Defense Program Manager — Growth & Customer Lead

thyssenkrupp; Hamilton (OH); On-site; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

401K matching

Paid time off

Paid holidays

Tuition reimbursement

Gym reimbursement

Disability & life insurance

Employee assistance program

Job summary

thyssenkrupp Bilstein of America, Inc. in Hamilton, Ohio, seeks a Program Manager to drive growth and lead program execution for BILSTEIN Defense, interfacing with customers from pursuit to production and ongoing support.

You will manage cross-functional teams, align scope, schedule, budget, and risks, and travel domestically and internationally as required. Requires engineering degree and defense industry experience; strong PM skills and executive relationship building.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering or equivalent.
• Extensive Defense, heavy vehicle, and automotive industry experience with progressive leadership responsibility.
• Proven success leading large, complex programs from capture through execution and delivery.
• Strong knowledge of project management methodologies, tools, and best practices.
• Drives strategic business growth through customer relationship management, capture planning, proposal development, contract negotiations, and identification of new business opportunities.
• Proven ability to build and maintain executive-level customer relationships, driving customer satisfaction, long-term partnerships, and revenue growth.
• Strong track record collaborating with customers, suppliers, leadership, and cross-functional teams to deliver business and program objectives.
• Action-oriented leader with strong problem-solving, decision-making, and organizational skills.
• Effective communicator with executive presentation experience and the ability to influence stakeholders.
• Capable of managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment with minimal supervision.
• Willing to travel domestically and internationally as required.
• Highly proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Project.

Responsibilities

• Identify, pursue, and secure defense and military vehicle business opportunities.
• Build and maintain relationships with customers, government agencies, OEMs, suppliers, and industry partners.
• Lead capture activities, proposal development, pricing strategies, business cases, and contract support.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop competitive solutions and long-term growth strategies.
• Monitor market trends and represent BILSTEIN Defense at events.
• Lead cross-functional teams through program launch, development, production, and customer support.
• Manage program scope, schedules, budgets, risks, profitability, and customer requirements.
• Track project performance, drive issue resolution, and implement corrective actions.
• Provide regular program updates to leadership and ensure adherence to PM processes.
• Coordinate engineering changes and maintain project documentation; travel as required.

Skills

Program management

Defense industry experience

Leadership

Project management methodologies

Executive relationship management

Travel willingness

Communication skills

Problem-solving

Multi-stakeholder collaboration

Engineering knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering

Tools

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft PowerPoint

Microsoft Project

Job description

thyssenkrupp Bilstein of America, Inc. in Hamilton, Ohio, seeks a Program Manager to drive growth and lead program execution for BILSTEIN Defense, interfacing with customers from pursuit to production and ongoing support.

You will manage cross-functional teams, align scope, schedule, budget, and risks, and travel domestically and internationally as required. Requires engineering degree and defense industry experience; strong PM skills and executive relationship building.