Technical Lead, Engineering, Systems Engineer

Technical Lead

Liquid Robotics is seeking a Technical Lead for project-level technical execution across customer-funded efforts, IR&D, and product development projects. The Technical Lead is the primary technical authority on assigned projects and is responsible for delivering against technical scope, schedule, cost, and quality objectives. This role works closely with engineering discipline leads to generate realistic schedules, identify and secure required resources, manage technical risk, and act as the bridge between project engineering teams and the Program Management Office (PMO).

This lead reports directly to our Head of Engineering and is based in Jessup, MD.

• Own the technical solution on assigned projects: translate customer requirements and program objectives into executable technical plans and deliverables.
• Work with discipline leads (systems, mechanical, electrical, software, test, and sustainment) to develop integrated technical schedules, resource plans, and risk/reduction strategies.
• Maintain technical baseline for the project; review, approve, and coordinate engineering change requests (ECRs/ECOs) and design revisions necessary to meet project objectives.
• Act as the primary technical interface between engineering teams and the PMO: provide clear technical input for status reporting, schedule forecasts, and technical presentations to stakeholders and customers.
• Ensure engineering deliverables meet defined requirements and quality standards; that the overall designs are coherent across the functional disciplines and achievable within the cost/schedule budget; coordinate verification, validation, and qualification activities with Systems and Verification teams.
• Proactively identify technical risks, implement mitigation plans, and elevate issues when necessary to protect project schedule and performance.
• Facilitate and conduct cross-discipline technical reviews, design reviews, trade studies, and decision gates; ensure decisions are documented and communicated across the team.
• Mentor and guide engineers on the project; help remove technical and cross-functional impediments to progress.
• Coordinate with Manufacturing, QA, Field Support, and Supply Chain to ensure producibility, supportability, and smooth transition from development to production/sustainment.
• Contribute to capture and proposal activities by providing credible technical approaches, schedules, and basis of estimates for engineering scope.

• Strong technical credibility and systems-thinking — able to balance technical rigor with programmatic constraints (schedule, cost, manufacturability).
• Excellent collaborator and communicator — able to synthesize technical detail for program management and translate customer requirements for engineering teams.
• Decisive and pragmatic — able to prioritize work, trade performance against risk/cost/time, and drive timely technical decisions.
• Comfortable leading cross-disciplinary teams and influencing without always having direct authority.
• Organized, proactive, and adept at maintaining visibility of multiple concurrent technical threads.

• BS in Engineering, Computer Science, or related technical discipline; advanced degree strongly preferred.
• 8+ years of relevant engineering experience in maritime, robotics, aerospace, defense, or related complex electro-mechanical systems.
• Demonstrated experience leading technical execution on medium-to-large engineering projects, including schedule and resource planning, risk management, and cross-discipline coordination.
• Experience working with systems engineering processes, requirements traceability, ECR/ECO workflows, and verification/validation activities.
• Proven ability to create realistic technical schedules and resource estimates in collaboration with discipline leads.
• Strong interpersonal, presentation, and written communication skills; experience representing technical status to senior leadership and/or customers.
• Familiarity with Wave Gliders systems and maritime domain work is a plus.

U.S. Person status required.

Ability to obtain a US Secret Clearance required. Preference given to candidates with…