iMETALX Inc. · 2 days ago
Product Lead / Mission Lead
Chantilly, VA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level
$130K/yr - $200K/yr
6+ years expiMETALX, Inc. is pioneering the future of space accessibility, resilience, and sustainability in support of U.S. national security objectives. The Product Lead / Mission Lead will act as the primary customer-embedded technical and product representative, responsible for discovering customer needs and translating them into actionable product and engineering direction.
AerospaceData CenterSatellite CommunicationSpace Travel
No H1B
Security Clearance RequiredU.S. Citizen Only
Responsibilities
Serve as Product Lead and Mission Lead for iMETALX customer programs, acting as the primary interface between customers and internal teams
Embed with customers on-site to perform customer discovery, gather mission and operational requirements, and understand real-world constraints
Translate ambiguous, evolving customer needs into clear product requirements, problem statements, and engineering priorities
Support early-stage business development and capture activities by shaping requirements, refining concepts, and aligning solutions with customer missions
Collaborate closely with engineering, autonomy, and operations teams to guide end-to-end product development, integration, testing, and deployment
Coordinate and support product demonstrations, mission rehearsals, testing events, and validations in mission-relevant environments
Ensure product and mission deliverables align with customer objectives, operational timelines, and broader national security goals
Engage with government stakeholders, partners, and (as applicable) regulatory bodies to validate requirements and manage expectations
Monitor evolving mission needs, threat environments, and competitive dynamics to inform product strategy and prioritization
Identify risks early—technical, operational, or programmatic—and work cross-functionally to mitigate them
Uphold and reinforce a culture of integrity, accountability, and ethical decision-making across all customer engagements and internal activities
Qualification
Required
6+ years of professional experience in product management, mission engineering, systems engineering, technical program management, technical business development, or similar customer-facing technical roles
Demonstrated experience supporting U.S. government, defense, aerospace, or national security customers
Active TS/SCI U.S. security clearance
Proven ability to conduct customer discovery and translate ambiguous or evolving customer needs into clear product or technical requirements
Strong technical fluency enabling effective collaboration with engineering teams (software, autonomy, robotics, space systems, or complex hardware–software systems)
Experience working on-site at customer locations in customer-embedded or customer-facing roles
Willingness and ability to travel approximately 50% of the time and work from customer offices as mission needs require
Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to brief technical and non-technical stakeholders
Demonstrated professionalism, sound judgment, and high ethical standards when operating in mission-critical environments
U.S. citizenship (required due to ITAR/export control and security clearance requirements)
Preferred
Prior experience supporting DoD programs, operational units, or mission execution environments
Experience serving as a technical lead, mission lead, product owner, or systems lead for systems delivered into operational use
Background in space systems, autonomy, robotics, SDA, ISAM, or adjacent technical domains
Experience shaping requirements during early capture, prototyping, or concept development phases
Familiarity with CONOPS development, mission planning, or operational workflows
Experience working in classified environments or on programs involving sensitive or controlled information
Demonstrated ability to grow into leadership roles, including mentoring engineers or building small technical teams
Experience working in small, fast-moving organizations where roles span product, mission execution, and customer engagement
Benefits
Competitive Salary
Health Insurance/Dental
Paid Time Off
401k
Performance Bonus
Equity
Company
iMETALX Inc.
IMETALX's vision is to create a future where space is accessible and sustainable for all.
2-10 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Early StageTotal Funding
$0.02MKey Investors
Catalyst AcceleratorTechstars
2024-02-22Non Equity Assistance
2023-09-11Pre Seed· $0.02M
Leadership Team
Nehal Gajjar
Founder and CEO
Company data provided by crunchbase