Position Summary
PAC Group is seeking an experienced Senior Program Manager to support the Department of Defense’s Research & Engineering (R&E) mission within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research & Engineering (OUSD(R&E)). This role provides strategic leadership across mission integration, mission engineering, joint experimentation, operational assessment, test and evaluation (T&E), systems integration, and technology transition efforts supporting advanced defense capabilities.
The ideal candidate combines strong program leadership with a solid technical and operational understanding of defense research, mission engineering, systems engineering, experimentation, operational assessment, and advanced technology development. The successful candidate will bridge engineering, operational, acquisition, and executive stakeholders while helping drive complex initiatives from operational problem definition and concept development through experimentation, assessment, and capability transition.
The role is expected to support an evolving mission environment involving MEIA, contested logistics, T-REX/J-REX, Maritime-NEXT, joint experimentation, emerging technologies, AI/autonomy, and operational product development. The successful candidate will help build and lead a mission-integration and assessment capability that connects operational needs with engineering, experimentation, evidence, and transition decisions.
Travel: Yorktown and Suffolk approximately once every 1–2 months.
Primary Responsibilities
- Lead complex Department of Defense programs supporting Research & Engineering, Mission Engineering, Mission Integration, Test & Evaluation, Joint Experimentation, Operational Assessment, and capability transition initiatives.
- Provide program management and strategic leadership for multidisciplinary teams supporting mission engineering analyses, experimentation campaigns, operational assessments, technology integration, and capability development.
- Coordinate activities across government, military, industry, FFRDCs, UARCs, laboratories, and other mission partners to ensure alignment of technical objectives and operational outcomes.
- Support development and execution of mission engineering analyses, operational concepts, mission threads, CONOPS, CONEMPs, Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs), and other operational products.
- Lead or support joint experimentation planning, experiment design, execution, data collection, analysis, and assessment.
- Support mission-integration activities associated with MEIA, T-REX, J-REX, Maritime-NEXT, Joint Test & Evaluation (JT&E), contested logistics, and related R&E initiatives.
- Manage integration activities supporting prototype development, experimentation events, technology demonstrations, operational assessments, and transition activities.
- Apply systems and mission engineering principles to evaluate interoperability, mission effectiveness, digital engineering, cybersecurity, AI-enabled capabilities, autonomous systems, and systems-of-systems integration.
- Translate operational problems and mission needs into mission threads, analytical frameworks, experimentation objectives, technical requirements, and actionable recommendations.
- Support assessment of emerging technologies and advanced capabilities in realistic operational and contested environments.
- Develop and apply assessment methodologies, measures of effectiveness (MOEs), measures of performance (MOPs), data and evidence frameworks, and decision-support products.
- Support modeling and simulation (M&S), mission analysis, operational analysis, and other analytical approaches used to evaluate capability effectiveness and mission outcomes.
- Help integrate operational, technical, and analytical perspectives across engineering, operations, acquisition, intelligence, experimentation, and program management communities.
- Oversee program schedules, technical risks, budgets, deliverables, and stakeholder communications across multiple engineering and experimentation efforts.
- Translate technical and operational findings into executive-level recommendations supporting acquisition, modernization, experimentation, and capability transition decisions.
- Facilitate collaboration between engineers, scientists, operational users, acquisition professionals, intelligence organizations, program offices, and senior defense leadership.
- Support capability transition and operationalization, ensuring experimentation and R&E activities produce actionable outcomes that can inform future capabilities and warfighter needs.
- Develop executive briefings, decision papers, technical reports, assessment products, CONOPS/CONEMP/TTP documentation, and other program deliverables for senior DoD leadership.
- Ensure program execution aligns with Department of Defense policies, acquisition pathways, and strategic modernization priorities.
Required Qualifications
- Active TS/SCI security clearance.
- Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Systems Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, Operations Research, Engineering Management, or related technical discipline. Master’s preferred.
