Honeywell Aerospace is seeking a Director of Government Relations, Italy and Southern European States, to lead engagement with the Italian Government, Parliament, regulators, and key external stakeholders and shape the future of a newly independent, $17B global aerospace and defence leader. Based in Rome, this role will represent Honeywell Aerospace’s Italy manufacturing, maintenance, and technology interests at the national level, shaping external engagement across civil aviation, defence, aviation safety and certification, trade and export, and emerging aerospace technologies. With Italy as a central focal point, you will also be responsible for general policy monitoring, relationship management, and engagement, as proves necessary, with the Southern States of Europe including Greece and Spain. This newly created position reports to the Senior Director, Government Relations, Europe located in Brussels.
The Director will serve as a senior strategic interface between Italian government decision-makers and Honeywell Aerospace business leaders, as well as managing similar interfaces with other Southern European states, as necessary, ensuring alignment between public policy outcomes and the company’s operational, manufacturing, and technology priorities. A key responsibility is to drive a cohesive strategy by building strong relationships across national and local governments, including the government relations counterparts in the European Union, its institutions, and NATO.
You will influence policy advocating Honeywell Aerospace’s broad portfolio of advanced aerospace and defence technologies. This role represents a unique opportunity to design and execute an integrated Government Relations strategy that strengthens Honeywell Aerospace’s position with policymakers, strategic thinkers, and key stakeholders in Italy and across Europe.
Honeywell Aerospace technologies are found on virtually every commercial, defence, and space aircraft worldwide. Our products include aircraft engines, cockpit and cabin electronics, wireless connectivity systems, mechanical components, and navigation technologies. Across all platforms, Honeywell enables safer, more efficient, and more sustainable air travel, including advancements in autonomous operations and supersonic flight.
Honeywell Aerospace will separate from Honeywell International in the second half of 2026. As it transitions toward becoming an independent $17B global aerospace and defence company with more than 21,000 employees, Europe will serve as a critical hub for policy alignment, innovation, defence modernization, sustainability, and emerging technologies.
Honeywell Aerospace recently acquired Civitanavi Systems with operations in Porto Sant'Elpidio, Italy, and approximately 170 employees. Civitanavi specializes in inertial navigation, geo-referencing, and stabilization systems. It offers high-performance Fiber Optic Gyro technology, complementing Honeywell's existing navigation and sensor technologies. These technologies are now part of Honeywell's global offerings supporting aerospace, defence, and industrial markets, to include autonomous operations in aircraft and vehicles.
ResponsibilitiesKEY RESPONSIBILITIES
- Develop and execute Honeywell Aerospace’s government relations strategy that are aligned with the business priorities and objectives in Italy and Southern European states.
- Build and maintain strong, trusted relationships with office of the Prime Minister, critical Ministers (e.g., Defence, Infrastructure and Transport, Enterprises, Foreign Affairs), key Members of Parliament, and relevant departments, regulators, and industry bodies in Italy and, as necessary, in other Southern European states.
- Advocate for policies and regulatory outcomes that support commercial aviation safety, defence capability, and supply-chain resilience.
- Monitor, analyze, and proactively respond to legislative, regulatory, and policy developments affecting the aerospace and defence sectors.
- Coordinate government engagement with broader European and international aerospace policy priorities, working closely with regional and global government relations colleagues.
- Serve as a strategic advisor to Honeywell Aerospace business leaders in the region on government affairs risks, business opportunities, and stakeholder engagement strategies.
- Represent Honeywell Aerospace in industry forums, coalitions, and events.
DESIRED CANDIDATE PROFILE
- 10+ years of experience in government relations or policy advocacy within the aerospace and defence sector.
- Deep understanding of Italy’s political institutions and legislative processes.
- Experience engaging with Italy’s regulators, providing insight into, shaping and responding to emerging and new legislative developments relevant to the aerospace sector.
- Demonstrated experience influencing high‑level policy, driving advocacy strategies, and shaping regulatory outcomes
- Proven expertise in policy development, contracts and budgets with the Ministry of Defence.
- Ability to engage, or develop relationships with, the Italian Civil Aviation Authority, Italian Trade Agency, and Unit for Authorizing Arms Exports.
- Exceptional communication, negotiation, and relationship‑building skills alongside excellent skills working independently with a strong entrepreneurial spirit.
- Strong networking capability, with the ability to engage effectively with officials at local and national levels.
- Fluency in Italian & English required.
Skills Required
- 10+ years of experience in government relations or policy advocacy within the aerospace and defence sector.
- Deep understanding of Italy's political institutions and legislative processes.
- Experience engaging with Italy's regulators and responding to legislative developments relevant to aerospace.
- Demonstrated experience influencing high‑level policy, driving advocacy strategies, and shaping regulatory outcomes.
- Proven expertise in policy development, contracts and budgets with the Ministry of Defence.
- Ability to engage or develop relationships with the Italian Civil Aviation Authority, Italian Trade Agency, and Unit for Authorizing Arms Exports.
- Exceptional communication, negotiation, and relationship‑building skills; ability to work independently with entrepreneurial spirit.
- Strong networking capability to engage effectively with officials at local and national levels.
- Fluency in Italian and English.
- Based in Rome (role location requirement).
The Aerospace Corporation Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about The Aerospace Corporation and has not been reviewed or approved by The Aerospace Corporation.
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Retirement Support — The 401(k) plan provides a company‑paid contribution of 8–12% based on years of service with immediate eligibility and vesting, and eligible employees can access retiree medical benefits.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Paid time off includes 15 vacation days (rising to 20 after five years), nine paid holidays, and unlimited sick time for exempt employees with accruals for non‑exempt staff.
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Flexible Benefits — Flexible work models include a 9/80 schedule with alternating Fridays off, supported by backup care services, an EAP, relocation assistance, and home‑office stipends where applicable.
The Aerospace Corporation Insights
What We Do
The space enterprise has been transformed by rapid change and growth. New vehicles for national security space, a more rapid launch cadence, proliferated satellite constellations, the pursuit of interplanetary exploration, and thriving commercial ventures are changing the nature of the space industry. The Aerospace Corporation (Aerospace) is a leading architect for U.S. space programs, shaping efforts to outpace threats to our national security while cultivating the technologies needed to further this new era of space commercialization and exploration. Aerospace works across the space enterprise in service of the public interest. In addition to supporting the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community, our customers include NASA, NOAA, numerous federal agencies, and commercial space — all of whom benefit from our deep technical knowledge. We only pursue business related to the space mission and complementary fields, operating as the nation’s trusted partner to solve the toughest challenges and develop reliable and innovative technologies. Innovation in space occurs when people have the freedom to imagine and do. At Aerospace, we take pride in our readiness to solve some of the most complex challenges in the space enterprise.
Why Work With Us
We are a non-profit corporation chartered by the government to work on the hardest problems in space. We employ technical experts in every discipline of space-related science and engineering who touch every part of the US space program. Come join us as we make an impact bigger than ourselves.
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