Business Development Engineer I

About Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab is an end-to-end space company that builds rockets, spacecraft, and critical subsystems that keep the world connected and protected, and that extend humanity's reach to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. The team moves fast, builds real hardware for meaningful missions, and makes the impossible routine.

Business Development

The Business Development team connects government and commercial customers with Rocket Lab's mission solutions across launch and space systems. They build tailored solutions with new and existing customers and maintain relationships with internal engineering and operations teams.

Business Development Engineer I

Based at Rocket Lab's global headquarters in Long Beach, CA, the HASTE Business Development & Strategy Engineer is an early-career role focused on hypersonic flight testing, national security, and business development. You will support the growth of the HASTE (Hypersonic Accelerator Suborbital Test Electron) business and new opportunities supporting the nation's hypersonic test and evaluation needs.

As part of the Global Launch Services (GLS) Business Development team, you will work with experienced professionals and collaborate with Engineering, Mission Management, Production, and other teams. Reporting to the Director of Business Development, HASTE, you will gain experience in opportunity identification, market and competitive analysis, capture and proposal work, and developing mission concepts and business cases.

What You'll Do

• Draft proposals for new business opportunities with Business Development and Engineering teams.
• Track opportunities, analyze pipeline activity, and forecast demand for HASTE capabilities.
• Work with Engineering to assess mission requirements and prepare technical responses to HASTE inquiries.
• Work with Production and Engineering to set realistic NRE timelines and launch dates for future missions.
• Work with Communications and Business Development to maintain and improve HASTE marketing materials, data sheets, and user guides.
• Partner with Engineering to identify technical gaps and improve customer-facing technical documentation.
• Use internal tools, including Salesforce, to track leads, opportunities, and proposals, and support reporting and KPI development.
• Support launch service agreements, technical assistance agreements, and non-disclosure agreements, along with Jira ticket creation, tracking, and prioritization.
• Build and maintain knowledge of the suborbital launch and hypersonic test markets, including competitors, customer demand, and emerging trends, to support sales forecasting, pricing, business planning, and HASTE product development.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience or academic exposure to designing, manufacturing, integrating, or testing hypersonic systems, payloads, or flight vehicles.
• Experience with hypersonic systems, flight testing, or launch vehicles.
• Familiarity with hypersonic flight test, missile defense, suborbital launch, or related national security markets.
• Experience on fast-paced engineering programs with distributed or cross-functional teams.
• Master's degree in aerospace engineering or a related engineering discipline such as mechanical, electrical, or computer engineering.
• Experience with Python scripting, trajectory generation, or trajectory analysis.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Curiosity and enthusiasm for aerospace, hypersonics, and national security applications.
• Strong organizational and problem-solving skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and work independently when needed.
• Ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams and colleagues with diverse technical backgrounds.
• Ability to explain complex technical concepts clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.

Benefits and Compensation

You will receive company stock as part of your total compensation, in addition to competitive base pay. The benefits package includes an Employee Stock Purchase Program (15% discount on company stock), medical plans (HMO, PPO, and a zero cost HDHP option with HSA contribution), dental and vision coverage, paid vacation and sick time, 11 paid holidays, flexible spending and dependent care accounts, paid parental leave, disability and life insurance, and a 401(k) with company match.

Perks include subsidized EV charging, onsite fitness centers (where available), discounted gym memberships, complimentary snacks and beverages, a 50% employee discount on the merch store, and other employee discounts.

This position may require prolonged periods of sitting, standing, walking, computer work, and occasional exposure to moderate levels of noise, dust, and fumes in production areas.