Bachelor’s degree or equivalent is required plus a minimum of 15 years of demonstrated leadership; or Master's degree plus a minimum of 13 years of demonstrated leadership.
CLEARANCE REQUIREMENTS:
Department of Defense TOP SECRET security clearance is REQUIRED at time of hire. Eligibility for access to Special Access Program Information (SAPI) and Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) including willingness to submit to a Counterintelligence polygraph is a benefit. Applicants selected will be subject to a U.S. Government security investigation and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information. Due to the nature of work performed within our facilities, U.S. citizenship is required.
Responsibilities for this Position:
GDMS has an immediate opening for a Senior Program Manager to support our Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications (NC3) Advanced Programs business segment. This is a high-visibility, strategically critical role that sits at the intersection of new business capture, program execution, and mission systems development in direct support of the nation's nuclear deterrent enterprise.
The Program Manager must be proficient across all dimensions of program management — from cohesive integrated planning and rigorous financial management to executive stakeholder engagement and new business development. The selected candidate will serve as a key leader in the growth and execution of the NC3 portfolio, bringing deep expertise in government contracting, advanced risk management, classified program stewardship, and the ability to operate effectively within complex, multi-party program environments.
The selected candidate will be the primary PM and responsible for a Classified Commercial Derivative Aircraft (CDA) Missionization capture with the following responsibilities:
- Program execution and management managing interfaces across a multi-party team including an airframe OEM and mission systems subcontractors, with accountability for Systems Integration Laboratory (SIL) delivery, FAA STC development, USAF Airworthiness Release, and Interim Contractor Logistics Support (ICLS) milestones
- Manages the integrated teaming structure across GDMS as mission system integrator, a designated airframe OEM, and a to-be-determined aircraft integrator, ensuring clear interface control, schedule alignment, and risk visibility across all parties
- Drives proposal development and program execution against classified RFP evaluation criteria, including Airworthiness Certification, ATO/Cybersecurity, and MOSA-related subfactors
In this role, you will work closely with our Business Development and Engineering organizations to understand customer needs and present conceptual solutions aligned with GDMS capabilities.
This position provides an opportunity to enhance the performance and profitability of an organization that supports some of our nation’s fundamental defense services. General Dynamics Mission Systems employees work closely with esteemed customers to develop solutions that allow them to carry out high-stakes national security missions.
REPRESENTATIVE DUTIES AND TASKS:
Program Leadership & Execution
- Develops and implements product/program strategies, roadmaps, and cohesive integrated plans for portfolio to meet business and program objectives relating to revenue, margin, quality, and time-to-market
- Develops, defines, and executes project plans, schedules, budgets, and deliverables
- Balances programs, risks, and opportunities with executable strategies to meet technical requirements and budgets
- Leads the establishment of and sets integrated WBS-based budget and schedule baselines, including management reserve for advanced development programs or major subcontracts where scope is not well defined and there is significant possibility for change
- Monitors work accomplished against baseline plans to ensure rate of work completion is sufficient to meet schedules; develops corrective actions and communicates issues, impacts, and corrective actions to program teams
- Sets standards for metric reviews over a family of programs/product line or within a business area
- Conducts deep-dive reviews to identify issues, develop corrective actions, and communicate impacts across program teams
Business Development & Customer Engagement
- Develops customer relationships and develops new business within the NC3 market segment
- Develops and executes proposal plans and strategies; uses proposal strategies to lead teams in developing integrated program, subcontractor, and material plans that achieve current and long-term business objectives
- Identifies market/scope changes and develops product/program positions for cost/price and feature changes or equitable cost/schedule adjustments
- Interfaces with customers on technical matters regarding programs and products
- Prepares and presents program/product status to leadership and external customers
- Effectively engages in complex negotiations involving various aspects of the business area
- Reviews organizational capabilities and develops strategies to improve competitiveness through professional growth, strategic hiring, strategic partnering, and acquisitions
- Grows strategic partnerships across the organization
Team & People Leadership
- Manages people who lead department or cross-functional program teams in a matrix organization to achieve schedule, cost, and technical performance objectives
- Delegates assignments to others for developing solutions
- Develops personnel to ensure efficient operation
- May be responsible for directing the planning, proposal preparation, negotiation, budgeting, performance measurement, and profit generation of other program managers
