Job Summary:
Skyways is a company that designs, builds, and operates fully autonomous long-range cargo aircraft. As the Director of Software, you will own software execution across autonomy and mission planning, lead the software team, and collaborate closely with hardware and operations to ensure software and aircraft evolve together.
Responsibilities:
โข Own software execution and the software roadmap across autonomy, SkyNav, and the internal tools that support aircraft flying today
โข Build, lead, and develop the software team, including hiring, performance, growth, and the tech-lead or management layer as the team scales
โข Own org design for software, and be accountable for delivery, team health, and the software budget
โข Act as a player coach. Write code, review code, and take on hard problems when needed
โข Set technical direction through shipped systems and measurable outcomes
โข Work directly with operators and customers to iterate based on live deployments and field feedback
โข Partner tightly with hardware, flight, and manufacturing to ensure software and aircraft evolve together
โข Improve reliability, performance, and maintainability as the fleet and customer base scale
Qualifications:
Required:
โข Proven experience shipping and supporting complex production software systems
โข Experience leading and developing software teams, including hiring and growing engineers, while staying close to the technical work
โข Experience with autonomy, robotics, or mission planning systems
โข Strong systems thinking across autonomy, frontend, backend, and infrastructure
โข Comfort operating in environments where software meets hardware and real-world constraints
โข Bias toward execution, ownership, and accountability
โข Hands-on experience building with Python, C++, and JavaScript
Preferred:
โข Experience supporting software on production hardware, flight systems, or safety-critical systems.
โข Startup experience scaling teams and systems while things are still evolving.
โข Hands-on experience building with ROS, ElectronJS, Ardupilot, or Mavlink.
Company:
Skyways designs and manufactures long-range autonomous unmanned cargo aircraft systems for logistics and operational efficiency. Founded in 2017, the company is headquartered in Austin, USA, with a team of 11-50 employees. The company is currently Early Stage.