Senior Team Lead, Launcher & Ground Segment

ABOUT US Harmattan AI is a next-generation defense prime building autonomous and scalable defense systems. Following the close of a $200M Series B, valuing the company at $1.4 billion, we are expanding our teams and capabilities to deliver mission-critical systems to allied forces. Our work is guided by clear values: building technologies with real-world impact, pursuing excellence in everything we do, setting ambitious goals, and taking on the hardest technical challenges. We operate in a demanding environment where rigor, ownership, and execution are expected. Location: Rabat, Morocco — on site. Contract: Permanent, full time ABOUT THE ROLE As Senior Team Lead, Launcher & Ground Segment, you will own everything on the development of our systems related to the ground — from concept to field deployment. You will define the architecture of our systems, lead a cross-disciplinary team across mechanical, electrical and software, and prove the design at the trials site. RESPONSIBILITIES - Launcher & Ground Segment Team: Build, lead and grow a cross-disciplinary engineering team spanning mechanical, electrical and software. - Launcher & Ground Segment Systems: Drive architecture and implementation of launch structures, transport and handling, launch power, electronics and harness, launch control software, and the interface into the command-and-control stack. - Hands-On Delivery: Personally deliver mechanical design and electronics bring-up until the team is in place. You build before you delegate. - Technical Coordination: Lead cross-functional design across internal teams. Arbitrate when mechanical, electrical and software disagree, and make the decision hold. - Trade-Off & Design Analysis: Conduct feasibility studies, trade-off analyses and system-level assessments to settle open architecture questions and guide technical choices. - Integration & Validation: Own integration, prototyping, qualification and field campaigns, ensuring performance targets are met in real operating conditions. - System Reviews: Drive design and architecture reviews, maintaining consistency between requirements, design and testing. Own the technical evidence that gates programme milestones. - Supply Base: Manage hardware suppliers and stand up the local supply base. CANDIDATE REQUIREMENTS - 5+ years in mechanical or mechatronics engineering within defense, aerospace or robotics, including at least 2 leading or coordinating engineers across more than one discipline. - MSc in Mechanical, Mechatronics or Aerospace Engineering, or a closely related technical field. A track record of building will outweigh the degree. - At least one deployable mechanism taken from concept to field use - Proven experience across full system lifecycles - Qualification exposure under a defense customer. - Clear evidence of building things yourself, not only specifying them. - Broad engineering culture: you read a schematic and a state machine as readily as a CAD model. - Entrepreneurial, hands-on and comfortable a long way from headquarters. You design from first principles, take local decisions and defend them, and stay rigorous on anything touching the safety case. We look forward to hearing how you can help shape the future of autonomous defense systems at Harmattan AI.