Strategic Chief Engineer - EMEA

Position Summary

At Parker Aerospace, we develop technologies and innovative solutions that enable reliable, efficient and increasingly sustainable flight for the lifecycle of the aircraft, including aftermarket support. Our passionate people with deep engineering expertise, together with our breadth of differentiated technologies, ensure that we make the extraordinary happen and continue to shape the future of aviation in partnership with our customers. As a member of our team, you are instrumental in fulfilling our mission: ‘Enabling Engineering Breakthroughs that Lead to a Better Tomorrow.’

Pursuing a career at Parker presents unlimited opportunities for both professional and personal development. Working with some of the most brilliant minds in the industry, your contributions will be pivotal in developing innovative technologies and products, significantly contributing to Parker’s goal of addressing the world’s most pressing engineering challenges. At Parker, our team members belong, matter and make a difference.

The Strategic Chief Engineer is a technical leader responsible for setting and driving the technical strategy across major product lines, programs, or platforms. This role integrates long‑range technology vision with business objectives, ensuring that engineering decisions support profitability, competitiveness, quality, and sustainability. This role is envisioned to be strongly embedded within strategic customers and closely aligned with aerospace group divisions. In addition, working closely with Key Account Leaders.

• Technical Strategy & Architecture
  • Define and maintain the multi‑year technical roadmap for assigned product families or systems.
  • Establish reference architectures, design principles, and standards that guide multiple programs.
  • Evaluate emerging technologies and propose strategic adoption plans, including risk, cost, and benefit analysis.
  • Ensure architectural coherence and reuse across projects and platforms.
• System Engineering & Integration
  • Design or direct the design of complex components or functional systems to advance new technologies and develop breakthrough improvements.
  • Provide system‑level technical leadership on complex, multi‑disciplinary programs.
  • Lead trade studies, system decomposition, and allocation of requirements to subsystems.
  • Oversee major design reviews (SRR, PDR, CDR, PRR, etc.) and provide technical sign‑off.
  • Resolve high‑impact integration issues spanning hardware, software, and operations.
• Governance & Technical Authority
  • Serve as the technical authority for designated domains, with final approval on critical technical decisions.
  • Define technical policies, engineering standards, and best practices in collaboration with other leaders.
  • Lead independent technical assessments, design audits, and risk reviews.
  • Ensure compliance with relevant regulations, certifications, and industry standards.
• Business Alignment & Stakeholder Management
  • Strong fundamental business skills and broad experience in financial risk, operations, quality, business development, and customer management.
  • Translate business strategy (market, customer, financial) into technical strategies and roadmaps.
  • Partner with product management, operations, and finance to develop business cases for major technical investments.
  • Deep understanding of key customers and external partners to shape product direction and build technical credibility.
  • Support bids and proposals with strategy, architecture, and solution concepts.
• Mentoring & Capability Building
  • Mentor principal engineers, architects, and lead engineers in systems thinking and strategic design.
  • Drive technical communities of practice; foster knowledge sharing and standardization.
  • Identify capability gaps (skills, tools, processes) and propose plans to close them.
  • Support hiring and development of senior technical talent.
  • Typical Deliverables
    • Long‑term technology and architecture roadmaps.
    • System architectures and reference designs.
    • Technology assessments and recommendations.
    • Technical risk assessments and mitigation strategies.
    • Policies, guidelines, and standards for engineering practices.