Program Manager 2 - Deputy Program Manager

Northrop Grumman; Aurora (CO); On-site; USD 161,000 - 242,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Paid time off

Job summary

Northrop Grumman is seeking a Deputy Program Manager to drive execution across a complex multi‑program portfolio supporting Space Force Space Systems Command and the Department of the Air Force.

The DPM will partner with the Swordfish Portfolio Manager to manage budgets, staffing, proposals, and program/customer engagements. The role requires strong leadership, collaboration, and a proactive approach to remove obstacles and deliver results.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or related discipline with 8+ years PM/SE experience.
• Strong written and verbal communication; experience presenting to leadership.
• Active Top Secret/SCI clearance with ability to obtain SAP access.
• Willingness to travel ~20%.

Responsibilities

• Lead day‑to‑day execution across a multi‑program portfolio; align to baselines.
• Serve as primary problem‑solver for cross‑cutting issues; drive resolutions.
• Track portfolio performance; implement corrective actions.
• Support staffing, budgets, and proposals; customer engagement.

Skills

Program management

Cross-functional coordination

Communication skills

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering

Master's degree in business/engineering

Tools

Jira

Confluence

Job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: No relocation assistance available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes

CLEARANCE TYPE: SCI

TRAVEL: Yes, 25% of the Time

Description

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

The Swordfish Portfolio is seeking a Deputy Program Manager (DPM) to drive execution across a complex, multi‑program portfolio supporting Space Force Space Systems Command (SSC) and the Department of the Air Force. This role serves as the go‑to leader for executing and closing on solutions to complex programmatic and technical issues, ensuring cost, schedule, and technical performance commitments are met or exceeded.

The DPM will partner closely with the Swordfish Portfolio Manager and program leadership team to manage budgets, staffing, proposals, and program/customer engagements. It is expected the dPM will serve as PM for smaller efforts inside the Portfolio. Additonally, the dPM will support business development efforts and strategies. The successful candidate will build strong relationships with the customer, across the Operating Unit and enabling functions, and provide operational user perspective to development teams to proactively remove obstacles and drive results.

Key Responsibilities

Portfolio & Program Execution

• Lead and support day‑to‑day execution across a multi‑program portfolio, ensuring alignment to technical, cost, and schedule baselines.
• Serve as a primary problem‑solver for complex, cross‑cutting issues; drive timely resolution through coordinated action plans.
• Track and report portfolio performance using established metrics; recommend and implement corrective actions as needed.
• Must be able to fill as backup to PM including attending meetings with Government, meetings with industry partners.

Support to Space Systems Command & User Experience

• Support Space Systems Command by guiding and influencing Space Command and Control development teams to create the best possible user experience while using modern software and systems engineering practices.
• Lead the user’s perspective, mission thread details, and operational context for Operational Command and Control and Space Battle Management processes.
• Lead team to support Joint‑Operator‑in‑the‑Loop (JOITL) and other enterprise operator‑in‑the‑loop events which feed back into capability development.

Program Financials & Business Management

• In conjunction with Portfolio Manager, support development, management, and analysis of program budgets, forecasts, and EACs across multiple contracts and/or task order types.
• Partner with Business Management to ensure accurate financial performance, risk/opportunity tracking, and adherence to contractual and internal requirements.
• Identify and drive opportunities for cost efficiencies, margin improvement, and process optimization.

Staffing & Resource Management

• Support staffing and resource planning for multiple projects, balancing program needs, skill sets, and labor mix.
• Coordinate with functional managers to secure and maintain the right talent; elevate and resolve staffing gaps and constraints.
• Support workforce planning, including onboarding, rotations, and succession considerations for key portfolio roles.

Proposals & New Business

• Support proposal planning and execution for captures, recompetes, and contract modifications within the program portfolio.
• Coordinate inputs across technical, cost, schedule, staffing, and risk; ensure proposal content is executable and aligned with program realities.
• Assist in the development of BOEs, schedules, and risk/mitigation strategies.

Program & Customer Engagements

• Support customer meetings, program reviews, technical interchange meetings, and working groups with SSC and other stakeholders.
• Prepare and deliver clear, data‑driven status and issue briefings to internal and external stakeholders.
• Help maintain strong customer relationships by ensuring timely issue resolution, responsiveness, and credible execution.
• Interface regularly with a broad range of OU and enabling functions (Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, Business Management, Contracts, Security, HR, Quality, etc.).

Risk, Opportunity, and Issue Management

• Identify, track, and actively manage program risks, opportunities, and issues, including cross‑program dependencies.
• Drive closure of action items and follow‑through on commitments made to customers and leadership.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives and integration of lessons learned across the portfolio.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Business, or related discipline and typically 8+ years of relevant experience in program/project management, systems engineering, or related field; or Master’s degree with 6+ years of experience.
• Demonstrated experience with program execution (cost, schedule, and technical performance) and cross‑functional coordination.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including experience preparing and presenting status to leadership and or customers.
• Active Top Secret/SCI clearance at time of application with the ability to obtain and maintain SAP access.
• Ability to collaborate effectively with colleagues, customers, and stakeholders.
• Must be able to travel to engage with customers, partners, and team members, anticipated travel 20% of the time.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience as a Program Manager, Deputy Program Manager, IPT Lead, CAM, Product Owner, or Scrum Master on software‑intensive or space C2 development programs.
• Experience supporting Special Access Programs SAP access
• Experience in proposal development (BOEs, schedules, risk assessments, and/or volume contributions).
• Demonstrated ability to build relationships and influence across an Operating Unit and enabling functions.
• Familiarity with agile development practices and tools such as Atlassian Jira/Confluence.
• Experience supporting complex defense or space programs, preferably involving Command and Control or Space Battle Management.

Primary Level Salary Range: $161,100.00 - $241,700.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.