R&D Manager - LabVIEW Controls Systems

About Helion

We are a fusion power company based in Everett, WA, with the mission to build the world's first fusion power plant, enabling a future with unlimited clean electricity. Our vision is a world with clean, reliable, and affordable energy for everyone.
Since Helion's founding in 2013, we have raised $1.5 billion from long-time investors such as Sam Altman, Mithril, and Capricorn Investment Group as well as new investors including Thrive Capital, LightSpeed Venture Capital, SoftBank, and others to propel us forward. Our current prototype, Polaris, has reached record-breaking plasma temperatures of 150 million degrees Celsius (13 keV). Helion is continuing to iterate and on the path to the world's first fusion power plant, Orion.
This is a pivotal time to join Helion. You will tackle real-world challenges with a team that prizes urgency, rigor, ownership, and a commitment to delivering hard truths – values essential to achieving what no one has before. Together, we will change the future of energy, because the world can't wait.

What You Will Be Doing:

You will manage the Control Systems team within Helion’s R&D department and lead the team in delivering reliable systems that enable rapid experimentation while creating a scalable foundation for increasingly complex machines. This team delivers and maintains control and data acquisition systems for high-voltage electrical test bays, plasma-technology test bays, production and manufacturing end-of-line testing, and large field-reversed configuration (FRC) plasma machines.

Your near-term focus will be strengthening and standardizing control system architectures, hardware, software, and development practices across these applications. Over time, the team’s scope may expand to include contributions to the control system for Orion, Helion’s first fusion power plant. You will report to the R&D Manager and work onsite at our Everett, WA office.

You Will:

• Effectively manage a team of controls engineers in the timely and successful delivery of control and data acquisition systems across R&D

• Guide the development and maintenance of code, testing, deployment, configuration-management, and documentation practices that support future growth

• Balance rapid delivery for near-term experimental needs with the development of reliable, maintainable, and scalable control systems

• Build effective partnerships with scientists, engineers, machine operators, production teams, and other internal stakeholders

• Establish clear priorities, ownership, expectations, and technical direction for the team

• Proactively identify and mitigate technical, organizational, and staffing constraints

• Coach and develop engineers through clear expectations, actionable feedback, and meaningful growth opportunities

• Maintain a high performance bar, address performance challenges, and build a culture of accountability, urgency, and technical rigor

• Recruit and grow the team as needed to accomplish its mission

• Advocate effectively for the team with partner organizations and company leadership

Required Skills:

• Minimum 2+ years managing controls engineers within a scaling environment

• Demonstrated ability to lead, coach, and develop engineers, including setting clear expectations, providing actionable feedback, and building accountability

• Ability to set technical direction, prioritize competing needs, and lead a team through ambiguous or rapidly changing requirements

• Experience developing control and data acquisition systems for large-scale, complex hardware

• Technical proficiency with LabVIEW and NI hardware in control system applications, including PXI, cRIO, real-time systems, and FPGA

• Experience integrating PLCs with LabVIEW- and NI-based control systems

• Experience integrating text-based code, such as C or MATLAB, with LabVIEW- and NI-based control systems

• Strong cross-functional communication and collaboration skills

#LI-Onsite

Benefits

Our total compensation package includes benefits, including but not limited to:

• Medical, Dental, and Vision plans for employees and their families

• 31 Days of PTO (21 vacation days and 10 sick days)

• 10 Paid holidays, plus company-wide winter break

• Up to 5% employer 401(k) match

• Short term disability, long term disability, and life insurance

• Paid parental leave and support (up to 16 weeks)

• Annual wellness stipend

Helion is an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the interview process, please let us know.