Director, IT Project Management (R6372)

Posted Yesterday
Hiring Remotely in USA
Remote
210K-320K Annually
Expert/Leader
Aerospace • Artificial Intelligence • Machine Learning • Robotics • Software • Defense Technology
Our mission is to protect service members and civilians with intelligent systems.
The Role
Leads the enterprise IT PMO strategy, governance, portfolio management, delivery standards, budgeting, resource planning, risk management, and executive reporting. Oversees large-scale technology programs across ERP, applications, cloud, infrastructure, cybersecurity, data, AI, and transformation. Builds and manages PMO teams, governs vendors and investment portfolios, improves delivery maturity, and ensures programs achieve business, security, compliance, and financial outcomes.
Summary Generated by Built In
Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube. 

Job Description:

The Director of IT Project Management Office (PMO) leads the strategy, governance, delivery discipline, and portfolio management practices for enterprise technology initiatives. This role is responsible for ensuring that high-priority IT programs—including enterprise applications, cybersecurity, infrastructure, cloud, data, AI, and business transformation initiatives are delivered predictably, transparently, and in alignment with business objectives.

The IT PMO is a critical enabler of disciplined execution across a growing and complex technology environment. Success in this role equates to a well-governed portfolio, clear executive visibility into investments and risks, strong accountability for outcomes, improved cross-functional coordination, and reliable delivery of strategic programs.

As a senior IT leader, the Director establishes the operating model, standards, tooling, resource-management practices, financial controls, and reporting mechanisms required to scale enterprise program delivery. The ideal candidate brings deep experience managing complex technology portfolios, building and leading high-performing program and project management teams, and partnering with executives to convert strategy into measurable business outcomes.

What you'll do:

  • Develop and execute the strategic vision, operating model, and multi-year maturity roadmap for the enterprise IT PMO.
  • Establish portfolio governance, intake, prioritization, funding, resource planning, stage-gate reviews, and escalation processes for technology initiatives.
  • Lead a portfolio of strategic enterprise programs spanning business applications, ERP, cybersecurity, infrastructure, cloud platforms, data and analytics, AI enablement, enterprise integrations, and end-user technology.
  • Partner with IT and business leadership to translate corporate priorities into a balanced, sequenced, and executable technology roadmap.
  • Define and enforce common program and project management methodologies, delivery standards, templates, controls, and performance metrics across the IT organization.
  • Build and lead a high-performing team of program managers, project managers, portfolio analysts, and business operations personnel; establish clear roles, career paths, coaching, and performance expectations.
  • Oversee delivery of large, complex, cross-functional transformation initiatives, ensuring scope, schedule, budget, dependencies, risks, security requirements, and business outcomes are actively managed.
  • Establish executive-level portfolio reporting that provides transparent visibility into project health, milestones, financial performance, dependencies, resource capacity, delivery risks, and decision requirements.
  • Create and maintain an integrated technology portfolio roadmap, including interdependencies across business functions, technology domains, vendors, and enterprise transformation programs.
  • Drive disciplined demand management and business-case development, including strategic alignment, cost estimates, benefits realization, implementation effort, risk assessment, and operating-model impacts.
  • Partner with Finance and IT leadership to manage technology investment planning, budget tracking, forecast accuracy, capitalization processes, vendor spend, and cost optimization initiatives.
  • Implement benefits-realization practices to measure whether completed initiatives achieve intended operational, financial, security, compliance, and business outcomes.
  • Lead program risk management, issue resolution, executive escalation, and recovery planning for initiatives that are off track or at risk of failing to meet commitments.
  • Establish resource-management practices that improve allocation, capacity planning, prioritization, utilization visibility, and delivery predictability across internal teams and strategic partners.
  • Partner closely with Enterprise Architecture, Security, Infrastructure, Business Systems, Data, Finance, Legal, People, and business unit leadership to align execution plans with enterprise strategy and operational readiness.
  • Oversee relationships with systems integrators, implementation partners, consultants, and strategic technology vendors; ensure vendor delivery commitments, milestones, quality, and commercial obligations are actively governed.
  • Advance adoption of modern delivery practices, including Agile, hybrid, and product-oriented operating models, appropriately matched to the nature of the work.
  • Drive continuous improvement through portfolio analytics, post-implementation reviews, lessons learned, delivery-health assessments, and PMO maturity measurements.
  • Ensure programs appropriately address security, privacy, compliance, audit, data-governance, and change-management requirements.
  • Provide leadership during critical incidents, enterprise transformations, and high-visibility executive escalations as required.

