About the company
Our client is a technology and national security services company.
The role
Raydar is recruiting for this role on behalf of our client. Act as the accountable program owner for customer engagements, partnering with a technical lead and a team of engineers. Convert unclear customer needs into prioritized work plans and manage people through demanding, time-sensitive projects. Serve as the main connection between government stakeholders and the delivery team.
What you'll do
- Take full responsibility for customer engagements from kickoff to completion as the program owner, working alongside a technical lead and engineers.
- Develop a first-hand understanding of how customers actually operate by spending time with their data and their users, instead of relying only on written documentation.
- Turn customer goals into clearly scoped and ranked work, separating real mission needs from noise and personal preferences.
- Communicate between government customers and engineers so that everyone understands what must be delivered.
- Remove obstacles quickly and adjust course when results show the current plan is not working.
- Build lasting working relationships with end users, program leaders, technical contacts and contracting staff.
- Pass field insights back to product and engineering groups to guide future development and delivery methods.
- Lead and manage internal and external teams, with room to grow your own organization over time.
Requirements
What we're looking for
- At least 4 years running complex technical programs or deployments from start to finish in a national security setting.
- A track record of being answerable for real results rather than only hitting timelines.
- Prior experience directly managing or leading people.
- Comfort collaborating with government clients in classified environments.
- Ability to shape vague requirements into well-defined, prioritized engineering tasks.
- Confidence guiding teams through pressured, quickly changing situations.
- Active Secret clearance at time of hire.
- Legal authorization to work in the United States.
- Residence within commuting distance of the Washington, D.C. area.
- Willingness to travel up to 40% of the time.
Bonus points
- TS/SCI clearance.
- Experience delivering work for government or national security clients.
- Previous forward deployed, deployment strategy or customer mission success role at a technology company.
- Prior military or government service.
- An existing professional network in the industry.
- Hands-on experience with enterprise data platforms.
Benefits
Compensation and benefits
- Base salary: USD 150,000 to 185,000 per year
- Annual bonus
- Health, dental and vision coverage
- Life and disability insurance
- Retirement plan
- Paid time off and paid holidays
- Professional development opportunities
Location and work model
- Washington, D.C., United States
- Hybrid, in the office approximately 2-3 times per month
- Up to 40% travel
- Full-time
Skills Required
- At least 4 years running complex technical programs or deployments from start to finish in a national security setting
- Track record of accountability for measurable program results
- Prior experience directly managing or leading people
- Experience collaborating with government clients in classified environments
- Ability to turn vague requirements into defined, prioritized engineering tasks
- Ability to guide teams through pressured and rapidly changing situations
- Active Secret security clearance at time of hire
- Legal authorization to work in the United States
- Residence within commuting distance of Washington, D.C.
- Willingness to travel up to 40% of the time
- TS/SCI security clearance
- Experience delivering work for government or national security clients
- Forward-deployed, deployment strategy, or customer mission success experience at a technology company
- Prior military or government service
- Existing professional network in the industry
- Hands-on experience with enterprise data platforms
What We Do
Raydar is a talent acquisition and business consulting firm that connects world-class and emerging talent with growing organizations. It supports companies through team development, strategic hiring, and customized growth solutions, helping clients recruit roles such as engineers, product managers, executives, legal counsel, and quantitative traders. Raydar focuses on understanding each organization’s needs, culture, and long-term goals to build high-impact teams.
