Erin Stearns

About Erin Stearns

I thrive off of solving complex problems. This love of seeking out optimized solutions is why I studied Aerospace Engineering and pursued a position at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. When designing and building spacecraft traveling to other planets, almost every challenge faced is unique and requires an interdisciplinary team to come up with possible solutions. I started out my engineering career when I chose to attend Cal Poly for Aerospace Engineering. This extremely difficult program pushed me academically while encouraging me to look for new opportunities to learn and grow. While earning my bachelor’s degree, I worked part-time as a student manager. I was responsible for scheduling staff, facilitating meetings and trainings, and being involved with the employee hiring process. When I decided to pursue a Masters, I was offered a full-time position as the Assistant Coordinator of Facility Operations at our brand new Recreation Center. In this full-time role, I was responsible for the student facility staff, as well as the full-time custodial staff. My responsibilities included reviewing areas for process and policy improvements, training staff for their roles and facilitating difficult discussions with team members. These experiences led me to my role as a quality engineer at the Jet Propulsion Lab, where I am currently the lead quality engineer for the Mars Sample Return Program. Through each role, I have continued to learn and grow and I look forward to learning from every person I meet and every new challenge that I take on.

Experience

1. Lead Hardware Quality Engineer

   NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

   Sep 2020 — Present · Pasadena, CA, US

   Project Hardware Quality Assurance Lead for Mars Sample Retrieval Lander (SRL), Earth Return Orbiter (ERO) and Rosalind Franklin Support and Augmentation (ROSA)-Lead product assurance planning, supplier oversight, and cross-functional product assurance teams-Adept at aligning project quality standards with ESA/NASA regulations and industry workmanship standards-Responsible for managing budgets across project lifecycle - assessing project risks and opportunities-Build partnerships with domestic and international stakeholders-Recognized for technical leadership, mentorship, and problem-solving in high-stakes spaceflight manufacturing, integration, and testing environments.

Education

• California Polytechnic State University

  Master of Science and Bachelor of Science, Aerospace Engineering

  2007 — 2013

• USC Marshall School of Business

  Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.), Class of 2017

  2014 — 2017

Skills

• Data Analysis
• Technical Writing
• Engineering Outreach
• Business Strategy
• Minitab
• Process Engineering
• Spacecraft Integration and Test
• Autocad
• Leadership Development
• Hardware Quality Engineering
• Solidworks
• Project Management
• Engineering
• Networking
• Labview
• Strategic Planning
• Public Speaking
• Microsoft Project
• Ptc Creo
• Matlab
• Teamwork
• Team Management
• Operations Management
• Powerpoint
• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft Office
• Training
• Pro Engineer