Principal Project Engineer

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Location:

Eagan, MN, US, 55121 Burnsville, MN, US, 55337

Job

The Leonardo DRS Naval Electronics business provides leading naval computing infrastructure, network and data distribution and middleware enterprise services, as well as world-class manufacturing and support capabilities.

Naval Electronics
Location
:
Eagan, MN
Career

Functional Area

:
Engineering - Project Engineering
Telework Type
:
Hybrid
Type
:
Full Time
Schedule
: 9/80

DRS Naval Electronics is seeking a Principal Project Engineer to lead design and development programs, proposals, and Internal Research & Development (IRAD) efforts at our Engineering Center of Excellence in Eagan, MN. This senior role combines accountability for program technical, cost, and schedule performance with direct functional management of Development Project Engineers. Proven development project leadership and people-management experience is required.

• Lead multidisciplinary engineering teams on highly complex programs. Develop/own engineering scope, plans, budgets, schedules, and performance.
• Own the technical baseline of the program, ensuring requirements compliance, configuration control, and delivery of customer technical data packages.
• Serve as the primary customer technical contact and engineering interface to the Program Office. Coordinate with functional leaders, manufacturing, supply chain, suppliers and subcontractors.
• Direct requirements analysis, design decisions, and supplier component, subsystem, and service evaluations. Drive design-to-cost and Design for X (DfX) objectives.
• Identify, mitigate, and retire development and technical risks. Provide technical guidance and resolve complex issues across engineering disciplines.
• Oversee system/subsystem test environments, plans, procedures, and schedules, including environmental qualification, factory acceptance testing, and failure resolution.
• Lead engineering contributions to complex proposals and IRAD efforts, including technical approaches, estimates, resource plans, and risk assessments.
• Work with Chief Engineers to develop and execute technology roadmaps across products and lines of business.
• Support annual discretionary planning (IRAD and Cap Ex) and lead reporting of IRAD project execution and forecasting to leadership team.
• Identify and capture opportunities for technology reuse across products and engineering collaboration across DRS business units.

• Directly manage Development Project Engineers.
• Forecast staffing needs, allocate work, and balance priorities across assigned programs and the Development Project Engineering team. Identify and resolve capacity and skill gaps.
• Coach and develop direct reports through career planning, training, and stretch assignments. Support hiring and onboarding to strengthen team capability.
• Foster an accountable, collaborative, and inclusive team. Model integrity and DRS values and improve Project Engineering tools, processes, and practices.
• Ensure positive, collaborative working relationships with stakeholders inside and outside the company.

• Bachelor’s in engineering or a related technical field and at least 15 years of relevant engineering development and project leadership experience. Advanced degree in a technical field and/or MBA preferred but not required.
• Prior people-management experience is required.
• Demonstrated success delivering complex development projects against technical, cost, and schedule objectives while leading cross-functional engineering teams.
• Mastery of relevant technologies and domain knowledge, with broad technical experience sufficient to lead systems, software, electrical, mechanical, and specialty engineering activities.
• Strong functional management skills in staffing forecasts, resource allocation, prioritization, delegation, conflict resolution, and team development.
• Expert-level judgment, independent decision-making, customer focus, and strong written and verbal communication.
• Ability to build trust and influence employees, senior leaders, program sponsors, subcontractors, and customers

Experience across the following areas is valued. Candidates need not possess every listed skill:

• Program management for Aerospace and Defense (A&D) development projects.
• Project planning and scheduling tools (e.g., MS Project) and budget…