Senior Director, Software Architecture

Company Overview Red 6 is an innovative Augmented Reality (AR) technology startup leading the way in synthetic air combat training. Our primary technology, supporting our ATARS product, enables pilots to simulate the cognitive challenges of flying while accessing realistic, scalable training in dynamic outdoor environments. The Role Red 6 is seeking a highly experienced Senior Director, Software Architecture to join our dynamic team in Louisville, CO or Santa Monica, CA. The Senior Director, Software Architecture reports directly to the Chief Product Officer and is responsible for defining, governing, and evolving the software architecture across Red 6's Advanced Tactical Augmented Reality System (ATARS) product portfolio and future software platforms. As the senior ranking Software Architect, this role establishes long-term software technical strategy, ensuring scalable, secure, and maintainable software architectures spanning real-time graphics, embedded software, edge computing, AI-enabled capabilities, cloud services, mission applications, simulation, and aircraft integration. Working closely with Engineering leadership, Product Management, Chief Engineer(s), and Program teams, this leader drives architectural consistency across products while enabling rapid innovation and disciplined execution. As a Sr Director, this role may also help people manage one or more groups of SW engineers within the greater software team. As a deeply technical executive, the Senior Director, Software Architecture provides hands-on technical leadership, establishes software engineering best practices, governs architecture decisions, and mentors software architects and senior engineering leaders. This position serves as a primary software architecture advisor to the Chief Product Officer and Chief Technology Officer as well as other executive leadership and customers, ensuring Red 6 maintains a modern, scalable, and mission-ready software ecosystem. Responsibilities - Serve as the technical authority for enterprise software architecture across Red 6's ATARS and future software-enabled products. - Define and maintain the long-term software architecture roadmap supporting current programs and next-generation capabilities. - Lead architectural definition across embedded software, real-time rendering, simulation, mission systems, networking, cloud infrastructure, edge computing, AI/ML services, and user applications. - Establish software architecture governance through Architecture Review Boards, design standards, reusable frameworks, and technical decision processes. - Partner with Chief Engineers to ensure software architectures align with overall system architecture, technical baselines, and product roadmaps. - Drive adoption of modular, scalable, and reusable software architectures supporting MOSA, OMS, FACE, and emerging defense standards. - Lead software modernization initiatives including containerization, cloud-native services, DevSecOps, CI/CD automation, Infrastructure Code, and software factory implementation. - Define enterprise software development standards including coding practices, architectural patterns, API governance, software quality metrics, and secure software development lifecycle practices. - Provide technical leadership for AI-enabled capabilities, autonomy frameworks, computer vision, machine learning integration, and data-driven mission applications. - Guide software architecture supporting mixed reality, augmented reality, real-time visualization, synthetic training environments, and distributed simulation. - Ensure software architectures meet performance requirements for latency, determinism, scalability, cybersecurity, reliability, and maintainability. - Collaborate with Systems Engineering to support Digital Engineering initiatives, MBSE, requirements of traceability, interface management, and verification planning. - Identify technical risks, conduct architecture trade studies, and establish mitigation strategies. -…