Technical Program Manager – Recon Works

Location: Washington, DC (Hybrid on-site)

Travel: <25%

Clearance: U.S. Citizenship and ability to obtain a security clearance required

About NODA

NODA is a veteran-owned, venture-backed defense technology company building the orchestration layer for autonomous unmanned systems. Our platform coordinates fleets of heterogeneous vehicles across air, sea, and land for defense and intelligence customers. We expect every hire to be mission-driven with strong agency.

NODA Recon Works imagines the future of autonomous warfare, then builds it. We are a small team of multidisciplinary technical experts that scouts, analyzes, prototypes, and delivers de-risked technologies to integrate into our products or become new ones altogether.

Builders wanted for challenging journey. Fast pace, uncertain requirements, imaginative leaps expected, path to production sometimes doubtful. Defense of the free world in case of success.

The Role

As Technical Program Manager - Recon Works, you manage multiple projects and programs, structuring and managing execution to turn ideas into working prototypes. You will own the daily operations rhythm of the Recon Works team; initiate, execute, and close projects; and manage enduring programs such as our intellectual property portfolio or academic engagement. Recon Works needs your project management expertise and your technical advice to help meet its mission to invent the future.

Key Responsibilities

Drive ideas to working prototypes by managing the team’s end-to-end technology delivery process including needs analysis, requirements definition, operations analysis, and test planning and execution (45%)

Design and lead the operations processes of the Recon Works team to support its enduring and transient missions (20%)

Manage enduring programs including but not limited to: intellectual property strategy and portfolio, academic engagement, technology roadmap, etc. (20%)

Identify relevant contract R&D opportunities and own the business development lifecycle for select science and technology (S&T) opportunities (10%)

Track, manage, and model internal research and development (IRAD) spending (5%)

Required Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in a STEM field

5+ years of project or program management in a complex technical field

Hands-on experience in at least one complex technical field sufficient to provide input to IRAD decisions and speak credibly to S&T customers (e.g., autonomy, robotics, RF/EW, ML, aerospace)

Demonstrated experience with structured, repeatable problem-solving

Excellent verbal and written communication; able to synthesize and decompose strategic vision into clear executable plans

Experience standing up and driving adoption of new process frameworks or operating models from scratch

U.S. citizenship is required due to ITAR regulations, along with the ability to obtain and maintain a DoD security clearance

Preferred Qualifications

Graduate degree in a STEM field

Direct test and evaluation experience

Experience in product management or process improvement

Existing TS/SCI clearance

Experience writing and developing proposals for BAAs, SBIR/STTR, or OTAs

Demonstrated success winning S&T contracts with relevant customers (DARPA, AFRL, DIU, ONR, etc.)

Experience managing a patent portfolio or university research partnerships

Skills & Attributes

Imagination and creativity: you view project and program management as an enabler to direct ideas into action, not as an end in itself

Comfort with ambiguity: you use process and structure to manage ambiguity but are always ready to modify or drop it when the situation changes

High agency: you don’t wait for explicit direction before acting

Technical credibility: you know a lot about one technical domain and a bit about most others

Communication: you can distill complex ideas into clear communication

Benefits & Perks

Our culture fosters collaboration, respect, and trust, empowering passionate people to do their best work. We offer a competitive salary, comprehensive benefits, and opportunities for career growth. In addition to an opportunity to take part in an innovative, collaborative and fast-growing business with a highly motivated and skilled team, we also take pride in taking care of our employees. Here are just a few ways that we show our appreciation: