Product Manager (Mission Planning Operations/Ground Terminal Management)

Mechanical & Aerospaceposted 2w ago

ABOUT SPHINX

Sphinx builds software to solve complex national security problems in Space. Founded by engineers and technologists with deep experience across commercial and defense technology, we were frustrated by the outdated and insecure technology America's service members are forced to rely on. We're here to do better.

We’re focused on building modern, scalable products with an emphasis on using open source technologies. Expect talented, motivated, and interesting colleagues who emphasize collaboration, transparency, and individual responsibility.

ABOUT THE ROLE

Sphinx is hiring a Product Manager – Mission Planning Operations/Ground Terminal Management to join our team building the next generation of mission planning, satellite command and control, and ground terminal software for U.S. Government space programs.

As the Product Manager for the Ops & Terminals IPT, you will lead product direction and execution across multiple Agile development teams, with a particular focus on satellite control and telemetry, RF terminal management, and Mission Planning Operator workflows. You will serve as the primary connection between operator user groups, program technical leadership, and engineering, and you will be responsible for ensuring that user needs are understood, translated into prioritized software features, and met through the development and delivery of software features.

You will be a key advocate for the operator, collecting direct user feedback when available and applying your own domain expertise when it is not. Success in this role requires enough technical and operational depth to understand how satellite and terminal operators work, anticipate their needs, and make informed product decisions without relying solely on prescriptive customer requirements.

What you will be focusing on:

Serving as the primary user advocate for the Ops & Terminals IPT, representing operator needs and balancing them with the broader software and product strategy throughout the development lifecycle.
Owning feature-level priorities across Program Increments (PIs), partnering with team leads and Product Owners to break features into sprint-level stories and tasks, while maintaining alignment across IPT dependencies and broader program priorities.
Applying expertise in satellite command and control, telemetry, RF terminal management, and ground operations to inform product decisions and development priorities.
Translating high-level technical modules, mission objectives, and operational needs into prioritized feature-level requirements, partnering with team leads and Product Owners to support decomposition into sprint-level stories and tasks.
Owning and managing the feature roadmap across multiple Program Increments (PIs) and ensuring priorities align with broader program execution timelines.
Serving as the primary point of contact for designated operator and customer user groups, gathering, defining, and validating requirements and incorporating feedback into product priorities.
Acting as the voice of the user when direct feedback is limited, using domain expertise and operational context to guide product decisions and prevent development from drifting away from actual user needs.
Owning and prioritizing product backlogs and clearly communicating what engineering should build, why it matters, and what successful delivery looks like.
Coordinating across Agile teams, technical leads, and peer Product Managers to identify and resolve cross-team and cross-track dependencies.
Partnering with engineering and program leadership to manage scope, priorities, risks, and tradeoffs as mission and program needs evolve.
Participating in relevant program and technical boards to support scope adjustments, requirements decisions, and priority tradeoffs.
Supporting demonstrations and technical documentation that communicate product capabilities and validate solutions with users and stakeholders.

You might be a good fit if you have:

8+ years of experience working on or leading software product development teams delivering functional software.
Demonstrated experience supporting satellite command and control, telemetry, ground systems, RF terminals, or closely related space mission operations.
Experience leading product execution across multiple Agile software development teams or complex, interconnected development efforts.
Strong understanding of operator workflows and mission needs with the ability to translate operational challenges into software capabilities.
Demonstrated experience translating complex technical, mission, and customer requirements into actionable software features and development priorities while collaborating directly with engineering leadership, software architects, and cross-functional test teams throughout the development lifecycle.
Experience owning product backlogs, feature roadmaps, and prioritization across iterative software development cycles.
Ability to effectively represent the user’s perspective, including making informed product decisions when direct or complete user feedback is unavailable.
Experience working directly with government, mission partner, or other highly technical end users to define and validate requirements.
Strong technical aptitude and the ability to work effectively with software engineers, systems engineers, architects, and technical leads.
Experience navigating dependencies and priorities across multiple development teams and stakeholders.
Excellent communication skills with the ability to articulate product decisions, technical tradeoffs, risks, and priorities to technical and non-technical audiences.
Familiarity with cloud-based development environments and tools such as AWS, DOORS, Cameo, GitLab, Jira, Slack, or similar platforms.
Familiarity with reading, understanding, and working with technical models, system requirements, and related engineering documentation.
The ability to learn quickly, exercise sound judgment, and thrive in a fast-paced, ambiguous mission environment.
Hold an active Secret clearance and be eligible to obtain and maintain TS/SCI access.

LOCATION

This role can be based out of Colorado Springs, CO, Chantilly, VA or El Segundo, CA. This position requires approximately 30% travel, depending on program needs and where the selected candidate resides. We welcome consideration of exceptional candidates regardless of location, provided travel requirements can be met.

COMPENSATION

This role is between $190,000 - $215,000 base salary.

BENEFITS

Compensation includes competitive salary, meaningful equity ownership, profit sharing, employer 401(k) contribution, and 100% employer covered medical, dental, and vision insurance for you and your dependents.

ELIGIBILITY

Must be a US Citizen.

Must be able to obtain and hold a U.S. Top Secret security clearance.

EEO STATEMENT

At Sphinx Defense, we are devoted to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. Sphinx Defense is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

CLEARANCE ELIGIBILITY - This position requires eligibility to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance. For more information about U.S. Security Clearances: click here.

To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.