| Location | Costa Mesa, CA |
| Salary | $85–$120 Per Hour |
Staff Systems Safety Engineer (Costa Mesa, CA)
Engineering
Manufacturing
$ 85 - $ 120 / Hour
location_onCosta Mesa, California
acuteContractor
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Your Role
Akkodis is seeking a Staff Systems Safety Engineer to lead safety engineering efforts across a portfolio of advanced defense and autonomous systems. This is a highly visible technical leadership role responsible for shaping safety strategy, influencing system architecture, and ensuring the safe design and operation of complex platforms spanning air, maritime, ground, space, and counter-UAS domains.
This position is ideal for candidates who have deep expertise in System Safety Engineering, safety-critical hardware and software, and hazard analysis methodologies, while also bringing experience with modern autonomous or AI-enabled systems.
Beyond traditional safety engineering, this role offers the opportunity to help define the future of AI/ML safety frameworks, autonomous system assurance methodologies, and software safety processes for next-generation defense technologies.
Rate Range: $85/hour to $120/hour; The rate may be negotiable based on experience, education, and other factors.
Responsibilities:
Lead system safety activities across multiple complex programs and product lines
Establish and implement system safety frameworks, processes, and best practices
Perform hazard identification, risk assessment, and mitigation planning throughout the product lifecycle
Drive design-for-safety principles early in system development
Conduct and lead safety analyses including:
Functional Hazard Assessments (FHA)
Fault Tree Analysis (FTA)
Software-Caused Fault Tree Analysis (SCFTA)
Failure Modes, Effects, and Criticality Analysis (FMECA)
Develop and maintain hazard tracking and risk management programs
Lead root cause investigations and safety incident analyses
Collaborate with systems, software, hardware, test, and platform engineering teams
Influence architecture and design decisions to ensure safety requirements are incorporated from concept through deployment
Develop safety cases and supporting evidence for advanced autonomous systems
Support customer reviews, regulatory engagements, and military safety assessments
Present safety strategy, findings, and recommendations to technical leadership and executive stakeholders
Qualifications:
Bachelor's degree in Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical discipline
8+ years of Systems Safety Engineering experience
Experience with safety-critical hardware and/or software systems
Expert knowledge of MIL-STD-882E
Hazard tracking and risk management
Experience conducting failure investigations and root cause analysis
Strong technical leadership and cross-functional collaboration skills
Experience leading design reviews and influencing engineering decisions
Excellent communication and presentation skills
Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret Security Clearance
Why Join Us?
This is more than a traditional system's safety role.
You'll help shape the safety foundations for the next generation of autonomous and AI-enabled defense technologies. The organization is actively evolving its approach to AI/ML safety, autonomous system assurance, and software safety engineering, creating an opportunity to define best practices that will influence products deployed across multiple mission-critical platforms.
If you're passionate about solving complex safety challenges at the intersection of autonomy, software, and defense technology, we'd love to hear from you.
If you are interested in this role, then please click APPLY NOW.
Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled
Benefit offerings available for our associates include medical, dental, vision, life insurance, short-term disability, additional voluntary benefits, an EAP program, commuter benefits, and a 401K plan. Our benefit offerings provide employees with the flexibility to choose the type of coverage that meets their individual needs. Eligible for paid leave or any other paid leave required by Federal, State, or local law, as well as Holiday pay where applicable. Disclaimer: These benefit offerings do not apply to client-recruited jobs and jobs that are direct hires to a client.
To read our Candidate Privacy Information Statement, which explains how we will use your information, please visit https://www.akkodis.com/en/privacy-policy.
The Company will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records in accordance with federal, state, and local laws and/or security clearance requirements, including, as applicable:
Pay Details: $85.00 to $120.00 per hour
Benefit offerings available for our associates include medical, dental, vision, life insurance, short-term disability, additional voluntary benefits, EAP program, commuter benefits and a 401K plan. Our benefit offerings provide employees the flexibility to choose the type of coverage that meets their individual needs. In addition, our associates may be eligible for paid leave including Paid Sick Leave or any other paid leave required by Federal, State, or local law, as well as Holiday pay where applicable.
Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled
Military connected talent encouraged to apply
To read our Candidate Privacy Information Statement, which explains how we will use your information, please navigate to https://www.akkodis.com/en/us/candidate-privacy-policy
The Company will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records in accordance with federal, state, and local laws and/or security clearance requirements, including, as applicable:
Massachusetts Candidates Only: It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.
Ref: 1641168
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