Supply Chain Lead
Icarus
<p>Icarus was founded on the belief that the Stratosphere is the <a href="https://henryicarus.substack.com/p/the-forgotten-frontier?utm_campaign=post&amp;utm_medium=web&amp;triedRedirect=true"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline; color: #0000ee;">Forgotten Frontier</span></strong></a>&nbsp;and that reclaiming it will define the next era of aerospace and what is possible from the sky. We build solar-powered aircraft that fly at 60,000 ft for weeks at a time, delivering persistent, affordable, and scalable presence from this layer of the atmosphere.</p> <h2 style="color: #0000ee;">Mission</h2> <p>Re-establish and maintain dominance in the Stratosphere.</p> <h2 style="color: #0000ee;">Supply Chain Lead</h2> <ul> <li>Icarus is hiring a Supply Chain Lead to build and own the supply chain that keeps a fast-moving aerospace startup building and flying.</li> <li>This is a critical early hire. You will define the strategy, build the function, and make sure the right parts, materials, and flight hardware are always in the building the moment the team needs them.</li> <li>You will own sourcing, procurement, supplier management, inventory, and logistics end to end, and build the organization and systems that let us scale from prototype builds to high-rate production.</li> <li>This is a wartime supply chain role. Long lead times, single-source risk, and supplier delays cannot be allowed to slow down flight.</li> <li>You will operate across the factory floor, engineering, manufacturing, finance, and our supplier base, working directly with the CEO and leadership team.</li> <li>This role has the potential to grow into broader operations and supply chain leadership as we scale.</li> </ul> <h2 style="color: #0000ee;">What you’ll do</h2> <ul> <li>Own the supply chain end to end: sourcing, procurement, supplier management, inventory, materials planning, and logistics.</li> <li>Define and execute the supply chain strategy as Icarus scales across the full lifecycle — from low-rate prototype builds to high-rate production.</li> <li>Build the supply chain organization: structure, roles, hiring, and the operating cadence to run it as the team grows.</li> <li>Build and manage a network of high-performing suppliers for flight hardware across avionics, electronics, structures and composites, solar, energy storage, mechanical, and RF.</li> <li>Attack long-lead and single-source risk before it becomes a flight blocker. Build buffer, qualify second sources, and stay ahead of demand.</li> <li>Drive make-vs-buy and vertical integration decisions together with engineering and manufacturing.</li> <li>Stand up the systems, KPIs, and end-to-end visibility (ERP/MRP, receiving, incoming inspection) that let the company see and control its material flow.</li> <li>Negotiate pricing, terms, and lead times with suppliers, and own PO and vendor management.</li> <li>Own supply chain export-control and compliance posture for a defense aerospace company: country-of-origin and domestic sourcing requirements, counterfeit-part avoidance, and supplier quality.</li> </ul> <h2 style="color: #0000ee;">What we’re looking for</h2> <ul> <li>You are an elite operator. You get parts in the door and you get things done.</li> <li>You are organized, intense, low-ego, and allergic to bureaucracy.</li> <li>You can operate at 60,000 feet and on the factory floor in the same day.</li> <li>You have deep experience in supply chain, sourcing, or procurement for complex hardware, and you have owned a supply base and beaten lead times on hard-to-source parts.&