SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.
OT SYSTEMS ENGINEER, MISSION SYSTEMS
SpaceX is looking for a highly skilled and versatile OT (Operational Technology) Systems Engineer to implement and support the backend infrastructure for our next-generation controls and industrial software platforms critical to our launch, manufacturing, and commodities generation environments. This role is embedded within the mission IT organization to provide support to dedicated controls engineering organizations while leveraging adjacent IT expertise, tooling, and technologies. This role will balance support of legacy controls support systems with modernization and continuous improvement initiatives. The ideal candidate thrives in high-stakes settings, brings a strong sense of urgency balanced with operational excellence, and combines deep OT expertise with IT technologies such as virtualization, VDI, GitOps, network-level redundancy and edge compute solutions to create streamlined and secure ICS environments.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Design, deploy, and augment next-generation OT environments that support plant and launch systems across multiple sites.
- Install, configure, maintain, and support industry-standard controls software platforms as well as internally developed HMIs.
- Integrate established and emergent IT technologies to simplify management, improve security, and create scalable plant environments.
- Deploy and maintain development, test, and staging environments to enable controlled, systematic change introduction.
- Provide direct support during launch, test, and production campaigns.
- Perform systems/software upgrades and maintenance between critical operations (including evenings and weekends as needed).
- Proactively monitor services and respond rapidly to incidents to maintain high availability and performance.
- Leverage automation tools and contribute to infrastructure-as-code and broader DevOps initiatives with a focus on ICS environments.
- Work with internal controls engineers to iterate on simulation and emulation environment to enhance test coverage and augment change control processes.
- Write and maintain standards, architectures, best practices, and documentation (including system overviews, design drawings, and operational procedures), with emphasis on highly reliable and secure industrial environments, especially at data boundaries.
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams (IT, security, controls, and operations) as well as external customers and integrators to design robust OT architectures and resolve technical issues.
- Ensure OT systems are configured and maintained in compliance with industry and cybersecurity standards (e.g., Purdue Model, IEC 62443).
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:
- Bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, or other STEM discipline and 3+ years of professional experience in OT systems engineering or industrial control systems administration; OR 5+ years of professional experience in OT systems engineering or industrial control systems administration in lieu of a degree.
- Hands-on experience with multiple industry standard controls software platforms and tools.
- Significant experience designing, deploying, supporting, and troubleshooting OT environments in high-reliability settings.
PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:
- Experience supporting real-time systems, industrial control networks, or operational technology (OT) environments in aerospace, defense, energy, or similar high-reliability industries.
- Experience designing architectures that incorporate hyperconverged, rugged industrial edge, and distributed compute technologies.
- Working knowledge of industrial protocols, controls networks, and OT cybersecurity best practices.
- Proficiency in scripting (Bash/PowerShell/Python) and automation frameworks (Puppet, Terraform, Ansible, etc.).
- Experience with configuration management, provisioning, infrastructure as code, and DevOps concepts/tools.
- Familiarity with Active Directory, multi-platform authentication, and identity environments in OT contexts.
- System administration experience managing Windows and Linux servers, rudimentary database administration exposure, and storage/backup experience.
- Network administration experience and understanding of the OSI model, especially Layer 1/2/3 considerations as they apply to industrial and controls networks.
- Excellent communication skills with the ability to communicate with internal/external customers, vendors, and management in both formal and informal situations.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:
- Ability to pass DoD background check for launch site access.
- Willingness to participate in an after-hours on-call rotation and work extended hours or weekends as necessary.
- Willingness to travel (up to 20%, including flying to other sites worldwide) and potential time at sea supporting marine systems.
- Ability to lift 30 lbs.
- Ability to work at heights.
- Ability to drive (active valid driver's license).
ITAR REQUIREMENTS:
- To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.
SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SpaceX is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.
Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX’s Affirmative Action Plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out to [email protected].
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, or other STEM discipline and 3+ years OT systems engineering or industrial control systems administration, OR 5+ years experience in lieu of degree
- Hands-on experience with multiple industry standard controls software platforms and tools
- Significant experience designing, deploying, supporting, and troubleshooting OT environments in high-reliability settings
- Ability to pass DoD background check for launch site access
- Willingness to participate in after-hours on-call rotation and work extended hours or weekends as necessary
- Willingness to travel (up to 20%, including flying to other sites worldwide) and potential time at sea supporting marine systems
- Ability to lift 30 lbs, ability to work at heights, and active valid driver's license
- ITAR eligibility: U.S. citizen or national, U.S. lawful permanent resident, Refugee, Asylee, or eligible to obtain required Department of State authorizations
- Experience with scripting (Bash/PowerShell/Python) and automation frameworks (Puppet, Terraform, Ansible, etc.)
- Experience with configuration management, provisioning, infrastructure as code, and DevOps concepts/tools
- Familiarity with Active Directory, multi-platform authentication, and identity environments in OT contexts
- System administration experience managing Windows and Linux servers, rudimentary database administration exposure, and storage/backup experience
- Network administration experience and understanding of OSI model especially Layer 1/2/3 for industrial and controls networks
- Experience designing architectures incorporating hyperconverged, rugged industrial edge, and distributed compute technologies
- Working knowledge of industrial protocols, controls networks, and OT cybersecurity best practices (e.g., Purdue Model, IEC 62443)
- Excellent communication skills to interact with internal/external customers, vendors, and management
SpaceX Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about SpaceX and has not been reviewed or approved by SpaceX.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Equity grants are a core part of total compensation, with periodic company-run tender offers that create liquidity before any public listing. These mechanisms can make the equity component feel materially valuable in practice.
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Healthcare Strength — The package includes comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage, with on-site clinics and health resources at major sites. This breadth of coverage is presented as a strong element of the offering.
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Wellbeing & Lifestyle Benefits — Major locations feature on-site amenities such as fitness facilities, food/coffee, clinics, and other conveniences. These lifestyle perks enhance day-to-day value alongside cash and equity.
SpaceX Insights
What We Do
SpaceX designs, manufactures and launches the world’s most advanced rockets and spacecraft. The company was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk to revolutionize space transportation, with the ultimate goal of making life multiplanetary. SpaceX has gained worldwide attention for a series of historic milestones. It is the only private company ever to return a spacecraft from low-Earth orbit, which it first accomplished in December 2010. The company made history again in May 2012 when its Dragon spacecraft attached to the International Space Station, exchanged cargo payloads, and returned safely to Earth — a technically challenging feat previously accomplished only by governments. Since then Dragon has delivered cargo to and from the space station multiple times, providing regular cargo resupply missions for NASA.
