Branch Head - ATAS - Open Rank

The Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) is the nonprofit, applied research division of the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech).Founded in 1934 as the Engineering Experiment Station, GTRI has grown to more than 2,900 employees, supporting eight laboratories in over 20 locations around the country and performing more than $940 million of problem-solving research annually for government and industry.GTRI's renowned researchers combine science, engineering, economics, policy, and technical expertise to solve complex problems for the U.S. federal government, state, and industry.

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A full-time, permanent position is available as the Branch Chief for the Collaborative Autonomy Branch (CAB) within the Robotics and Autonomous Systems Division (RASD) of the Aerospace, Transportation and Advanced Systems Laboratory at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI). RASD/CAB has 15+ employees providing analysis, research and development supporting autonomous multi-agent systems and associated testing and development efforts. Capabilities provided by RASD/CAB include software development, simulation, and field testing of collaborative multi-agent systems. The development of autonomy behaviors and associated control of physical systems is a core area of responsibility for branch personnel.

GTRI is searching for a branch leader and engineer/scientist with a Master's or PhD degree and 2+ years of experience in multi-agent autonomy development, simulation, test and evaluation. The successful candidate will have demonstrated experience in the evaluation of autonomous systems and their performance associated with simulated, surrogate and objective platforms. Program development and program management is required to develop and manage programs in the area of autonomy behavior development, performance evaluation, and testing. Personnel development is also required to execute staffing needs of individual programs within and outside of the branch.

The responsibilities of the branch leader are shared with the associate branch chief and split between the management of the branch and actively performing research programs. This position is expected to consume approximately 10%-25% time. The remaining time is anticipated to come from sponsored research. The branch is located in Smyrna, GA on the Georgia Tech's Cobb County Research Facility (CCRF). Travel is required in conducting GTRI research, developing business, meeting with customers and demonstrating applied solutions.

Lead multiple sponsored research projects. Manage Branch (7-15 FTE) administrative activities including hiring, appraisals and sponsored project success.

• Recognized SME in technical domain. Lead and/or contribute to white papers and proposals.
• Seek out and respond to opportunities for new research.
• Support presentations and travel to support new business development.
• Ensure that the branch is continuing to pursue new and novel research efforts through judicious use of internal R&D funding.
• Lead branch hiring activities including development of position vacancy announcements, resume reviews, interviews and onboarding
• Determine branch hiring needs.
• Lead role on manpower planning for branch personnel.
• Conduct staff appraisals.
• Support Monthly Project Status Review meetings.
• Coordinate with division leadership as required.
• Lead branch hiring activities including development of position vacancy announcements, resume reviews, interviews and onboarding
• Determine branch hiring needs.
• Lead role on manpower planning for branch personnel.
• Conduct staff appraisals.
• Support Monthly Project Status Review meetings.
• Coordinate with division leadership as required.

• Personnel management including student and full-time Research Faculty hiring, performance evaluations, staffing, early career development, etc., primarily for autonomy behavior development, test and evaluation.
• Management of budgets, resources, and compliance with policies and procedures.
• Communicate overall Branch health during RASD leadership meetings.
• Responsible for branch staffing, employee appraisals, timesheets.
• Oversight of branch programs and operational resources and activities.
• Maintaining the technical health of branch employees through professional development, training, and promoting publication of novel research in appropriate venues.
• Development of strategic vision and execution plan for the branch in conjunction with the Division and Laboratory Leadership.
• Development of research collaborations between other GTRI laboratories.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• The ideal candidate will have hands-on experience with state-of-the-art algorithms on real-world mobile robot systems, including field test experimentation.
• Experience with C++, ROS, Git, Linux, and SCRIMMAGE or similar simulation architectures is a plus.

• Active Top Secret Clearance.
• Experience with contributing to large programs and executing assigned tasking.
• Managing organization resources and evaluating personnel performance.
• Demonstrated record of managing personnel and resolving complex personnel issues.

• 10% - 25% travel.

This position vacancy is an open-rank announcement. The final job offer will be dependent on candidate qualifications in alignment with Research Faculty Extension Professional ranks as outlined in section 3.2.1 of the Georgia Tech Faculty Handbook

• 9 years of related experience with a Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, AI/ML, or any related field.
• 7 years of related experience with a Masters' degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, AI/ML, or any related field.
• 4 years of related experience with a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, AI/ML, or any related field.

Due to our research contracts with the U.S. federal government, candidates for this position must be U.S. Citizens.

Candidates must be able to obtain and maintain an active security clearance.

Comprehensive information on currently offered GTRI benefits, including Health & Welfare, Retirement Plans, Tuition Reimbursement, Time Off, and Professional Development, can be found through this link: https://benefits.hr.gatech.edu/.

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