Senior Vice President of the Civil Systems Group (SVP, CSG)

The Aerospace Corporation
As the nation's trusted partner in space, The Aerospace Corporation plays a pivotal role in shaping the future of national security space, space exploration, and technological advancement. As an independent, nonprofit corporation operating the largest and only Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) dedicated to the space enterprise, Aerospace (~$1.4B in revenue and ~5,000 employees) provides unparalleled technical expertise, innovative problem-solving and objective analysis to a diverse range of defense, civil, commercial and international customers.

With deep technical disciplinary continuity, state-of-the-art facilities and a legacy of success for over 60 years, Aerospace is uniquely positioned to address national security priorities, mitigate emerging threats, and harness commercial-sector breakthroughs to leverage space in transformative ways for the public good. Whether accelerating next-generation satellite capabilities, optimizing launch readiness, or solving complex systems engineering challenges, Aerospace is at the forefront of safeguarding and advancing our national space capabilities.

Position Overview
The Civil Systems Group provides deep technical expertise and cutting-edge innovation to support the United States government and its allies to solve the most complex technical challenges within high-consequence environments across the civil space enterprise — including human space flight, Moon-to-Mars exploration, Earth sensing, astronomy and space science, and nuclear security — spanning systems engineering and integration, hardware and prototype development, launch readiness, and mission assurance. The Senior Vice President of the Civil Systems Group (SVP, CSG) is responsible for establishing and providing strategic leadership to our key civil, commercial and international partners (i.e., National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), The Aerospace Corporation UK Ltd (Aerospace UK).

Location: This position requires full-time onsite presence (5 days/week) in Chantilly, VA or El Segundo, CA, with consideration given to Houston, TX based on candidate fit — this is a hands-on leadership role requiring regular visibility with the team, government customers, and cross-site collaboration. Employees located across the country.

 

What You Need to be Successful

Minimum Requirements :

• Bachelor's degree in science, engineering, business or other relevant degree (advanced degree preferred)

• Substantial executive leadership experience (typically 15+ years), with a demonstrated track record of leading large, complex organizations

• Savvy to the external landscape, industry trends, and evolving business and partnership models

• Strong entrepreneurial, business and financial acumen

• Strong executive presence to include written, verbal communication and presentation skills; experience engaging with and presenting to a Board of Trustees/Directors is highly desirable

• Experience working in the civil space, national security space, or broader Aerospace and Defense industry

• History of establishing and sustaining trusted relationships with senior government customers and commercial space industry leaders

• Demonstrated ability to develop and execute strategies, inspire and align the workforce to achieve high impact results

• Track record of strong people and organizational management with the ability to develop high performance teams who are aligned to the company's strategic vision and direction

• This position requires the ability to obtain and maintain a TS/SCI security clearance, which is issued by the US government. U.S. citizenship is required to obtain security clearance.

• Ability to travel (25% or as required by customers, industry engagements, internal meetings with leadership and/or team)

How You Can Stand Out

It would be impressive if you have one or more of these:

• Experience running a profit and loss (P&L) center is a plus

• Background in startup, private equity, or emerging commercial space environments is a plus

• Candidates from government, other FFRDCs, national labs, or academic institutions are strongly encouraged to apply

Relocation: Yes

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