Required qualifications:

  • 12+ years of experience in technology program management, project management, portfolio management, business transformation, or related enterprise IT leadership roles.
  • 5+ years of leadership experience managing PMO, program management, project management, portfolio-management, or enterprise-transformation teams.
  • Demonstrated experience building or maturing an enterprise IT PMO in a complex, rapidly evolving, or high-growth organization.
  • Proven success leading large-scale, multi-year technology transformation programs with significant business impact, cross-functional dependencies, and executive visibility.
  • Strong experience governing portfolios that include enterprise applications, ERP, cloud, infrastructure, cybersecurity, data platforms, integrations, and end-user technologies.
  • Deep understanding of portfolio governance, demand management, investment prioritization, business-case development, resource planning, financial management, and benefits realization.
  • Experience managing program budgets, forecasts, vendor spend, statements of work, implementation partners, and financial controls.
  • Proven ability to develop concise executive communications, including portfolio dashboards, program status reports, investment recommendations, risk summaries, and decision materials.
  • Strong ability to identify delivery risks, clarify accountability, resolve cross-functional issues, and drive timely decisions across senior stakeholder groups.
  • Experience with project and portfolio management methodologies, including Agile, Waterfall, hybrid delivery models, and ITIL-aligned service-management principles.
  • Experience with enterprise portfolio-management, project-management, and collaboration tools such as Planview, Jira, Smartsheet, Asana, Microsoft Project, or equivalent strategic portfolio management platforms.
  • Exceptional communication, influencing, negotiation, and stakeholder-management skills, including the ability to engage effectively with executives, technical teams, and business leaders.
  • Strong analytical and financial acumen, with the ability to connect technology investments to business value, risk reduction, operational efficiency, and strategic outcomes.
  • Ability to participate in critical program governance, escalation management, and incident leadership as required.

Preferred qualifications:

  • 15+ years of progressive experience in enterprise IT, technology transformation, consulting, or program leadership, including 7+ years managing multi-functional delivery organizations.
  • Experience leading PMO functions in a defense technology, aerospace, manufacturing, regulated, security-sensitive, or high-compliance environment.
  • Experience governing Oracle Fusion, Workday, Salesforce Agentforce, or similarly complex enterprise application and ERP transformation programs.
  • Experience managing cloud modernization, cybersecurity transformation, identity, zero-trust, data-platform, AI, or enterprise automation initiatives.
  • PMP, PgMP, PfMP, PMI-ACP, SAFe, Lean, Six Sigma, ITIL, or comparable professional certifications.
  • Experience implementing strategic portfolio-management platforms and enterprise reporting capabilities.
  • Strong background in organizational change management, operating-model design, process transformation, and adoption planning.
  • Experience establishing outcome-based delivery metrics, including on-time delivery, budget performance, delivery predictability, realized benefits, resource utilization, customer satisfaction, and risk reduction.
  • Experience applying automation, AI-enabled portfolio analytics, or data-driven reporting to improve PMO efficiency and decision quality.

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Full-time regular employee offer package:
Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity
 
Temporary employee offer package:
Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)
 
Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.
 
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Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know. 

