What are the responsibilities and job description for the Chief Engineer III position at Elevait Solutions?
Chief Engineer III | Onsite | New Hudson MI
What You'll Do
What You'll Do
- Lead engineering execution of defense programs, ensuring technical excellence, customer satisfaction, quality, schedule adherence, and profitability.
- Support business development activities including market intelligence, customer engagement, opportunity evaluation, scope development, and proposal leadership.
- Lead, mentor, and develop multidisciplinary engineering teams.
- Plan and direct engineering programs, reviewing designs for compliance with engineering principles, company standards, and customer requirements.
- Approve design changes, specifications, and drawing releases.
- Coordinate technical development activities, schedules, testing efforts, and resolution of engineering challenges.
- Lead development of electrical and hybrid vehicle architectures and system partitioning strategies.
- Conduct competitive assessments and SWOT analyses to support solution development and market positioning.
- Drive implementation of engineering best practices across the organization.
- Present technical solutions and capabilities to customers, leadership, and strategic partners.
- Ensure technical solutions align with organizational goals, industry roadmaps, and emerging technologies.
- Establish technical objectives, perform trade studies, resolve conflicts, and guide technical decision-making.
- Coordinate resource planning, forecasting, recruiting, and program execution activities.
- Identify and mitigate technical and program risks.
- Lead internal and external technical communications to ensure project success.
- Manage customer relationships, provide program updates, and ensure timely delivery of project milestones.
- Oversee project financial performance and profitability.
- Support continuous improvement initiatives and provide feedback on evolving customer needs.
- BS or MS degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related engineering discipline.
- Minimum 15 years of experience within the Defense industry.
- Experience in full vehicle design and development, including chassis systems, propulsion systems, and energy systems.
- Expertise in vehicle testing, evaluation, verification, and validation.
- Strong background in systems engineering, systems safety, and safety-critical software development.
- Knowledge of lean product development methodologies, including CAE tools and optimization techniques.
- Experience developing and executing verification and validation strategies.
- Understanding of functional safety systems, software integration, and system architecture development.
- Strong knowledge of vehicle architecture and subsystem integration.
- Experience in one or more of the following areas: Weapon Systems, Combat Vehicle Engineering, Fire Control Systems, Turrets and Ammunition Handling Systems, Virtual Environments and Battlefield Systems, Defense AI and Software
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook).
- Ability to communicate strategic vision and translate it into operational execution plans.
- Ability to obtain a Security Clearance.
- Travel: 10-15%, mostly to customers within 30 miles radius a few times per week. Minimmal out of state travel.
- This role reports directly to the Defense Technical Director.
- The position offers opportunities for career growth through expanded leadership responsibilities, business unit alignment, and strategic partnerships.
- Successful candidates will be self-directed, adaptable, collaborative, and comfortable operating in ambiguous environments.
- Travel requirements may vary from limited to extensive depending on program needs.
- Flexibility to work extended hours may be required to meet critical project deadlines.