Job DescriptionFAST Labs is seeking a dynamic and strategic Campaign Director to lead the acceleration of technology capture and the transition of advanced research into scalable warfighter capabilities. This role sits at the intersection of innovative science and business execution, tasked with identifying high-impact funding opportunities and ensuring that cutting-edge laboratory developments successfully transition into operational programs. The ideal candidate is a "thinker-doer" who can both conceptualize original research topics and execute the tactical requirements of winning proposals. You will serve as a strategic bridge between our scientists and the customer, ensuring our technical roadmap is aligned with the highest-priority needs of the defense community.
We are seeking an experienced leader to join our ST Product Line as a Campaign Director. Reporting directly to the Product Line Director (PLD), the Campaign Director's job responsibilities include the following:
- Lead the shaping and capture of business in support of ST mission campaigns.
- In conjunction with the FAST Labs Campaign Director, lead key personnel in ST in analyzing the mission threads and scenarios relevant to ST technology and in brainstorming new capabilities ST could develop to address critical gaps and create new warfighting opportunities.
- Help propagate through the PL descriptions of current and future threats; explain broad operational assessments to ST technologists.
- Possess or develop a deep understanding of the government acquisition system and participate on program teams to develop new business models to transition and mature their capabilities faster and more adaptively.
- Find interim government customers to support development of these business models and other transition experiments, bridging the gap between S&T and a traditional PEO.
- Ability to take this knowledge and apply to current efforts for keep-sold and growth purposes, particularly for programs that are post-seedling phase but pre-franchise.
- Develop and foster an entrepreneurial mindset throughout the PL for developing and executing strategies to rapidly and consistently develop impactful technologies and products and getting those technologies and products across the valley of death.
- Supported by the FAST Labs Campaign Director and other PL Campaign Leads, develop an understand of capabilities in other PLs across FAST Labs and other ES Business Areas to identify opportunities for collaboration and application to/from ST challenges.
- Elevate functional support (contracts, finance, security, business development, tech scouting) into the capture process.
- Provide a strategic filter for IRAD and Bid/Proposal investments.
Because this role involves a combination of collaborative/in-person and independent work, it will take the form of a
hybrid work format, with time split between working onsite (about 80%) and remotely.
Required Skills and EducationThe Campaign Director candidate shall have demonstrated or obtained the following education, experience and skills:
- Bachelor's Degree with 12+ years of relevant experience or Master's Degree with 10+ years of relevant experience or PhD with 8+ years of relevant experience.
- Ready-Day-One mindset with ideas and customers to grow the ST CRAD pipeline in campaign-relevant areas.
- Proven success in technology and product development from conception through deployment.
- >12 years of technical and management experience across Research and Development, Engineering Manufacturing and Development, Production, and fielding for the Defense and/or Intelligence markets.
- Ability to think strategically and formulate a strategic vision and strategies, as well as implement actions needed to achieve goals in a changing environment.
- Capability to lead execution and rollout for new strategic initiatives.
- Business and technical leadership, management, and decision making in technology development efforts.
- Strong customer focus, marketing, influencing, and shaping with a demonstrated ability to build and manage relationships across a broad network of customers spanning the highly technical, programmatic, government bureaucratic, and operational users.
- Ability to communicate at all levels within the customer community and the corporate community.
- Business development mindset with in-depth experience in the development of growth strategies.
- Proven ability to share and transfer know-how across organizational boundaries.
- Competent in mentoring, coaching, and team communications.
- Ability to achieve results through others and develop leaders in an organization.
- Active Top Secret DoW clearance.
Preferred Skills and Education- Advanced degree in electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, computer science, operations research, mathematics, physics or similar technical major.
- US government or military service as an operator and/or program manager.
- Experience leading a diverse organization across multiple geographic business sites.
- Domain expertise in one or more of the following areas: Electronic Warfare, Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance, Mission Planning, Data Analytics.
- Program management and leadership of S&T or EMD program execution.
- Entrepreneurial experience.
