Sr. Director, Program Management - TeraWave

Application close date:

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight!  

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight!

Blue Origin is pioneering the future of space-based connectivity with TeraWave, a revolutionary satellite communications network designed to deliver symmetrical data speeds of up to 6 Tbps anywhere on Earth. This network will service tens of thousands of enterprise, data center, and government users who require reliable connectivity for critical operations.

Senior Director, Program Management

As Senior Director, Program Management, you will lead TeraWave's Program Management Office (PMO) and partner with the SVP, TeraWave on how the program operates. You will own the integrated program plan and execution rhythms, including the Integrated Master Schedule, the schedule of schedules that connects every segment, and the program demand plan, which turns the system-of-systems architecture and deployment plan into what the program must build, buy, test, and launch, and when. 

The PMO also owns the shared infrastructure the program runs on: the business rhythms that drive decisions, configuration control of the integrated system of systems, and the analytics that show the program its own health. Product leaders and their embedded technical program managers own their own schedules and execution. The Program Management Office integrates them, holds the baseline, finds cross-segment conflicts early, and makes sure leadership acts on them.

You will set the strategy and operating model at the executive level, and you will also do the work yourself: building the IMS, running the critical path review, owning the demand plan, and presenting it to leadership. You will keep the program management staff small and invest instead in software: you will build and lead a small team of software developers who automate how the program plans, reports, and decides, leveraging AI coding agents. We are looking for someone who has integrated schedules and demand across complex hardware and software programs, sets a high bar for program discipline, and measures the Program Management Office’s success by how much coordination load it takes off the program, not by how large it grows.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

Strategic Leadership & Operating Model 

• Partner with the SVP, TeraWave on strategic planning and operating model across TeraWave. 

• Turn program strategy into an integrated plan with clear milestones, owners, and accountability. 

• Establish the governance forums, business processes, and decision rights the program needs, and close gaps in structure, process, and ownership as the organization scales. 

• Define and manage program KPIs and health metrics, and use them to improve efficiency and decision speed. 

• Lead executive reviews and program-level communications with Blue Origin leadership, customers, and partners. 

Integrated Master Schedule (Schedule of Schedules) 

• Own the TeraWave Integrated Master Schedule. Build and maintain the integration of every segment's schedule, including spacecraft, payloads and terminals, network, and silicon, into one baselined, logic-linked program schedule. 

• Set the IMS architecture and standards: milestone hierarchy, cross-segment interface and handoff milestones, schedule data standards, and how segment schedules feed the IMS. 

• Drive the program critical path and near-critical paths. Coach Product leaders and technical program managers to run risk analysis, track margin, and flag threats to key milestones early, with options for recovery. 

• Define and enforce "definition of done" and readiness criteria for program milestones, tied to integration, test, and product certification.  

Program Demand Plan 

• Own the program demand plan across the system-of-systems architecture. Translate the architecture, deployment and launch plan, and test strategy into demand for flight units, test articles, spares, ground infrastructure, user terminals, and silicon, with need-dates for each. 

• Keep the demand plan, the IMS, and the configuration baseline aligned, so that changes to architecture or schedule flow through to demand and back. 

• Provide the demand signal to Supply Chain, Manufacturing, and Finance for capacity planning, long-lead procurement, and the annual operating plan, and track supply against demand. 

• Run demand and supply trades and bring recommendations to program leadership when capacity, cost, or schedule constraints conflict. 

Business Rhythms 

• Design and run TeraWave's operating cadence: Program Business Reviews, deep dives, risk reviews, and support the integrated program calendar. 

• For each rhythm, define the purpose, required inputs, decision outputs, and output owners. Track actions to closure. 

• Maintain the integrated program risk and opportunity register. Segment leads own their risks; the PMO makes sure cross-segment risks are visible and owned. 

System-of-Systems Configuration & Release Management 

• Own the program-level configuration management process and baseline control across segments: configuration items, the integrated BOM, release and change management. 

• Build and keep the link between requirements baselines and the configuration baseline, so the program has one version of the truth. 

• Make sure configuration baselines support design release to integration and test and the handoff to manufacturing. 

