Vice President of Engineering

VP of Engineering — Early Access Pipeline, VC-Backed Series A–C Portfolio

About the Opportunity

Space Executive is partnering with several of the country's leading VC firms, who are giving us early visibility into VP/Head of Engineering roles set to open across their Series A–C portfolio over the next month. We're building relationships with strong engineering leaders now, so we can move fast the moment each mandate goes live — connecting the right people with the right companies before these roles hit the open market.

This isn't a single role; it's a pipeline. If you're a VP or Head of Engineering (or a Director-level leader ready to step up) open to exploring what's next, this is a chance to get in front of opportunities before they're public.

What You'll Own

Engineering Strategy & Execution — Own the technical roadmap and delivery, balancing speed with the foundations needed to scale past Series A/B/C

Team Building & Leadership — Hire, structure, and lead an engineering org through a period of real growth, often 2–4x headcount over 12–18 months

Architecture & Technical Decisions — Stay close to the codebase and infrastructure; make (or unmake) the calls that determine whether the platform scales cleanly

Cross-Functional Partnership — Work directly with the CEO/CTO and product leadership to align engineering output with company strategy and fundraising milestones

Process & Culture — Build the engineering practices (planning, code review, on-call, hiring bar) that don't exist yet, without over-engineering for a company this size

Hands-On When It Matters — Staff-plus mindset; comfortable reviewing designs, unblocking incidents, or writing code when the team needs it

Who You Are

A strong hands-on engineering background — you've written and shipped production code and can critically review real systems

Experience leading and scaling engineering teams (1–20+ engineers) at a startup or scale-up

Prior experience operating at Series A–C, ideally through a stage transition; comfortable with ambiguity and building process from scratch

Confident partnering with founders and non-technical stakeholders, translating technical tradeoffs into business terms

Open to exploring opportunities across sectors and tech stacks within a VC's portfolio, rather than committing to one fixed brief

Why This Role

These portfolio companies span different sectors and stages, but the pattern is consistent: strong product-market fit, recent or upcoming funding, and a technical leadership gap that needs filling before the next stage of growth. Getting in early means more influence over which company and team you land with — not less.

Interested, or know someone who'd be a strong fit? Reach out to register your interest confidentially.

Main changes: title now reflects VP-level seniority up front, tightened phrasing throughout for punch, standardized the 2x-4x/12-18 formatting, and smoothed a few repetitive constructions. Want me to also produce a shorter/punchier LinkedIn version for outreach, or turn this into a formatted document?

use different words so it isnt a like for like

Here's a version reworded with different language and phrasing throughout, not just lightly edited:

VP of Engineering — Advance Pipeline Across a VC's Series A–C Portfolio

The Opportunity

Space Executive has secured early access, through partnerships with several top-tier VC firms, to a wave of Head/VP of Engineering mandates about to launch across their Series A–C portfolio companies over the coming month. Rather than wait for these searches to go live, we're building relationships with exceptional engineering leaders in advance, so we can act immediately and match the right talent to the right business the instant each search opens.

This is a pipeline, not a single vacancy. If you're currently a Head or VP of Engineering — or a Director-level leader ready to make that leap — and open to hearing about what's next, this gives you a head start on roles before they ever reach the market.

Core Responsibilities

Technical Direction & Delivery — Set and drive the engineering roadmap, balancing pace of execution with the structural groundwork required to scale beyond Series A/B/C

Building & Scaling the Team — Recruit, organize, and manage an engineering function through rapid expansion, typically doubling to quadrupling headcount within 12–18 months

Architecture & Engineering Judgment — Remain closely engaged with the code and systems; drive the decisions that determine long-term scalability of the platform

Collaboration Across the Business — Partner closely with the CEO/CTO and product function to keep engineering priorities aligned with company direction and investor milestones

Establishing Process & Culture — Introduce the engineering foundations (planning cadence, review standards, on-call structure, hiring bar) that don't yet exist, calibrated to the company's actual stage

Staying Close to the Work — Bring a staff-plus level of involvement; ready to weigh in on design, jump into incident response, or contribute code directly when required

What We're Looking For

A genuine engineering background — you've built and deployed production systems yourself and can assess the quality of real codebases

Track record managing and scaling engineering teams (anywhere from 1 to 20+ people) within startup or scale-up environments

Prior experience operating inside Series A–C companies, ideally having navigated a stage transition; comfortable creating structure where none currently exists

Strong communicator with founders and non-technical leadership; able to frame engineering tradeoffs in commercial terms

Willingness to consider a variety of sectors and technology stacks across a VC's portfolio, rather than a single predetermined role

Why Get Involved Now

While the companies in question differ by sector and maturity, a common thread runs through them: solid product-market fit, funding recently closed or imminent, and a leadership gap in engineering that must be addressed before the next growth phase. Engaging early gives you greater say over which company and team you ultimately join — not less.

Want to explore this, or know someone who fits the profile? Get in touch to register interest, confidentially.