Lead Systems Engineer

Lead Systems Engineer

City/State: Colorado Springs, CO USA

Type and Schedule: Full-Time, Salary/Exempt, on-site with limited remote work flexibility.

Annualized Salary Range: $135,000.00 - $170,000.00 commensurate with experience.

About Us:

Caliola is an award-winning woman-owned small business that is improving and protecting our Nation's way of life through secure collaboration and resilient communications. Our engineers, subject matter experts, and veterans are developing and delivering trusted solutions for mission-critical communications. We seek teammates who share our core values:

I3 for C3 - Insight, Innovation, and Integrity for Command, Control, and Communications

These values guide how we work every day. At Caliola, you will find technically challenging, mission-focused work within a flexible and collaborative culture that is uncommon in the defense industry. We offer flexible PTO, subsidized health insurance, 401(k) matching, professional development, and a competitive compensation structure designed to support long-term growth.

Position Description:

Caliola is seeking an experienced, technically driven Lead Systems Engineer to help design, develop, and deliver advanced communications solutions for mission-critical defense programs. In this role, you'll take ownership of key systems engineering activities across the full program lifecycle, from defining requirements and developing system architectures to integration, verification, and validation. You'll work closely with hardware, software, and other technical teams to solve complex engineering challenges, evaluate design alternatives, and ensure communications systems meet performance requirements and operational needs.

We're looking for an engineer who brings strong systems engineering expertise, sound technical judgment, and the ability to work independently while collaborating across disciplines. You'll have the autonomy to drive technical solutions, influence system design decisions, identify and mitigate risks, and help establish effective systems engineering practices as our programs grow. If you enjoy solving challenging problems, understanding how complex communications technologies work together, and seeing your engineering decisions contribute directly to national defense capabilities, this is an opportunity to make a meaningful impact at a growing defense technology company.

Essential Responsibilities:

Systems Requirements

• Define, analyze, document, and maintain system requirements and traceability.
• Allocate requirements to hardware, software, and subsystems and maintain traceability through verification evidence.
• Ensure requirements are properly managed throughout the program lifecycle and assess any proposed requirement changes for technical, cost, schedule, and verification impacts.

System Design & Architecture

• Develop and evaluate system architectures, lead systems engineering technical planning, and provide technical input during design reviews.
• Develop and maintain system-level technical budgets and engineering metrics.
• Conduct trade studies and engineering analyses to recommend solutions that balance performance, cost, schedule, reliability, and technical risk.

Integration, Verification & Validation

• Develop verification matrices, test plans, procedures, and acceptance criteria; document results and maintain objective evidence of requirement compliance.