Business Analytics & Automation 

• Build and lead the PMO's business analytics software development team. Set the team's roadmap, priorities, and engineering standards. 

• Deliver the tools, data pipelines, and dashboards for schedule health, demand vs. supply, KPIs, configuration status, and headcount and hiring. 

• Automate program reporting, including IMS roll-ups, demand management, assembly status, pre-reads, and action tracking. Treat AI and automation as the default way to scale the Program Management Office’s output. 

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, a technical discipline, Business, or a related field, or equivalent experience.

• 15+ years of experience in program management, program integration, or program planning and control on complex, multidisciplinary hardware or hardware/software programs (aerospace, satellite, telecommunications, semiconductor, or similar).

• 8+ years of people leadership experience.
• Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's degree in Engineering, Business Administration, Operations, or a related field.

• Experience with satellite constellations, spacecraft, ground networks, user terminals, or custom silicon programs.
• Experience integrating schedules and demand across a system of systems with concurrent development and production.
• Experience leading software development or analytics teams, and hands-on experience building dashboards, data pipelines, or program tooling.
• Familiarity or fluency with AI tools and their use in automating program planning, reporting, and analysis.

Additional Requirements:

• This position is based in Seattle, WA or Cupertino, CA. 

• Travel of less than 10%.

• Must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or eligible for authorization under U.S. export regulations.

Base Pay Range for:

Other site ranges may differ

Culture Statement

Don’t meet all desired requirements? Studies have shown that some people are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single desired qualification. At Blue Origin, we are dedicated to building an authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every desired qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Export Control Regulations

Applicants for employment at Blue Origin must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (i.e. current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Background Check

• Required for all positions: Blue’s Standard Background Check
• Required for Certain Job Profiles:  Defense Biometric Identification System (DBIDS) background check if at any time the role requires one to be on a military installation
• Required for Certain Job Profiles: Drivers who operate Commercial Motor Vehicles with a Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW), Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) or combination of power unit and trailer that meets or exceeds 10,001 lbs. and/or transports placardable amounts of hazardous materials by ground in any vehicle on a public road while in commerce, may be subject to additional Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations including: Driver Qualification Files, Medical Certification (obtained before onboarding), Road Test, Hours of Service, Drug and Alcohol Testing, vehicle inspection requirements, CDL requirements (if applicable) and hazardous materials transportation/shipping training.
• Required for certain Job Profiles: Ability to obtain and maintain Merchant Mariner Credential, which includes pre-employment and random drug testing as well as DOT physical

Benefits

• Benefits include:  Medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability, 401(k) with a company match of up to 5%, and an Education Support Program.
• Stock Options for all regular employees (working at least 20 hours/week)
• Paid Time Off:  Up to four (4) weeks per year based on weekly scheduled hours, and up to 14 company-paid holidays.
• Dependent on role type and job level, employees may be eligible for benefits and bonuses based on the company's intent to reward individual contributions and enable them to share in the company's results, or other factors at the company's sole discretion. Bonus amounts and eligibility are not guaranteed and subject to change and cancellation. Please check with your recruiter for more details.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Blue Origin is proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer and is committed to attracting, retaining, and developing a highly qualified and dedicated work force. Blue Origin hires and promotes people on the basis of their qualifications, performance, and abilities. We support the establishment and maintenance of a workplace that fosters trust, equality, and teamwork. We provide all qualified applicants for employment and employees with equal opportunities for hire, promotion, and other terms and conditions of employment, regardless of their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin/ethnicity, age, physical or mental disability, genetic factors, military/veteran status, or any other status or characteristic protected by federal, state, and/or local law. Blue Origin will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state, and local laws, including the Washington Fair Chance Act, the California Fair Chance Act, the Los Angeles Fair Chance in Hiring Ordinance, and other applicable laws. For more information on “Know Your Rights,” please see here.

Affirmative Action and Disability Accommodation

Applicants wishing to receive information on Blue Origin’s Affirmative Action Plans, or applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in the application and/or interview process, please contact us at [email protected]. Please note this is a publicly managed inbox. Please do not include any personal medical information in your request.