- May be responsible for hire/fire decisions
- Identifies opportunities to apply AI for continuous improvement and innovation
Financial & Risk Management
- Responsible for maximizing profit and cash flow of products/programs
- Leads team to identify and quantify risks and opportunities; leads risk mitigation and opportunity capture activities
- Leads patent and data rights strategy for products, programs, proposals, and subcontracts
- Identifies opportunities to apply advanced risk and opportunity management techniques
KNOWLEDGE SKILLS AND ABILITIES:
Program Management Expertise
- Ability to generate cohesive program plans and lead teams in a matrix organization to achieve schedule, cost, and technical performance objectives
- Ability to develop and implement a product-oriented WBS and WBS Dictionary
- Ability to track work accomplished to baseline plans; identify issues, track progress, and execute effective corrective actions based on data analysis and trends
- Extensive ability to understand and analyze program financial data
- Expert risk and opportunity management skills with demonstrated ability to apply them to complex, high-visibility programs
- Ability to evaluate quality of work product to ensure satisfaction of customer requirements
Leadership & Communication
- Ability to lead others in team building, conflict resolution, motivation, and advanced risk management
- Skilled in communicating issues, impacts, and corrective actions to internal and external representatives at all levels
- Outstanding relationship management and marketing skills
- Ability to apply advanced negotiation skills to solve internal, external, and customer issues
- Significant verbal and written communication skills
- Ability to manage and mentor others within the program management discipline
- Will interact frequently with internal personnel and outside representatives at various levels
Business & Strategic Acumen
- Extensive knowledge of products and technologies, including current and potential applications relevant to NC3 systems
- Extensive knowledge of target customer markets, including DoD strategic deterrence customers
- Significant knowledge of government contracting practices and regulations regarding acquisition
- Extensive understanding of business and supply chain strategy
- Skilled in the development and implementation of product/program strategy and tactics
- Ability to develop and execute proposal plans and strategies; significant knowledge of proposal techniques and business development for new business
- Ability to identify partnership candidates best suited to fill product/program gaps
- Depth of technical knowledge and expertise to enable course correction, with knowledge of how and when to ask for help
- Identifies opportunities to apply AI for continuous improvement and innovation
- Working knowledge of MS Project, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint
- May be required to travel
PREFERRED DEGREE TYPES AND EXPERIENCE:
- Bachelor of Science and advanced degrees/training relevant to NC3 technologies are preferred (e.g., Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or related) but not required
- Proven ability to engage senior US Government leaders, industry customers, understand requirements, present candidate solutions, and adapt solutions to align with evolving needs
- Operational and/or acquisition experience with NC3-related programs, products, and/or platforms
- Experience with the design, certification, and operation of strategic weapon systems inclusive of ICBMs, SLBMs, strategic bombers, and NC3 systems
- Experience assessing and managing technical risks and leading the investigation and resolution of technical issues on critical, high visibility programs
- Experience with competitive proposals (including classified requests and responses)
- Working familiarity with FAA Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) processes and USAF Airworthiness Release requirements under MIL-HDBK-516C, sufficient to identify schedule risks and manage certification dependencies across the program lifecycle
- Working knowledge of Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA) requirements, data rights strategy, and DoD Risk Management Framework (RMF) Authority to Operate (ATO) accreditation processes for classified mission systems, including the ability to structure program execution and proposal strategies around these evaluation dimensions
#LI-Hybrid
Salary Note:
This estimate represents the typical salary range for this position based on experience and other factors (geographic location, etc.). Actual pay may vary. This job posting will remain open until the position is filled.
Combined Salary Range:
USD $235,501.00 - USD $254,820.00 /Yr.
Company Overview:
General Dynamics Mission Systems (GDMS) engineers a diverse portfolio of high technology solutions, products and services that enable customers to successfully execute missions across all domains of operation. With a global team of 12,000+ top professionals, we partner with the best in industry to expand the bounds of innovation in the defense and scientific arenas. Given the nature of our work and who we are, we value trust, honesty, alignment and transparency. We offer highly competitive benefits and pride ourselves in being a great place to work with a shared sense of purpose. You will also enjoy a flexible work environment where contributions are recognized and rewarded. If who we are and what we do resonates with you, we invite you to join our high-performance team!
Equal Opportunity Employer / Individuals with Disabilities / Protected Veterans
