Chief of Staff to the CTO

Job Description:

Northwood is on a mission to transform connectivity between Earth and space. Satellites are only as powerful as the ground systems that connect to them - without that critical infrastructure, they can’t be steered or send their data back to Earth. Northwood’s global ground network ensures that missions ranging from national security, to global connectivity, to disaster response can unlock their full potential and operate every day without fail. We take a vertically integrated approach to building an end-to-end ground system, delivering technology that is scalable and reliable for both government and commercial customers.

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Backed by over $100M from investors like Andreessen Horowitz, Washington Harbour Partners, Alpine Space Ventures, Founders Fund, and others, Northwood has proven its ability to move fast – we’ve stood up a fully operational site in Australia in just 3 months, where similar efforts typically take years.

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Northwood is rapidly scaling its global footprint, with 30+ sites planned across 2026 and 2027. We’re building and deploying infrastructure at a pace the industry hasn’t seen before. If you thrive on building quickly, solving hard problems, and seeing your work deployed globally on critical missions, we want you at Northwood.

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CHIEF OF STAFF

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Northwood is looking for a Chief of Staff to the CTO to help scale the impact of Northwood’s engineering leadership by translating technical expertise into execution across the company. In this role, you’ll act as the CTO’s force multiplier – owning the operational, coordination, and execution work required to keep complex product and engineering efforts moving forward. You’ll work closely with the CTO, engineering Heads, and business development teams to translate strategy into clear plans, track progress, and ensure teams stay aligned as Northwood scales. This is a highly trusted, hands-on role at the intersection of technical leadership, execution, and organizational clarity.

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RESPONSIBILITIES:

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CTO Enablement & Execution

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• Serve as a strategic thought partner to the CTO, pressure-testing priorities and shaping technical direction
• Drive complex, cross-functional initiatives to completion, ensuring clear ownership, sequencing, and outcomes
• Act as an extension of the CTO in key forums, aligning teams and reinforcing engineering priorities across the company

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Program & Resource Management

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• Partner with engineering leadership to define and continuously rebalance resource allocation across product and technical priorities
• Maintain clear ownership models and execution visibility across major engineering initiatives
• Design and run lightweight operating rhythms (planning reviews, roadmap syncs, weekly execution checkpoints)
• Synthesize progress, risks, and dependencies into concise updates for leadership
• Ensure alignment across engineering, product, and BD through structured, consistent communication

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Roadmapping & Long-Term Planning

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• Support the development and maintenance of long-term technical and product roadmaps
• Help manage the process of aligning engineering execution with business and customer priorities
• Surface tradeoffs and constraints to support executive decision-making

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BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

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• Bachelor's degree in an engineering discipline
• 5+ years of experience in technical program management, engineering, product operations, or similar roles
• Experience coordinating complex work across multiple engineering teams
• Strong organizational skills and comfort operating with ambiguity

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PREFERRED EXPERIENCE:

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• Experience operating as an information hub for senior technical leadership
• Excellent systems thinking and the ability to reason about dependencies and tradeoffs
• High judgment, discretion, and ability to operate in a trusted leadership role
• Ability to drive clarity, alignment, and momentum without formal authority
• Bias toward action and ownership – seeing gaps and filling them

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COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:

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Your actual level and base salary will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on job-related knowledge, skills, education, and experience.

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Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package at Northwood. You may also be eligible for equity in the form of stock options or other long-term incentives, as well as potential performance bonuses. We offer comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, a 401(k) retirement plan, short- and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, paid parental leave, generous paid time off, and various other perks and discounts.

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

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To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

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Northwood is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Northwood is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.