Senior Staff Technical Program Manager (Autonomous Aircraft)

About the role

Shield AI, a venture-backed defense-tech company, is looking for a Senior Staff Technical Program Manager to lead its next-generation autonomous aircraft conceptual design and tradespace analysis effort. The role sets objectives from customer use cases, develops cost versus performance metrics, plans and manages the schedule and cost, and delivers strategic products to customers.

Key responsibilities

• Set objectives based on customer-provided use cases and develop metrics for reporting cost versus performance trades
• Plan and manage the effort schedule and cost
• Own the execution of the effort, align stakeholders and drive on-time, on-target delivery to customers
• Translate technical information and customer needs into clear product narratives
• Conduct product, technology and market discovery with subject matter experts

Required profile

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Engineering, Computer Science or a related field
• 10+ years of experience in technical program management, managing studies or projects
• Familiarity with defense, national security or aerospace through work or education
• Proven track record of leading cross-functional teams and making informed decisions on system design, mission utility and cost trades
• Active Secret clearance and eligibility for Top Secret; Active Top Secret clearance and eligibility for SCI

Required skills

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, able to synthesize diverse viewpoints into data-backed decisions
• Excellent written and verbal communication
• Ability to learn specialized knowledge in niche domains