Director of OT & IT Operations – Hands-On, Irvine

Canopy Aerospace & Defense; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 175,000 - 195,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision

401K company match

Paid sick leave

Paid vacation & holidays

Job summary

Canopy Aerospace & Defense in Irvine, CA seeks a hands-on Director of Operational Technology to own day-to-day manufacturing tech and IT operations. You will be on the production floor and in the network room weekly, leading a team, managing vendors, and owning budgets to keep uptime and compliance high.

This role reports to the CIO, with responsibilities spanning OT/IT security, data transfer, and cross‑site collaboration. Base salary ranges from 175k to 195k, with comprehensive benefits.

Qualifications

• Hands-on OT/IT leadership in a regulated manufacturing setting.
• Experience implementing NIST/SOC 2 controls in production environments.
• Knowledge of ITAR/EAR data controls and DFARS requirements.
• Bachelor’s degree in IT/CS/Engineering or related field required.
• 10+ years in information or operational technology with budgets.

Responsibilities

• Own OT network and device security for CNC, CMM, PLCs, SCADA, and DMZ.
• Lead IT operations across ERP/MES, DNC, and shop-floor data collection.
• Ensure compliance with CMMC, ITAR, and SOC 2 ongoing operations.
• Manage site IT/OT team, vendors, and technology budget.
• Collaborate with CIO, Legal, and Facilities on risk and incidents.

Skills

OT networks

SCADA

PLC/HMI

CMMC

NIST SP 800-171

DFARS 252.204-7012

Manufacturing IT

Security best practices

Education

Bachelor’s degree in IT/CS/Engineering

Tools

Epicor ERP

PLM

SCADA

HMI

Job description

Canopy Aerospace & Defense in Irvine, CA seeks a hands-on Director of Operational Technology to own day-to-day manufacturing tech and IT operations. You will be on the production floor and in the network room weekly, leading a team, managing vendors, and owning budgets to keep uptime and compliance high.

This role reports to the CIO, with responsibilities spanning OT/IT security, data transfer, and cross‑site collaboration. Base salary ranges from 175k to 195k, with comprehensive benefits.