Director of Mission Products & Payload Integration

Turning Space into a Transportation Layer for Earth Who We Are: Inversion builds advanced reentry systems to deliver next-generation capabilities from space. Our mission is to make Earth radically more accessible by turning Low-Earth Orbit into an on-demand logistics domain. We see space not as a destination, but as a platform — one that unlocks unprecedented speed and global reach. Our spacecraft are designed to deliver payloads anywhere on Earth in under an hour, operating through extreme reentry conditions and landing with high precision. These systems open the door to new ways of testing, delivering, and operating at hypersonic speeds. Inherently dual-use, our technology is built to meet urgent national security needs while laying the groundwork for future commercial applications. Backed by leading investors including Y Combinator, Spark Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures, and working with partners such as the U.S. Space Force and NASA, Inversion is pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in space-based defense and logistics. Position Overview: We're looking for a Director or Senior Director of Mission Products & Payload Integration to lead this new organization. You'll sit at the intersection of engineering, product, mission design, and customer needs — defining and building the technical products that make Arc valuable: payload bay architectures, mounting solutions, trajectory and mission design offerings, and the avionics and software interfaces that make payload integration seamless. This is a strategic and hands-on leadership role. The ideal candidate combines deep aerospace engineering judgment with strong product instincts, customer empathy, and the ability to lead high-performing teams. You should have a strong sense for what hypersonic test customers, defense customers, and advanced payload developers will want to fly — and how their payloads need to interface mechanically, electrically, thermally, and digitally with Arc. Key Responsibilities: Product & Roadmap Leadership Define and own the technical roadmap for Arc's mission product layer — payload integration, mission design, and customer-facing capabilities Identify new product opportunities driven by customer demand across hypersonic testing, defense, space systems, materials, sensors, communications, and other advanced aerospace fields Drive roadmap execution through engineering, from concept through flight Payload Bay & Accommodation Own Arc's payload bay design strategy and accommodation approach Define standard payload envelopes, mounting solutions, modular interface concepts, and environmental constraints Develop separation and deployment options and customer-specific integration approaches Partner with vehicle engineering to translate customer needs into robust, manufacturable, flight-ready interfaces Mission Design & Analysis Lead development of customer-facing mission design capabilities: trajectory design, mission analysis, flight environment characterization, launch vehicle integration, and CONOPS development Collaborate across GNC, flight software, avionics, structures, thermal, propulsion, recovery, business development, and program teams Payload Interface Ecosystem Define the avionics, software, data, and customer interface ecosystem that enables efficient payload integration Deliver payload electrical interfaces, command and data handling, and telemetry access Build mission planning tools, software APIs, test equipment, integration documentation, and customer onboarding workflows Customer Engagement Serve as one of Arc's primary technical voices with customers — communicating capabilities, shaping mission concepts, and advancing customer objectives Work directly with business development to identify patterns across customer payloads and translate them into scalable product offerings Team Building & Leadership Recruit, manage, and develop a multidisciplinary team owning mission products end-to-end Team may include mission designers, systems…