As Vice President Operations, you will be responsible for developing strategic plans and providing leadership to the team to achieve overall excellence in operations. As a key leader, you will work towards the success of our mission and vision goals and communicate a transformational operations vision that motivates and promotes continuous process improvement, improves process efficiency, as well as increases cost savings and customer satisfaction. You will provide guidance to lead your teams to create and sustain high performing operations in accordance with our policies and procedures as well as with external rules and regulations, to produce consistent and scalable operations processes. You will also develop key strategies for scalability and growth as well as risk management, promote our visions and values, and mentor individuals to achieve business objectives.

Sierra Space-based in Louisville, CO with operations in Madison, WI, Durham, NC, Huntsville, AL, Houston, TX, and Kennedy Space Center, FL—designs and manufactures the Dream Chaser spaceplane and other advanced spacecraft, commercial space destinations, satellites, propulsion and environmental systems, spacecraft subsystems and components for the U.S. government (including NASA), commercial customers, and international organizations.

Primary Responsibilities:

Provide a transformational operations vision and leadership that cultivates a culture of empowerment and accountability.
Build and promote operations people, process, and tools practices that will drive accountability, scalability, stability and continual improvement.
Responsible for aligning operations teams across a diverse set of practices, technologies and toolsets into a cohesive standard operating model.
Design strategic plans for application architecture, solutions, integration strategies, governance, quality assurance and business support processes.
Plan and execute development projects while ensuring that teams have necessary product knowledge, technical specifications, direction and resourcing to deliver projects on an aggressive, but achievable timelines.
Build and attract high performing teams through leadership, mentoring and development.
Establish training and certification requirements for all operations personnel.
Establish key indicators of success, and promote a culture of high performance and continuous improvement that values learning and a commitment to quality.
Proactively recommend integration opportunities across the enterprise.
Collaborate with BA personnel to plan, coordinate and execute the annual budget process.
Ensure that enterprise operations are adhering to the strategic annual plan.
Support the development and execution of short and long-term operational plans for all manufacturing functions and assist with adjustment of plans as necessary for evolving situations to ensure delivery through major operational metrics: Safety, Quality and Schedule Realization.
Set individual targets by business area for improvements in safety, quality, delivery, and productivity and work with them to establish guidelines to regularly audit performance against the goals.
Participate in the strategic technology IPT to provide operations requirements for IT upgrades
Develop contingency plans for business interruptions.

Must Haves:

Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent experience required. Master’s level degree or an MBA a plus.
Minimum of 15 years of related experience in senior level production and manufacturing leadership.
Relevant work experience may be considered in lieu of required education
Experience with large, sophisticated composite airframe prototype development (engineering – procurement – fabrication - test).
Experience leading a large, multidisciplinary team consisting or shop floor technicians, manufacturing engineers, tool designers/fabricators, industrial engineers, material planners and manufacturing program managers.
Excellent interpersonal skills, highly professional, diplomatic, demonstrated executive level presence, outstanding stewardship and relationship building skills.
Well-rounded professional with a can do spirit; proactive, value add, innovator, problem solver, creates business partnerships and rapport.
Considerable knowledge of management practice and policy interpretation or some combination of education and experience that would enable senior technical capability allowing the incumbent to independently evaluate, select, and apply techniques and standards.
Strategic planning and budgeting experience.

Preferred:

The ability to obtain and maintain a Security Clearance may be required

Physical/Mental/Emotional Requirements:

Frequently walk, sit, stand, climb stairs and steps
Frequently repeat same hand, arm, and finger motion many times to include finger and hand dexterity
Rarely lifting or carrying up to 25 lbs.

Working Conditions:

Rarely exposed to outdoor elements (high/low temperatures, sun, rain/snow, etc.)
Rarely exposed to fumes or hazardous chemicals/materials
Rarely exposed to loud noises

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

To conform to U.S. Government international trade regulations, applicant must be a U.S. Citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State or U.S. Department of Commerce.

At Sierra Space (Sierra Space) we deliver customer-focused technology and best-of-breed integrations in the aerospace and defense sectors. Sierra Space has been honored as one of the most innovative U.S. companies in space, a Tier One Superior Supplier for the U.S. Air Force, and as one of America’s fastest-growing companies.

With 30+ years of proven spaceflight heritage, Sierra Space has provided more than 4,000 space systems, subsystems and components to customers worldwide, and participated in more than 500 missions to space, including to Mars. The company has technology in production and in development to enable space habitats for short- and long-duration space travel, a fleet of Dream Chaser spaceplanes, and the first free-flying commercial space station.

Estimated Starting Salary Range:

$246,117.71 - $369,176.57

Sierra Space offers annual incentive pay based upon performance that is commensurate with the level of the position.

Sierra Space offers a generous benefit package, including medical, dental, and vision plans, 401(k) with 150% match up to 8%, life insurance, 3 weeks paid time off, tuition reimbursement, and more.

At Sierra Space, our mission is to dream, innovate, inspire and empower the next generation to transform humanity through technology and imagination. As an Equal Opportunity Employer, we welcome our employees to bring their whole selves to their work. Sierra Space is committed to fostering an inclusive, accepting, and diverse environment free of discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran. Contributions to Sierra Space come in many shapes and styles, and we believe diversity in our workforce fosters new and greater ways to dream, innovate, and inspire.

About Us

About Sierra Space

Sierra Space

is a leading commercial space company that is building platforms in space to benefit life on Earth. With more than 30 years and 500 missions of space flight heritage, Sierra Space is enabling the future of space transportation with Dream Chaser®, the world’s only winged commercial spaceplane. Expected to launch in 2023 on a series of NASA missions, Dream Chaser can safely carry cargo – and eventually crew – to on-orbit destinations, returning to land on compatible commercial airport runways worldwide. Sierra Space is also building the LIFE™ habitat, a three-story commercial habitation and science platform designed for low Earth orbit (LEO). Both Dream Chaser and LIFE are central components to Orbital Reef, a mixed-use business park in LEO being developed by principal partners Sierra Space and Blue Origin, which is expected to be operational by 2027.