Operating Unit Leader — Aviation & Transportation

Peraton; Reston (VA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Peraton is seeking an Operating Unit Leader for Aviation & Transportation in Reston, VA. This executive role entails owning the P&L for a multi-program portfolio spanning DOT and FAA initiatives, delivering IT infrastructure, cloud, and cyber solutions at scale.

You will set financial forecasts, shape staffing plans, and drive growth through recompetes and new business captures, while maintaining strong executive relationships with DOT agencies and program leadership.

Qualifications

• 18+ years of professional experience; may include management roles.
• Minimum 8 years of Program Management experience with financial oversight and reporting.
• Minimum 10 years in the DOT/FAA client space with in-depth knowledge of mission, acquisition environment, and IT ecosystem.
• Strong business and technical acumen in programs delivering managed IT infrastructure services and agile development.
• Exceptional P&L management and program turnaround skills; ability to analyze complex environments.
• Proven experience supporting and growing high-performing contracts.
• Commitment to innovation, diversity, and inclusion.
• U.S. citizenship; ability to obtain and maintain a Public Trust.

Responsibilities

• Own P&L for the Aviation & Transportation portfolio with revenue, margin, and bookings oversight.
• Set monthly cadence for program reviews, forecasting, staffing, and risk management.
• Serve as senior executive relationship with DOT/operating administrations; engage CIOs and contracting officers.
• Lead program managers, delivery directors, and functional leads across IT infrastructure, Agile/SAFe, cloud, cyber, and O&M.
• Partner with FedCiv BD and solutioning to grow the portfolio and manage recompetes.
• Own workforce strategy: hiring plans, retention, leadership bench, and critical-skill pipelines.
• Drive delivery excellence: EVM discipline, subcontractor performance, and compliance posture.
• Represent portfolio in sector reviews and with Finance, HR, Contracts, and Security.

Skills

P&L management

Program management

Financial oversight

Delivery optimization

Innovation

DOT/FAA domain

Client relationships

Leadership

Public Trust eligibility

Education

Bachelor's or Master's degree

Job description

What You Bring

Basic Qualifications:

• 18 years of professional experience, may have management experience
• Minimum 8 years of Program Management experience, including financial oversight and reporting, resolving challenges, delivery optimization, and innovation.
• Minimum 10 years of experience within the Department of Transportation and/or FAA client space, with in-depth knowledge of DOT and FAA mission, acquisition environment, and IT ecosystem.
• Very strong business and technical acumen in programs delivering managed IT infrastructure services and agile development approaches.
• Exceptional P&L management and program turnaround skill sets, with the ability to analyze complex operational environments.
• Demonstrated successful track record of supporting and growing high-performing contracts
• Established commitment to innovation, diversity, and inclusion
• U.S. citizenship required; must be able to obtain and maintain a Public Trust.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s or Master's degree in a related field.
• Prior work on DOT operating administration mission systems (FHWA, FRA, FTA, FMCSA, NHTSA, MARAD, PHMSA) — safety data platforms, grants management, enterprise IT, and cyber — and/or FAA programs (e.g., NAS modernization, NextGen, ATC systems, FAA enterprise IT, aviation cyber).
• Cloud delivery experience at scale (AWS GovCloud, Azure Government) and Zero Trust adoption in DOT/FAA environments.
• Existing relationships across DOT and FAA OCIO leadership and the broader transportation customer community.
• PMP, SAFe, or equivalent certifications.

Why Peraton

Peraton is a next-generation national security company and one of the largest providers of mission-critical services to the U.S. government, with approximately 22,000 employees across the U.S. and in more than 40 countries. Our Federal Civilian Sector runs some of the most visible modernization work in government — flagship programs across DOT, State, DHS, Treasury/IRS, and enterprise infrastructure and managed services. The Aviation & Transportation Operating Unit — anchored at the Department of Transportation and its operating administrations — is a strategic growth area inside FedCiv, and this role owns it.

Operating Unit Leader — Aviation & Transportation

Peraton | Federal Civilian Sector | Reston, VA

The Department of Transportation is running one of the most consequential IT modernization portfolios in the federal government — the enterprise systems behind highway safety, rail, transit, motor carrier oversight, pipeline and hazardous materials safety, maritime logistics, and vehicle safety, plus the airspace and air traffic systems on the aviation side. Peraton is hiring an Operating Leader to run the Aviation & Transportation Operating Unit — a FedCiv portfolio anchored at DOT and its operating administrations, with full P&L, delivery, and growth ownership.

Why This Role Stands Out

• Portfolio-level P&L, not a single program. You'll operate a multi-program book of business inside FedCiv — setting the operating rhythm, financials, and growth plan across the Aviation & Transportation portfolio.
• DOT and its operating administrations as the anchor. FHWA, FRA, FTA, FMCSA, NHTSA, MARAD, PHMSA, and the FAA — enterprise IT, mission systems, safety data platforms, cyber, and cloud modernization all live in this book. The customer is active across every mode of transportation, the modernization runway is long, and the mission touches every American who drives, ships, flies, or rides.
• Real growth mandate. You own on-contract growth, recompete strategy, and shaping adjacent captures with FedCiv BD — not just running what's already sold.
• Executive seat. You'll sit on the FedCiv operating leadership team, own the portfolio's numbers in monthly and quarterly reviews, and shape investment decisions on people, capabilities, and IRAD.

What You'll Do

• Own P&L for the Aviation & Transportation Operating Unit — revenue, margin, EAC, bookings, and cash — across all programs in the book.
• Set the operating cadence: monthly program reviews, financial forecasting, staffing and hiring plans, risk and opportunity management, and corrective action when programs go yellow.
• Serve as Peraton's senior executive relationship with DOT and its operating administrations — CIOs, program executives, contracting officers, and mission leadership across FHWA, FRA, FTA, FMCSA, NHTSA, MARAD, PHMSA, and the FAA.
• Lead a team of program managers, delivery directors, and functional leads across managed IT infrastructure, Agile/SAFe delivery, cloud, cyber, and O&M.
• Partner with FedCiv BD, capture, and solutioning to build the pipeline, shape recompetes, and manage new-business captures across the portfolio.
• Own workforce strategy for the portfolio — hiring plans, retention, leadership bench, and critical-skill pipelines (cleared talent, cloud, cyber, transportation- and aviation-domain SMEs).
• Drive delivery excellence: EVM discipline, subcontractor performance, CDRLs, ATO/RMF posture, and DOT/FAA compliance obligations.
• Represent the portfolio in sector-level operating reviews and to corporate functions (Finance, HR, TA, Contracts, Security).