About Avalanche Energy

Avalanche Energy is a Washington-based startup building compact, deployable fusion systems through rapid hardware iteration. Rather than pursuing fusion as a single grid-scale outcome, Avalanche develops transportable fusion machines designed to be built, tested, and operated on short cycles, turning real hardware into steady progress. This approach enables near-term applications that demand extreme energy density and endurance—starting with fusion neutron production for radioisotope power and other defense and space uses—while advancing the underlying fusion platform. Backed by U.S. government programs and a team experienced in delivering complex systems, Avalanche is focused on building fusion that runs in the real world, not just on paper.

Avalanche might be a fit for you if:

You thrive in complex, technically demanding environments where the problems are not fully defined and the answers have to be built—not looked up. You are energized by bringing structure to ambiguity, connecting the work of scientists and engineers into coherent programs, and building the systems engineering foundations that scale. You are comfortable operating without a playbook, moving quickly across programs and disciplines, and earning credibility with technical subject matter experts through rigor and clarity. You care about doing the fundamentals of systems engineering well—requirements, interfaces, traceability, reviews—because you understand why they matter, not just because a process demands them.

About the Role

Avalanche Energy is hiring a Senior Systems Engineer to join our PMO and Systems Engineering team at a pivotal moment in the company’s growth. As we scale our Orbitron fusion device programs and stand up FusionWERX—our radiation testing and infrastructure facility in Richland, WA—we need an experienced systems engineer who can bring structure and clarity to complex, fast-moving technical programs.

This role serves as Lead Systems Engineer and Program Integrator across two core programs: the Orbitron Science Program and the FusionWERX infrastructure build-out. You will work directly with plasma physicists, engineers, and program leadership to translate scientific intent into well-defined requirements, drive technical roadmaps, and build the systems engineering processes that will scale with the company. This role reports directly to the Head of PMO and Systems Engineering and operates in a matrix organization, supporting program teams as an embedded lead.

Responsibilities:

Orbitron Science Program

• Partner with plasma physicists to extract, structure, and formalize experimental requirements and translate them into engineering-ready scope and roadmaps.
• Drive requirements definition for the next device class, including experiment objectives, device performance requirements, and development milestones.
• Facilitate technical reviews and working sessions with scientists and engineers to surface risks, clarify assumptions, and build shared program understanding.
• Represent the technical program to leadership in a clear, structured format—turning complex plasma science into actionable program direction.

FusionWERX Infrastructure Program

• Define concept of operations (ConOps), infrastructure requirements, and facility scope for FusionWERX, coordinating across neutronics, regulatory, and engineering teams.
• Lead trade studies on facility sizing, vault configuration, radiation shielding, and infrastructure requirements—balancing near-term operational needs with long-term scalability.
• Develop and refine radioactive material handling procedures and access control requirements in coordination with the regulatory team.
• Manage external consultants contributing to facility definition and infrastructure design.
• Drive clarity in an open-ended, judgment-heavy problem space with limited precedent and ambiguous requirements.

Systems Engineering Process & Program Integration

• Establish and refine systems engineering processes across the PMO: gated review structures, requirements reviews, design reviews, test and verification planning.
• Support internal functional teams in adopting and executing consistent SE practices.
• Provide light program management support to material science projects, including supplier coordination and milestone tracking.
• Contribute to export control posture definition as needed, in coordination with the supply chain team.

Required Qualifications

• 8+ years of systems engineering experience in a technically demanding, fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrated ability to define and manage system requirements across complex, multi-disciplinary programs.
• Strong experience translating ambiguous technical inputs into structured scope, requirements, and roadmaps.
• Proven ability to work cross-functionally with scientists, engineers, and program leadership—including engaging PhDs and technical subject matter experts as a credible peer.
• Experience establishing or improving SE processes: requirements management, design reviews, verification and validation planning.
• High comfort with ambiguity and open-ended problem solving; ability to make sound judgments with incomplete information.
• Project management experience: schedule development, milestone tracking, risk and issue management.
• Strong communication skills—able to synthesize and present complex technical topics clearly to diverse audiences.

Desired Qualifications

• 12+ years of systems engineering experience, including lead or chief engineer roles on complex programs.
• Background in aerospace, advanced propulsion, directed energy, or similarly fast-moving, high-stakes technology environments.
• Experience in applied physics, plasma physics, nuclear, or radiation fields is a plus — as is familiarity with NRC or DOE regulatory frameworks.
• Familiarity with government-funded program requirements (DOE, DARPA, DoD, NASA) and associated compliance considerations.
• Experience with export control compliance (EAR/ITAR) in a technical environment.
• Prior experience in a startup or scaling organization, with the ability to build processes and have them adopted

Additional Considerations

• Location: Onsite, Tukwila, WA (primary); periodic travel to FusionWERX facility in Richland, WA.
• Travel: Estimated 10–20%

Benefits

• Excellent medical, dental, and vision benefits.
• 10 paid holidays and a company-wide December holiday break.
• Generous paid vacation and sick time.
• Small, tight-knit team with low barriers to action.
• Exposure to a wide range of challenging, cross-disciplinary technical programs.
• Meaningful equity in the form of stock options.

We value people of all backgrounds. We are an equal opportunity employer, and you do not need to match every listed qualification to apply. If you like being hands-on, all over the system, and making difficult hardware work in the real world, we encourage you to apply.

This position may require access to export-controlled information. In order to comply with U.S. export control laws, applicants must be a “U.S. person” as defined by U.S. trade control laws (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual).

‍