"Risk Manager STP, Steward Observatory (Part Time)"

Position Highlights

The University of Arizona's Steward Observatory invites you to apply for the role of Risk Manager, STP. This role ensures that project risks are systematically identified, quantitatively assessed, mitigated, and communicated in accordance with the Mission Assurance Plan, contractual technical requirements, and stakeholder expectations. Emphasis is placed on proactive risk discovery, analytical decision support, and high-fidelity communication to program leadership, rather than on procedural or administrative compliance activities.

Outstanding U of A benefits include health, dental, and vision insurance plans; life insurance and disability programs; paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays; U of A/ASU/NAU tuition reduction for the employee and qualified family members; retirement plans; access to U of A recreation and cultural activities; and more!

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Duties & Responsibilities

• Own and sustain the end-to-end project risk management framework, ensuring full compliance and traceability with the Mission Assurance Plan, contractual technical requirements, and customer-defined risk management standards.
• Manage the complete risk lifecycle, including systematic risk identification, quantitative and qualitative analysis, documentation, tracking, mitigation planning, execution monitoring, and verification of risk closure.
• Support the development, design, and integration of a complex engineering system, ensuring risk insights are directly incorporated into system architecture decisions, subsystem interfaces, integration sequencing, verification planning, and technical performance evaluations.
• Lead and support multidisciplinary technical trade studies, including:
  1. Cost-performance optimization trades
  2. Reliability and robustness assessments
  3. Mass, power, and thermal allocation trades
  4. Manufacturability and production-readiness evaluations
  5. Design margin and tolerance analyses
  6. High-complexity interface compatibility and integration sequencing trades
• Maintain configuration control and synchronization between the University of Arizona's internal risk register and the customer's risk management system, ensuring consistency of risk definitions, scoring methodologies, and status reporting.
• Develop, baseline, and manage risk mitigation and burn-down plans, including rigorous assessment and communication of cost, schedule, and technical impacts associated with mitigation strategies, residual risk, and risk retirement criteria.
• Prepare and deliver technically accurate, decision-ready monthly risk status reports tailored for diverse audiences, including engineering teams, program management, mission assurance reviews, and customer technical interchange meetings.
• Provide executive-level advisement to the PI and Directors on emerging risks and opportunities through qualitative and quantitative assessments, including probabilistic cost/schedule impact analyses and technical-performance implications.
• Generate, maintain, and control mission-assurance documentation and artifacts, including inspection records, verification results, test reports, nonconformance documentation, DMAIC analysis products, configuration records, and test samples to support system integration activities and formal customer reviews.
• Provide structured training and technical guidance to project personnel on the full risk-management lifecycle, including methodology, analytical tools, data standards, and industry best practices to ensure consistent and compliant risk execution across the project.
• Support mission-assurance training and competency development for applicable hardware, quality, and workmanship standards-including ESD control, contamination control, and certified workmanship practices (e.g., soldering, harness fabrication, polymeric-material application)-to ensure configuration integrity and hardware reliability throughout the build and test phases.

This job posting reflects the general nature and level of work expected of the selected candidate(s). It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties and responsibilities. The institution reserves the right to amend or update this description as organizational priorities and institutional needs evolve.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent advanced learning attained through professional level experience required.
• Minimum of 8 years of relevant work experience, or equivalent combination of education and work experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Engineering experience with optics, RF systems, telescopes, electronics, and custom machines.
• Experience using project management tools such as MS Project.
• Experience with workmanship standards for space applications, including soldering, harness assembly, and polymeric application.

FLSA: Exempt

Full Time/Part Time: Part Time

Number of Hours Worked per Week: 20

Job FTE: 0.5

Work Calendar: Fiscal

Job Category: Research

Benefits Eligible: Yes - Full Benefits

Rate of Pay: $99,901 - $129,871

Compensation Type: salary at 1.0 full-time equivalency (FTE)

Grade: 12

Career Stream and Level: PC4

Job Family: Research Engineering

Job Function: Research

Type of criminal background check required: Name-based criminal background check (non-security sensitive)

Number of Vacancies: 1

Contact Information for Candidates:
Catherine Merrill
cdmerrill@arizona.edu

Open Until Filled: Yes

Documents Needed to Apply: Resume and Cover Letter