Senior System Engineer

Listing reference: rrsys_000019
Listing status: Online
Apply by: 18 September 2026
Position summary
Industry: Engineering
Job category: Electrical Engineering
Location: Stellenbosch
Contract: Permanent
Remuneration: Market Related
EE position: No
About our company
RRS
Introduction
The Senior Systems Engineer will provide technical leadership for the development and delivery of complex radar systems. The role is responsible for translating customer and operational requirements into effective system solutions, defining and managing system architectures and interfaces, and providing technical leadership across the complete system lifecycle from concept and design through integration, verification, qualification and delivery. The successful candidate will work closely with multidisciplinary engineering teams, Project Managers, customers and other stakeholders to ensure that technically sound, integrated and fit-for-purpose solutions are delivered.
Job description

KEY PURPOSE OF THE ROLE

The Senior Systems Engineer will provide technical leadership for the development and delivery of complex radar systems.

The role is responsible for translating customer and operational requirements into effective system solutions, defining and managing system architectures and interfaces, and providing technical leadership across the complete system lifecycle from concept and design through integration, verification, qualification and delivery.

The successful candidate will work closely with multidisciplinary engineering teams, Project Managers, customers and other stakeholders to ensure that technically sound, integrated and fit-for-purpose solutions are delivered.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

  • Systems Engineering Leadership: Lead the Systems Engineering activities on complex radar development and production programmes from concept through to delivery.
  • Requirements Management: Analyse customer, operational and system-level requirements and translate these into clear, complete and verifiable technical requirements.
  • System Architecture and Design: Develop and maintain system architectures, functional breakdowns, interfaces and technical baselines, ensuring effective integration across radar subsystems and supporting systems.
  • Technical Trade-offs and Decision-Making: Lead technical investigations, trade studies and solution selection, balancing performance, cost, schedule, risk, manufacturability and other programme constraints.
  • Radar Performance Analysis: Apply radar principles, modelling, simulation and analytical techniques to assess system performance, identify risks and support technical decision-making.
  • System Integration, Verification and Validation: Provide technical leadership during system integration and testing, including the development of verification strategies, test plans, acceptance criteria and analysis of test results.
  • Technical Risk Management: Identify significant technical risks, dependencies and system-level issues and drive appropriate mitigation and resolution activities.
  • Customer and Stakeholder Engagement: Engage directly with customers to understand operational needs and technical requirements, and present system concepts, technical findings and proposed solutions to customers and senior stakeholders.
  • Technical Governance: Review key engineering outputs and ensure that appropriate Systems Engineering processes, standards and technical baselines are maintained throughout the project lifecycle.
  • Mentoring and Capability Development: Provide technical guidance and mentorship to Systems Engineers and other engineering team members and contribute to the continued development of RRS’s Systems Engineering capability.
  • Innovation and Continuous Improvement: Identify and apply appropriate new technologies, engineering methods and tools to improve radar system performance, development efficiency and technical outcomes.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

·         B.Eng in Electronic Engineering or a closely related engineering discipline.

·         M.Eng or equivalent postgraduate qualification would be advantageous.

·         Minimum of 10 years’ relevant radar or radar-related engineering experience.

·         Demonstrated Systems Engineering experience on complex multidisciplinary engineering programmes.

KEY COMPETENCIES

The successful candidate should demonstrate:

·         Strong radar domain knowledge – a sound understanding of radar systems, architectures and subsystems, including relevant aspects of signal processing, antennas, waveforms and RF systems.

·         Systems thinking – able to understand the complete system, identify interactions and dependencies between subsystems, and make sound system-level engineering decisions.

·         Technical leadership – able to provide direction, challenge technical assumptions and lead multidisciplinary engineering teams towards technically robust solutions.

·         Strong analytical and problem-solving ability – able to structure complex problems, perform appropriate analysis and develop practical solutions.

·         Sound engineering judgement – able to make balanced technical decisions while considering performance, risk, cost, schedule and programme objectives.

·         Customer orientation – able to understand operational needs and translate them into practical technical solutions.

·         Excellent communication and presentation skills – able to communicate complex technical concepts clearly to engineers, customers, programme management and senior leadership.

·         Ownership and initiative – proactive in identifying and resolving problems and comfortable taking responsibility for technical outcomes.

·         Agility and adaptability – able to operate effectively in a dynamic development environment where technical challenges, priorities and customer requirements may evolve.

Minimum requirements

·         B.Eng in Electronic Engineering or a closely related engineering discipline.

·         M.Eng or equivalent postgraduate qualification would be advantageous.

·         Minimum of 10 years’ relevant radar or radar-related engineering experience.

·         Demonstrated Systems Engineering experience on complex multidisciplinary engineering programmes.

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