Product Engineer

job description

kratos defense & security solutions, inc., is a leading defense technology company focused on uncrewed systems, satellite communications, cyber security/warfare, microwave electronics, missile defense, training, and combat systems. Our customers include the u.s. Federal government, foreign governments, commercial enterprises, and state and local government agencies. At kratos, we prioritize affordability as a cornerstone of our technology. We leverage proven, cutting-edge methodologies and technology to minimize costs, streamline schedules, and mitigate risks, ensuring timely delivery of cost-effective solutions to market.

general job summary:

the product engineer is responsible for leading assigned products and engineering work streams across their full lifecycle, from requirements definition through design release, production support, and customer delivery. This role serves as the technical point of contact (tpoc) for assigned customers and programs, ensuring technical requirements, design intent, and execution details are clearly understood, controlled, and delivered.

reporting to the lead product engineer, the product engineer leads engineering execution at the product and project level, coordinating cross-functional activities across design engineering, manufacturing, test, quality, supply chain, and program management to ensure products are technically mature, configuration-controlled, and ready to build, test, and deliver.

essential job functions

product & project leadership

• lead assigned products and engineering projects from concept through production and sustainment
• own day-to-day engineering execution, priorities, and deliverables for assigned products
• plan, coordinate, and execute engineering activities to meet program schedules and milestones
• identify technical risks and lead mitigation actions in coordination with the lead product engineer

technical point of contact (tpoc) - customer interface

• serve as the primary technical point of contact for assigned customers and programs
• lead customer technical discussions, reviews, and issue resolution
• ensure customer requirements are clearly understood, documented, and flowed into engineering deliverables
• support customer design reviews, test reviews, and technical data exchanges

requirements, design & configuration control

• own requirements flowdown from customer and system requirements to design outputs
• coordinate design activities with design engineering and system engineering
• ensure designs are configuration-controlled and released in accordance with as9100d
• lead and support engineering change requests (ecrs) and engineering change notices (ecns)

design-to-production & test support

• ensure engineering deliverables support manufacturability, assembly, and test readiness
• support build readiness reviews, first article inspections (fai), and test activities
• provide real-time engineering support to manufacturing and test during builds and investigations
• ensure design intent is preserved through production execution

risk management & problem resolution

• lead or support root cause analysis for technical and product-related issues
• quantify technical impacts of design changes, deviations, or process variation
• implement and verify corrective actions related to product performance and quality
• escalate technical risks appropriately to the lead product engineer and program management

documentation, data & digital thread

• maintain accurate and complete engineering documentation (drawings, boms, specifications)
• ensure traceability between requirements, designs, tests, and delivered products
• support integration of engineering data into plm, erp, and qms systems
• ensure engineering data is audit-ready and customer-ready

cross-functional collaboration

• partner with program management to support schedule, cost, and risk objectives
• collaborate with supply chain to support sourcing, material readiness, and supplier technical issues
• work closely with quality and test engineering to ensure product compliance and validation
• support continuous improvement initiatives related to product execution

supervisory responsibility

• no direct people management responsibility
• may provide technical…