Skills Required

  • 12+ years of experience in technology program management, project management, portfolio management, business transformation, or related enterprise IT leadership
  • 5+ years of leadership experience managing PMO, program management, project management, portfolio management, or enterprise transformation teams
  • Experience building or maturing an enterprise IT PMO in a complex, rapidly evolving, or high-growth organization
  • Experience leading large-scale, multi-year technology transformation programs with significant business impact and executive visibility
  • Experience governing portfolios covering enterprise applications, ERP, cloud, infrastructure, cybersecurity, data platforms, integrations, and end-user technologies
  • Knowledge of portfolio governance, demand management, investment prioritization, business-case development, resource planning, financial management, and benefits realization
  • Experience managing program budgets, forecasts, vendor spend, statements of work, implementation partners, and financial controls
  • Ability to develop executive communications, portfolio dashboards, status reports, investment recommendations, risk summaries, and decision materials
  • Ability to identify delivery risks, clarify accountability, resolve cross-functional issues, and drive decisions among senior stakeholders
  • Experience with Agile, Waterfall, hybrid delivery models, and ITIL-aligned service-management principles
  • Experience with enterprise portfolio-management, project-management, and collaboration tools such as Planview, Jira, Smartsheet, Asana, or Microsoft Project
  • Exceptional communication, influencing, negotiation, and stakeholder-management skills
  • Strong analytical and financial acumen connecting technology investments to business value, risk reduction, efficiency, and strategic outcomes
  • Ability to participate in critical program governance, escalation management, and incident leadership
  • 15+ years of progressive experience in enterprise IT, technology transformation, consulting, or program leadership
  • 7+ years managing multi-functional delivery organizations
  • Experience leading PMO functions in defense technology, aerospace, manufacturing, regulated, security-sensitive, or high-compliance environments
  • Experience governing Oracle Fusion, Workday, Salesforce Agentforce, or comparable enterprise application and ERP transformations
  • Experience managing cloud modernization, cybersecurity transformation, identity, zero-trust, data-platform, AI, or enterprise automation initiatives
  • PMP, PgMP, PfMP, PMI-ACP, SAFe, Lean, Six Sigma, ITIL, or comparable professional certification
  • Experience implementing strategic portfolio-management platforms and enterprise reporting capabilities
  • Background in organizational change management, operating-model design, process transformation, and adoption planning
  • Experience establishing outcome-based delivery metrics
  • Experience applying automation, AI-enabled portfolio analytics, or data-driven reporting to improve PMO efficiency and decision quality

What the Team is Saying

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Shield AI Compensation & Benefits Highlights

  • Healthcare Strength — Company materials highlight comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with mental-health support and an EAP. Third-party benefits summaries also portray health coverage as a strong component of the package.
  • Retirement Support — Offerings include a 401(k) with employer matching, cited on the careers page and independent benefits directories. Multiple sources indicate a match exists, though exact formulas have varied over time and warrant confirmation.
  • Equity Value & Accessibility — Company communications describe equity for all full-time hires and stock benefits as part of total rewards. Independent listings also note company equity/RSUs as a standard element.

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The Company
HQ: San Diego, CA
Year Founded: 2015

What We Do

At Shield AI, you won't wait years to see your work reach the field. You'll build hardware and software that operates in the real world right now, in the hands of the people who depend on it. Hivemind, our AI pilot, has been flying since 2018. It has flown more than 30 platforms, including an F-16, and it now sits under a U.S. Air Force production contract for Collaborative Combat Aircraft. When you write code or shape a system here, you contribute to technology with a proven flight record and a clear production future. V-BAT flies intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions with an operational record that stretches from Ukraine to the Indo-Pacific. It delivers eyes where they matter most, in the most demanding conditions on earth. The teams behind it watch their work get tested where the stakes are real. X-BAT takes its first flight this year. It's an AI-piloted fighter that needs no runway, built to operate where traditional aircraft can't. Join now and you help shape a program at its earliest, most formative stage. That's the kind of ground-floor work that defines a career. Do the most impactful work of your life, on problems that matter. Autonomy at this level asks a lot of you. You'll take on problems in perception, planning, and control that few teams anywhere are equipped to solve. You'll work across disciplines, from aerospace and robotics to machine learning and systems engineering, alongside people who hold themselves to an exacting standard and expect the same from you. Our mission is clear: protect service members and civilians with intelligent systems. That purpose runs through every decision, every design review, and every deployment. It's why the work here carries a weight you can feel. Ready to join our mission? Explore our open roles and find where you fit.

Why Work With Us

Founded in 2015 by a former Navy SEAL, Shield AI builds AI pilots and uncrewed aircraft. Veterans aren't an afterthought here, they're at every level. It's why the work carries weight: AI pilots and uncrewed aircraft flying real missions, from Ukraine to the Indo-Pacific, protecting service members and civilians.

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Hybrid Workspace

Employees engage in a combination of remote and on-site work.

Typical time on-site: Flexible
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