- 10+ years of progressively responsible program management, mission engineering, systems engineering, operational analysis, experimentation, or related experience supporting Department of Defense organizations.
- Demonstrated experience leading or managing technical programs involving one or more of the following:
- Mission Engineering
- Mission Integration
- Test & Evaluation
- Joint Experimentation
- Operational Assessment
- Systems Integration
- Advanced Technology Development
- Capability Development or Transition
- Strong understanding of:
- Research & Engineering organizations
- Mission Engineering and Mission Analysis
- Systems Engineering
- Test & Evaluation methodologies
- Joint Experimentation
- Operational Assessment
- Digital Engineering
- Modeling & Simulation
- Systems-of-Systems Integration
- Technology Transition
- Experience developing or supporting CONOPS, CONEMPs, TTPs, mission threads, operational concepts, experimentation plans, or assessment products.
- Ability to operate across technical, operational, acquisition, and executive environments and translate complex technical information into actionable mission recommendations.
- Experience supporting senior DoD executives, Program Executive Offices (PEOs), OUSD(R&E), Joint Staff, Service headquarters, Combatant Commands, or similar organizations.
- Exceptional leadership, communication, analytical, and stakeholder-management skills.
- Experience managing multidisciplinary teams across engineering, science, acquisition, operational, and analytical communities.
Preferred Qualifications
- Master’s degree in Engineering, Systems Engineering, Engineering Management, Operations Research, National Security Studies, or related field.
- 15+ years supporting defense Research & Engineering, mission engineering, experimentation, T&E, operational assessment, or related organizations.
- Experience within OUSD(R&E), OUSD(A&S), Joint Test & Evaluation (JT&E), DARPA, Service laboratories, Defense Innovation organizations, or similar DoD organizations.
- Experience supporting or understanding MEIA, T-REX, J-REX, Maritime-NEXT, contested logistics, joint experimentation, or other emerging defense initiatives.
- Experience with:
- Mission Integration
- Mission Engineering
- Operational Experimentation
- Operational Assessment
- Contested Logistics
- Maritime Operations
- Joint / Multi-Domain Operations
- Mission Analysis
- Mission Threads
- CONOPS / CONEMP / TTP Development
- Modeling & Simulation
- Digital Engineering
- Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE)
- Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems
- Rapid Prototyping and Rapid Fielding
- Systems-of-Systems Integration
- Capability Transition
- Experience developing measures of effectiveness, measures of performance, assessment frameworks, operational evidence, or data-driven decision-support products.
- Strong technical or operational writing experience, including executive-level briefings, analytical reports, CONOPS, TTPs, assessment reports, and decision papers.
- Experience translating emerging technologies into operational concepts, experimentation objectives, or transition recommendations.
- PMP, DAWIA, INCOSE CSEP, or equivalent professional certification.
- Prior military service supporting operational, technical, engineering, acquisition, or experimentation organizations.
Candidate Profile
PAC Group is particularly interested in candidates who can operate at the intersection of mission, technology, experimentation, and assessment.
Strong candidates may come from backgrounds such as:
- Senior Program Manager
- Mission Engineering Lead
- Mission Integration Lead
- Mission Engineer
- Senior Systems Engineer
- Systems-of-Systems Engineer
- Joint Experimentation Lead
- Joint Experimentation Planner
- Operational Assessment Analyst
- Operations Research Analyst
- Mission Analyst
- T&E / JT&E Lead
- Capability Integration Analyst
- Operational Concepts Analyst
- CONOPS / TTP Analyst
- M&S / Mission Analysis Specialist
- Defense Technology Integration Lead
Candidates do not need to have held the exact title of “Program Manager” if they demonstrate the leadership, technical, operational, and mission-integration experience required for the position.
Benefits
- Healthcare Insurance
- Federal Holidays
- Sick/PTO Time Accrual
- Monthly Phone Stipend
- Employer 401(k) Matching
How to Apply
Please apply by filling out the application below.