliably and at scale.
You will build and lead a team of payload engineers responsible for individual hosted payload missions while also owning the technical definition and evolution of Varda’s hosted payload product offering. This includes maintaining and evolving the Payload User Guide (PUG), defining new interfaces and services, and developing a roadmap that expands the set of customers and use cases Varda can support while simultaneously growing mission cadence.
You'll enable Varda's growing hosted payload business by building a high-performing team, strong technical standards, and repeatable integration processes. You will work closely with customer-facing teams to support technical sales, onboard new customers, and deliver against contractual and revenue commitments with government and commercial partners.
This role is ideal for a technically exceptional leader who wants to own a complex, customer-facing engineering business line from strategy through execution.
Build and lead a team of payload responsible engineers to execute hosted payload missions
Define and maintain standards for payload design, analysis, integration, testing, mission execution, documentation, and project management
Work closely with avionics, software, thermal, systems, integration, and vehicle teams to define payload interfaces and constraints
Maintain and evolve the Payload User Guide (PUG) and product offering to balance reliable execution, increasing mission cadence, and customer capture
Partner with BD and Mission Management on technical sales, customer and payload provider onboarding, and program execution
Establish and maintain standards for payload engineer communication with government and commercial customers
Own hosted payload engineering execution against company goals and contractual commitments, including schedule, cost, and technical performance
Drive continuous improvement through lessons learned and feedback from flight programs
Varda, like all employers, must ensure that its employees working in the United States are lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. Additionally, our employees are exposed to and have access to certain export-controlled items. At present, some of our technology to which employees have access requires a license to be exported to individuals other than “U.S. Persons” as defined in U.S. export regulations. Because our employees are provided access to export-controlled items, our current policy is to only hire “U.S. persons” who are permitted to have access to our technology without an export license.
“US person” means: U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident, or protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3) (i.e., individual admitted to the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum in the U.S.)
Learn more about the ITAR here.
Varda Space Industries is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Candidates and employees are always evaluated based on merit, qualifications, and performance. We will never discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, national origin, ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, martial status, mental or physical disability, or any other legally protected status.
Varda Space Industries, Inc. participates in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security E-Verify program. The E-Verify program is an Internet-based employment eligibility verification system operated by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Learn more about the E-Verify program.
E-Verify Notice Right To Work Notice
We make revolutionary products that are impossible to make on Earth due to gravity. Our spacecraft act as platforms to improve life on Earth.
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