Army Program Manager

Dcode

$98K — $130K *
Aerospace & Defense
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 5+ years of relevant DoD/DoW work experience (US Army and/or SOF community preferred)
  • Proven experience establishing governance frameworks in complex environments
  • Strong understanding of the DoD acquisition process, bridging rapid innovation and formal pathways
  • Exceptional ability to translate complex information into decision-ready materials
  • Strong technical fluency for evaluating and integrating emerging technologies
  • Comfort operating with military personnel and senior leaders
  • Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) or demonstrated experience, PMP/Agile certifications a plus

Responsibilities

  • Develop and improve sustainable innovation intake and governance processes
  • Serve as a trusted partner translating complex mission needs into actionable outcomes
  • Support operational commands in identifying capability gaps and translating needs into solutions
  • Help design agile structures for fast delivery and experimentation
  • Lead workshops and convert operational challenges into clear recommendations
  • Facilitate alignment across diverse stakeholders
  • Continuously collect feedback and refine delivery approaches

Benefits

  • Working in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment
  • Collaboration with passionate and smart teammates
  • Opportunities for professional growth and solving big, complex problems
  • Empowerment to take initiative in fixing problems and seizing opportunities
  • A culture valuing resilience and persistence in overcoming challenges
Full Job Description
Dcode is seeking a high-performing Program Manager to support a dynamic, fast-paced innovation environment embedded within the U.S. Army. This role is central to driving mission outcomes by bridging the gap between rapid technology prototyping and formal Army acquisition pathways. You will design and implement sustainable innovation intake and governance processes, bringing order to complex environments. By ensuring technology solutions align with mission-critical requirements and acquisition milestones, you will transform ambiguous problem spaces into clear, data-driven outcomes. As a trusted partner to senior leadership, you will guide operational commands through the full capability lifecycle. From identifying needs and prototyping solutions to executing transitions, ensuring every solution is vetted for technical viability and acquisition readiness. You'll facilitate alignment across operators, developers, and acquisition authorities, turning complex mission needs into actionable recommendations. This role blends project management, agile delivery, and technical fluency. Whether you are leading a delivery workstream, running sprint planning, or facilitating a high-stakes workshop, you are helping to scale innovation in a mission-critical environment. Duty Station: Joint Base Lewis-McChord Salary range: $98,000-$130,000 plus bi-annual bonuses. Top Secret clearance or higher is strongly preferred. Eligibility for clearance is required. Job Responsibilities Client & Mission Success • Develop, implement, and improve sustainable innovation intake and governance processes, ensuring alignment between emerging technology solutions and formal acquisition requirements. • Serve as a trusted partner to senior DoW stakeholders, translating complex mission needs into data-driven, actionable outcomes. • Support operational commands in identifying capability gaps and translating needs into actionable, rapid solutions. • Help design and stand up agile operational structures that enable fast delivery and experimentation. • Lead workshops, write assessments, and convert complex operational and technical challenges into clear recommendations for senior leadership. • Facilitate alignment across diverse stakeholders including operators, developers, and acquisition authorities. • Continuously collect feedback and refine delivery approaches to improve outcomes and user experience. Program and Project Delivery • Manage day-to-day delivery for assigned workstream(s), producing high quality deliverables and measurable outcomes for your clients. • Define and track performance metrics to evaluate progress towards objectives, ensuring Dcode's support drives outsized mission and organizational value. • Apply agile and Scrum methodologies to plan, execute, and adapt projects based on real-time feedback. • Identify and help implement automation opportunities to make processes faster and more efficient. • Work closely with technical contributors and Systems Developers to ensure requirements, timelines, and dependencies are aligned. • Coordinate closely with Dcode leadership and Field Experts to bring the right expertise into projects at the right time. • Track progress against milestones and communicate updates clearly and frequently to internal and external stakeholders. • Support rapid prototyping and experimentation efforts tied to software-enabled capabilities. Technical & Systems Support (Program-Level) • Partner with Systems Developers and technical teams supporting technical capability efforts. • Contribute to planning and oversight of technical development and integration activities, including testing, deployment, and sustainment considerations. • Maintain awareness of emerging technologies and software development best practices to inform planning and decision-making. • Help ensure interoperability, security, and compliance with DoD/DoW regulations throughout delivery efforts. • Support documentation efforts, including requirements, design artifacts, user guidance, and lessons learned. Operational & Contract Management • Understand and manage contract requirements to ensure compliance and effective delivery. • Identify risks early and work with leadership to mitigate issues quickly. • Audit organizational workflows to identify structural bottlenecks and implement scalable, data-driven improvements. • Identify and remove policy, acquisition, and operational barriers to innovation through process optimization. • Implement solutions that make delivery more efficient and scalable. Qualifications KEY SKILLS • 5+ years of relevant DoD/DoW work experience (US Army and/or SOF community experience preferred). • Proven experience establishing governance frameworks for intake, prioritization, and decision-making in complex environments. • Strong understanding of the DoD acquisition process, with specific experience bridging the gap between rapid innovation and formal acquisition pathways. • Exceptional ability to translate complex, messy information into decision-ready materials and brief senior leadership with clarity and impact. • Strong technical fluency; ability to scout, evaluate, and integrate emerging technologies into complex environments. • Comfort operating in collaborative environments with military personnel, government civilians, and senior leaders. • Excellent organizational, communication, and stakeholder management skills. • Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) or demonstrated Scrum Master experience preferred. • PMP, Agile certifications, or relevant Security+/CISSP certifications are a plus. Additional Information You'll love it here if: • Thrive in fast-paced, mission-driven environments. • Love figuring out how to make big, complex things run smoothly. • Are energized by working with smart, passionate teammates. • Don't wait for permission to fix problems or seize opportunities. • Can give and take feedback without ego. • Bring energy, creativity, and persistence to everything you do. We look for resilient hustlers: Our CEO busted her face on the balance beam in college and got back up... our CRO knocked on a thousand doors, was rejected 999 times, and kept on knocking... What is your story?

Similar Jobs

More Jobs at Dcode

More Aerospace & Defense Jobs

Find similar Army Program Manager jobs: