Engineering Manager

Our client is an advanced engineering services organization delivering highly specialized R&D solutions for complex, high-performance applications. The company operates at the intersection of applied physics and multidisciplinary engineering, supporting customers in sectors where precision, reliability, and technical rigor are critical.Its work spans the full lifecycle of complex systems, from early concept and design through validation and delivery, leveraging deep expertise in optical systems, instrumentation, and tightly integrated mechanical, electronic, and analytical domains. Projects are typically customer-driven, technically demanding, and executed in parallel within a contract engineering environment.MissionThe Engineering Manager is responsible for ensuring predictable, high-quality execution of multiple concurrent R&D projects while leading and developing a highly skilled engineering team. The role exists to translate complex technical scopes into structured execution, align people and resources with delivery commitments, and create the operational stability required for advanced engineering work to succeed.This position has a direct impact on project outcomes, team performance, and customer confidence.ResponsibilitiesProject Execution & DeliveryOwn end-to-end planning, scheduling, and tracking of multiple parallel customer projects.Translate technical scopes, proposals, and statements of work into executable project plans.Monitor progress against milestones, identifying risks, dependencies, and capacity constraints.Proactively resolve delivery bottlenecks and execution issues.Ensure contractual milestones and technical deliverables are met with consistent quality.People & Team ManagementLead the day-to-day operations of a multidisciplinary R&D team of approximately 20 engineers.Conduct regular one-to-one meetings, performance reviews, and development discussions.Support career development in a highly technical, expert-driven environment.Lead hiring, onboarding, and team scaling as required.Foster a collaborative, disciplined, and resilient engineering culture.Process, Coordination & CommunicationEstablish and maintain lightweight but effective project and delivery processes.Run sprint planning, reviews, retrospectives, and cross-project coordination meetings.Maintain clear internal documentation, delivery visibility, and execution metrics.Act as the primary operational interface with customers and internal stakeholders.Coordinate work across optical, mechanical, electronic, analysis, and test disciplines.Shield engineering teams from unnecessary operational noise to preserve technical focus.Operational LeadershipOwn resource allocation and capacity planning across projects.Lead prioritization and arbitration of competing demands.Drive continuous improvement of execution, delivery, and operational workflows.Required QualificationsStrong engineering background with the ability to deeply understand and challenge technical discussions.Minimum 7+ years of experience in engineering environments, with at least 3–5 years in an engineering leadership role.Proven experience leading multidisciplinary engineering teams in complex technical contexts.Demonstrated ability to plan, execute, and deliver complex R&D or contract engineering projects.Excellent organizational, communication, and stakeholder management skills.Comfortable owning delivery commitments and execution accountability.Pragmatic, structured leadership style with the ability to remain effective under pressure.Preferred ExperienceBackground in optical systems, instrumentation, applied physics, or physics-based engineering.Experience in high-reliability or precision-driven industries.Prior exposure to contract engineering or customer-funded R&D environments.Experience scaling teams or managing rapid changes in project load and priorities.