Product Manager - Safety Critical Systems

About Us STARK is a new kind of defence technology company revolutionising the way autonomous systems are deployed across multiple domains. We design, develop, and manufacture high-performance unmanned systems that are software-defined, mass-scalable, and cost-effective — providing operators with a decisive edge in contested environments. We are focused on delivering deployable, high-performance systems — not future promises. In a time of rising threats, STARK is bolstering the technological edge of NATO Allies and their Partners to deter aggression and defend Europe, today. Your mission STARK's autonomous platforms — aerial and maritime — operate in contested, high-stakes environments where safety systems must function without exception. As Product Manager for Safety-Critical Systems, you will own the requirements engineering, roadmap and delivery of the systems that make that guarantee possible: from Flight Termination Systems on our UAVs to fire suppression and recovery on our USVs. This is a hands-on, high-accountability role at the intersection of systems engineering, software engineering and cybersecurity, and the foundation of trust that enables everything STARK ships. Responsibilities • Own the requirements engineering, roadmap and delivery for all safety-critical systems across STARK's UAV and USV platforms • Lead product-level contributions to Functional Hazard Analyses (FHA) and Fault Tree Analyses (FTA), translating identified risks into concrete product requirements • Serve as the product bridge between cybersecurity and safety engineering • Champion a "Digital Thread" for safety: end-to-end traceability from high-level system safety requirements through development, verification, and post-mission analysis • Define architectures that are mass-scalable and cost-effective — not bespoke, one-off solutions — enabling STARK to deploy safe autonomous systems at scale • Collaborate with systems engineers, system safety engineers, certification leads, and executive stakeholders to drive design decisions and communicate risk clearly • Drive the company's "Digital-First Safety" posture, ensuring compliance with applicable standards (e.g. SIL-2/3, DO-178C, IEC 61508) while maintaining architectural resilience against emerging threats. • Shape STARK's approach to safe agentic autonomy — ensuring increasingly autonomous behaviour remains deterministic and verifiable Qualifications • Degree (B.Sc. or M.Sc.) in Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Computer Science, or a closely related technical discipline • Proven track record as a Product Manager, Product Owner, or Systems Engineer delivering complex hardware/software systems under rigorous safety or regulatory standards • Deep working knowledge of safety standards and methodologies, e.g. IEC 61508, DO-178C, DO-254, ISO 26262, FHA, FTA • Experience taking a hardware/software product from concept through certification and into field deployment • Technical fluency in safety architecture concepts: redundancy topologies, dissimilar architectures, real-time operating systems • Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional delivery activities and drive decisions in ambiguous, high-stakes technical environments • Eligible to obtain appropriate security clearance for defence work Nice to have • Experience with Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) and standards such as MOSA or FACE • Background in cybersecurity — particularly in understanding how offensive threat models translate into safety requirements • Familiarity with autonomous systems or UAV/USV platforms • Experience in a scaling defence-tech or aerospace startup environment If you're interested in building the future of European Defence with us, and you see yourself reflected on the description above, please send us your CV in English. We´re looking forward to meeting you!