Senior Program Manager, Professional Services for Defense and Intelligence

Planetlabs; Greater London; On-site; GBP 133,000 - 166,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid time off

Wellness Program

Home Office Reimbursement

Monthly Phone and Internet Reimburse.

Tuition Reimbursement and access to LN

Equity

Volunteering Paid Time Off

Job summary

Planet is seeking a Senior Program Manager, Professional Services for Defense and Intelligence to guide strategy and execution across multiple projects with a global client base. This role combines leadership, technical oversight, and client-focused delivery to ensure successful outcomes for Planet’s platform in defense and intelligence sectors.

You will lead a diverse team of solutions architects, deployment strategists, and software engineers, while shaping long-term growth and recruitment to

Qualifications

• 6+ years of relevant work experience and 4+ years supervisory/leadership experience
• Degree in GIS, Computer Science, Remote Sensing, Geography, or related field; advanced degree preferred
• Excellent problem-solving and communication skills, with ability to influence decisions at all levels

Responsibilities

• Lead a Professional Services team across multiple projects or workstreams
• Provide technical oversight and align projects to global business requirements
• Drive delivery on time and within budget for defense and intelligence engagements
• Guide strategy and execution for six to twelve-month horizons
• Foster career growth and ensure long-term team health and recruiting needs

Skills

Team leadership

Problem solving

Communication

Stakeholder management

Strategic thinking

Geospatial knowledge

Project direction

Client engagement

Education

GIS/CS/Remote Sensing/Geography degree

Tools

QGIS

Esri software

GDAL

Job description

Welcome to Planet. We believe in using space to help life on Earth.

Planet designs, builds, and operates the largest constellation of imaging satellites in history. This constellation delivers an unprecedented dataset of empirical information via a revolutionary cloud-based platform to authoritative figures in commercial, environmental, and humanitarian sectors. We are both a space company and data company all rolled into one.

Customers and users across the globe use Planet's data to develop new technologies, drive revenue, power research, and solve our world’s toughest obstacles.

As we control every component of hardware design, manufacturing, data processing, and software engineering, our office is a truly inspiring mix of experts from a variety of domains.

We have a people-centric approach toward culture and community and we strive to iterate in a way that puts our team members first and prepares our company for growth. Join Planet and be a part of our mission to change the way people see the world.

Planet is a global company with employees working remotely world wide and joining us from offices in San Francisco, Washington DC, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, and The Netherlands.

About the Role:

The Senior Program Manager, Professional Services for Defense and Intelligence is an experienced technologist who guides the strategy and execution of one or more teams across multiple projects or workstreams. They are an exemplary team leader who works with customers to make them successful users of Planet’s product offerings at a global scale.

This role provides leadership and technical oversight for the Professional Services team, independently identifying and tackling projects that solve open-ended, ambiguous problems to lead global customer engagements to successful outcomes.

This is a full-time, hybrid role which will require you to work from our Berlin, Haarlem or London office 3 days per week.

Impact You’ll Own:

• Manage a team of Professional Services Solutions architects, deployment strategists and Software Engineers.
• Apply experience in remote sensing and geospatial technologies to help Planet’s Defense and Intelligence customers be successful in their adoption of the Planet Platform globally.
• Guide the strategy and execution of one or more teams across multiple projects or workstreams on six to twelve-month time horizons.
• Lead the technical delivery of solutions to Planet’s customers and align Professional Services projects to global business and technology requirements.
• Own the technical oversight of multiple major projects, leading technical delivery on time and under budget.
• Plan for and execute on multiple impactful projects, work streams, and teams, identifying new opportunities that have organization-wide impact.
• Champion team processes like agile, test-driven development, and source control.
• Write technical specifications, reduce complexity, identify risks, and help the team course-correct around issues.
• Structure the team so the right people are in the right roles and plan for long-term headcount and recruiting needs to guarantee the success of the organization.
• Foster career growth of team members by taking into account their career goals and providing meaningful development experiences.
• Hold the team accountable for performance expectations and take different approaches to motivating high performers and turning around low performers.
• Attract and hire a diverse and talented team with a broad range of experiences and strengths, keeping in mind the long-term health of the global org.

What You Bring:

• 6+ years of relevant work experience and 4+ years supervisory / leadership experience
• Degree in GIS, Computer Science, Remote Sensing, Geography, or a related field; an advanced degree is preferred
• Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to provide solutions to address and unblock dynamic situations
• Confidence in your technical expertise to drive project direction with teammates, customers, and partners
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to persuade others in sensitive, complex situations while preserving relationships
• Experience influencing customer decisions at all levels of the organization, from individual contributor to executive leadership
• Direct experience delivering high‑impact or high‑visibility geospatial solutions specifically tailored to Defense and Intelligence mission requirements
• Track record of managing complex programs for national security or government agencies where technical precision and timely delivery are critical
• Ability to work independently or collaboratively as part of a global team
• Ability to translate company goals into relevant team plans and communicate results across Engineering, Product, and Design

What Makes You Stand Out:

• 5+ years of experience working in a technical geospatial or remote sensing role
• Experience delivering professional services to large enterprise defense and intelligence customers
• Expertise with QGIS, Esri software, GDAL, or other common geospatial software.
• Familiarity with cloud-based architectures, AI, and machine learning
• Ability to lead complex customer engagements and run workshops or training sessions with users
• A solid pulse on team engagement and a proactive retention strategy
• Active Security Clearance preferred; or the ability to obtain and maintain a clearance will make you stand out for this role

Application Deadline:

September 29, 2026 by 11:59p / 23:59 CET (Central European Time)

Benefits While Working at Planet:

• Paid time off including vacation, holidays and company-wide days off
• Employee Wellness Program
• Home Office Reimbursement
• Monthly Phone and Internet Reimbursement
• Tuition Reimbursement and access to LinkedIn Learning
• Equity
• Volunteering Paid Time Off

Compensation:

The expected starting gross salary range for this role is listed below. Individual placement within this range is determined objectively based on gender-neutral criteria such as your skills, qualifications, and professional experience. This position may also be eligible for discretionary bonuses, commission, and/or equity.

This role is eligible for commission.

United Kingdom Salary Range: £132,930 - £166,140 GBP

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance:

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Why we care so much about Belonging.

We're dedicated to helping the whole Planet, and to do that we must strive to represent all of it within each of our offices and on all of our teams. That's why Planet is guided by an ultimate north star of Belonging - dreaming big as we approach our ongoing work. If this job intrigues you, but you're thinking you might not have all the qualifications, please… do apply! At Planet, we are looking for well-rounded people from around the world who can contribute to more ways than just what is listed in this job description. We don't just fill positions, we aspire to fulfill people's careers, most excited about folks who are motivated by our underlying humanitarian efforts. We are a few orbits around the sun before we get to where we want to be, so we hope you're excited to come along for the ride.

EEO statement:

Planet is committed to building a community where everyone belongs and we invite people from all backgrounds to apply. Planet is an equal opportunity employer, and committed to providing employment opportunities regardless of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding, age, sexual orientation, military or veteran status, or any other protected classification, in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws. Know Your Rights.