Director Programs

Job Summary

Responsible for managing all aspects of the portfolio to the agreed Business objectives. This includes responsibility for all Customer, Product, Financial, People and Quality aspects in addition to contributing to the overall Line of Business strategy.

This position will manage all aspects of a global product line portfolio, from driving new product development to defining the go-to-market strategies and product roadmap in liaison with Business Development. The role will also collaborate with operations to ensure that the strategy and manufacturing capacity are in place to achieve defined revenue targets with the right cost, lead times, and quality, while defining and leading growth opportunities.

Responsible for leading Strategy development, Product Portfolio Management and Key Account Management initiatives for the portfolio globally. This leader will be responsible for revenue, gross margin and free cash flow attainment of the portfolio and will play a pivotal role in driving the strategic planning initiatives to scale the business and achieve growth. 

The applicant will bring a growth-oriented and entrepreneurial mind-set, excellent commercial acumen and leadership experience, and a hands-on leadership style.

 

Job Responsibilities

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES 

• Responsible for leading the Portfolio. This includes full life cycle management (development, production, and sustainment) of the portfolio.


• Track all program cost, schedules and performance against established program milestones; reporting the status to management stakeholders on a regular basis


• Develop and implement recovery plans for yellow and red programs (i.e. schedule, technical performance)


• Understand, develop and drive methodologies that allow program managers to apply leading verses lagging indicators


• Develop processes for identifying, assessing, monitoring and mitigating risk throughout the program life cycle


• Work closely with existing customers, and obtain feedback on the company’s performance


• Work closely with business development, marketing and sales to enhance the business portfolio


• Outlines a clear portfolio strategy that positions the Line of Business to deliver strong financial results


• Create breakthroughs (e.g., new market entry, new products, new business models) through an idea funnel, idea selection, prioritization, active experimentation, and scale-up of proven ideas


• Cascade the Line of Business vision and strategy throughout the portfolio and ties it to clear near-term plans and metrics. 


• Create buy-in from the organization for the plan through early engagement


• Articulate market trends, demand drivers, customer needs, industry trends, and competitive landscape during business reviews


• Develop product and technology roadmaps that aligns with business strategy and market needs


• Work with IR&D in the development of new products to meet current and future customer and market requirements


• Work closely with the Operations to ensure the on time delivery of orders

FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

• Drive revenue and Bookings 


• Responsible for gross margin for the portfolio  


• Drives gross margin expansion by improving product mix, developing and executing robust pricing strategies, and driving operational productivity.


• Track progress to the business plan and facilitate resolution to gaps


• Strategic plan for the Portfolio


• Customer satisfaction and technical performance of the Portfolio

TALENT MANAGEMENT

• Manage, motivate and develop the existing team while looking at succession planning.


• Create a high-performing team by setting high standards, active coaching, and selective talent upgrades. 


• Fixes under-performance in a timely manner by confronting the challenges through feedback sharing and hands-on coaching
  
   

• Engineering or business degree required. Master’s degree preferred.
• 10+ years of product management, strategy, program management with relevant P&L management experience
• Experienced in EOIR or comparable defense related product line preferred
• Certification in Program Management preferred (i.e. PMP or DAU level 3) 
• Advanced knowledge of program management tools and procedures 
• Leadership and management skills, particularly “influence management” and “conflict resolution” 
• Significant experience throughout the program lifecycle from development through sustainment to include: proposal development, requirements decomposition, generation of system and subsystem statements of work and subcontracts, risk management, and continuous improvement efforts including implementation for cost reduction and performance improvement efforts 
• Experience with earned value cost accounting and reporting; experience with metrics for assessing and reporting program progress, productivity and variance analysis 
• Experience in finance, contracting, export regulations, engineering, logistics, manufacturing and supply chain management 
• Excellent customer interface skills
• Advanced problem solving skills 
• Excellent presentation skills 
• Demonstrated success in managing manpower planning, project reviews, scheduling and budget control