Engineering Program Lead

Key Responsibilities

• Provide systems engineering leadership across vehicle subsystems including drivetrain, suspension, armor/protection, electrical/electronic architecture, C4ISR integration, and survivability.
• Oversee requirements management, ensuring traceability from customer requirements through design, verification, and validation.
• Lead product and configuration definition of COTS and adapted vehicle/mission systems; review and approve drawings, specifications, trade studies, test plans, and qualification reports.
• Drive failure analysis and corrective action processes (FMEAs, 8D reports, corrective action plans).
• Support proposal development including BOE generation, technical volumes, and risk analyses.

Program Leadership & Execution

• Lead end-to-end technical program execution for military ground vehicle development and production contracts across wheeled vehicle platforms.
• Partner with Program Management to develop, maintain, and execute Program Management Plans (PMP) aligned with contractual milestones and government CDRLs.
• Drive and oversee the Integrated Master Schedules (IMS) for programs.
• Manage program budgets, cost-at-completion forecasts, variance reporting, and team member task execution.
• Cookordination across engineering, manufacturing, supply chain, test & evaluation, and quality assurance to ensure on-time program delivery.
• Chair or support program reviews including PDRs, CDRs, TRRs, and milestone decision briefings.

Government & Customer Interface

• Serve as the primary technical POC for government PMOs, Contracting Officers, and CORs, interfacing with agencies such as U.S. Army TACOM, GVSC, AMC, and NAVFAC.
• Manage relationships with prime contractors and respond to RFIs, Engineering Change Proposals (ECPs), and Program Review packages.
• Ensure compliance with all contract requirements, SOW deliverables, quality clauses, and applicable military standards (MIL-SPEC, MIL-STD).

AI & Process Optimization

• Identify and implement opportunities to apply AI and agentic technologies to streamline engineering processes, automate routine program management tasks, and improve decision-making efficiency.
• Stay current on emerging AI tools and methodologies relevant to defense engineering and program execution, and champion their adoption where appropriate.

Risk, Compliance & Reporting

• Maintain program Risk & Opportunity registers and develop risk mitigation plans.
• Ensure full compliance with ITAR, EAR, FAR/DFARS, and other government acquisition and export control regulations.
• Prepare and deliver program status reports, metrics dashboards, and executive briefings.