Firefly Aerospace · 1 week ago
Mission Manager, Strategic Partnerships
Cedar Park, TX
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level
7+ years expFirefly Aerospace is a space and defense technology company that enables our world to launch, land, and operate in space – anywhere, anytime. The company is seeking an experienced Mission Manager to lead customer missions from early engagement and proposal development through payload integration, launch, and on-orbit operations.
AerospaceAir TransportationSatellite Communication
No H1B
U.S. Citizen Only
Responsibilities
Serve as the primary mission owner and customer interface for assigned government and commercial payload missions from contract execution through end-of-mission operations
Maintain full ownership of mission payload integration, launch vehicle interfaces, and mission execution strategy
Build trusted relationships with customers, acting as a technical and programmatic advocate throughout the mission lifecycle
Support payload proposal development as a Subject Matter Expert (SME), with emphasis on payload integration, mission operations, and spacecraft interfaces
Partner with Business Development and Spacecraft Growth teams to source, shape, and support new mission opportunities
Participate in technical and commercial proposal writing, including mission concepts, CONOPS, schedules, and integration approaches
Collaborate with Legal and Contracts teams on SOWs, SSAs, and customer agreements to ensure mission success and clarity of scope
Oversee payload integration requirements and Interface Control Documents (ICDs) between customer payloads and Firefly spacecraft
Ensure alignment of mission performance, form/fit/function, environments, mass properties, mechanical and electrical interfaces, data interfaces, and operational concepts
Maintain ownership of the spacecraft–payload interface and drive resolution of technical and programmatic issues across teams
Lead technical interchange meetings, design reviews, and customer engagements
Coordinate across engineering, mission assurance, test, launch, and operations teams to execute mission plans
Identify and drive process improvement initiatives related to mission management, payload integration, and customer experience
Mentor and support junior mission managers or payload integration team members
Qualification
Required
Bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering or related technical field
+7 years of relevant aerospace experience, including payload integration, spacecraft, launch vehicle, or mission execution
Experience executing at least one full mission lifecycle from contract execution through mission operations
Experience serving as the primary technical and programmatic interface with external customers
Demonstrated experience supporting business development activities, including customer engagement, mission concept development, proposal writing, or capture support
Ability to translate customer needs into executable mission architectures and commercial proposals
Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present technical and mission concepts to customers, partners, and internal leadership
Proven ability to operate with high autonomy, self-tasking based on high-level direction from leadership
Preferred
Experience integrating payloads with spacecraft or launch vehicles
Experience supporting proposal development, capture efforts, or business development activities
Familiarity with aerospace qualification, acceptance testing, and mission assurance standards
Experience working with government customers (NASA, DoD) and/or commercial payload providers
Experience with risk management, change control, and cross-functional decision-making
Benefits
Generous health, dental and vision plans with low plan deductibles
Parental leave
Educational reimbursement
Short term disability
Pet Insurance
Flexible PTO options
Company
Firefly Aerospace
Firefly Aerospace is a space company that develops and operates launch vehicles, lunar landers, and orbital vehicles for commercial mission.
501-1000 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Public CompanyTotal Funding
$796.56MKey Investors
Northrop GrummanRPM VenturesAE Industrial Partners
2025-08-07IPO
2025-05-29Corporate Round· $50M
2024-11-12Series D· $175M
Leadership Team
Jason Kim
Chief Executive Officer
Eric Salwan
Co-Founder
Recent News
2026-01-19
Company data provided by crunchbase