Project/Program Manager (FAA)

Mission Driven Research, Inc; Huntsville (AL); On-site; USD 95,000 - 135,000; Full time

Job summary

Mission Driven Research (MDR) seeks a Project/Program Manager to lead the FAA AST support team, overseeing technical staff and day‑to‑day execution of safety engineering task orders, ensuring quality, schedule, and budget alignment.

You will serve as MDR's primary point of contact to the FAA, drive performance reporting, and coordinate subcontractors in a fast‑paced aerospace environment, with a focus on risk, compliance, and program success.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, mathematics, or science.
• Ten years of industry experience managing technical personnel and budgets for aerospace projects.

Responsibilities

• Managing technical staff engaged in the investigation and development of policy, guidance, processes, tools, and technical analyses for the aerospace industry
• Own end-product quality, customer reporting, and the establishment and execution of task-order schedules and budgets
• Participate in the post-award kickoff meeting and ensure the team has a clear, shared understanding of the SOW scope and deliverables
• Prepare Project Management Status Reports (PMSRs) and conduct quarterly program management reviews, including performance and cost reporting on funds, labor-hours, and work completion
• Manage and coordinate subcontractors and teammates to ensure full compliance with contract requirements
• Implement and maintain a quality management system so all work is accomplished in accordance with contract requirements

Skills

Project management

Budget management

Stakeholder communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering, mathematics, or science

Job description

MDR is looking for an amazingly talented Project/Program Manager to join our team supporting the FAA's Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST)! In this role you will lead the technical personnel and day-to-day execution of AST safety engineering task orders, keeping quality, schedule, and budget on track while serving as MDR's primary point of contact to the FAA.

What You'll Be Doing

• Managing technical staff engaged in the investigation and development of policy, guidance, processes, tools, and technical analyses for the aerospace industry
• Owning end-product quality, customer reporting, and the establishment and execution of task-order schedules and budgets
• Participating in the post-award kickoff meeting and ensuring the team has a clear, shared understanding of the SOW scope and deliverables
• Preparing Project Management Status Reports (PMSRs) and conducting quarterly program management reviews, including performance and cost reporting on funds, labor-hours, and work completion
• Managing and coordinating subcontractors and teammates to ensure full compliance with contract requirements
• Implementing and maintaining a quality management system so all work is accomplished in accordance with contract requirements

What You'll Need

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, mathematics, or science
• Ten (10) years of industry experience managing technical personnel engaged in the investigation and development of policy, guidance, processes, tools, and technical analyses for the aerospace industry - including responsibility for end-product quality, customer reporting, and the establishment and implementation of associated schedules and budgets

About The Work

Mission Driven Research (MDR) provides advanced flight safety and system safety support to the Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST) under an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. AST carries a serious public-safety mandate: under U.S. law it is responsible for protecting public health and safety, property, and the national security and foreign-policy interests of the United States during commercial space launch and reentry activities. AST meets that responsibility by licensing and permitting commercial launch and reentry vehicle operations and launch/reentry site operations, issuing experimental permits and safety approvals, and supporting the FAA's Air Traffic Organization on airspace management and amateur rocket activities. Our team helps AST evaluate license, permit, and safety-approval applications; develop regulations, guidance, and training; build analytical tools; and conduct research on advanced modeling and computational methods. Quantitative and qualitative risk analysis sits at the center of the work - explosive safety, debris and toxic risk, distance-focusing overpressure, hazard-area determination, maximum probable loss, flight safety systems, software safety, and system safety - applied across launch and reentry vehicle operations, range operations, and the public-safety issues tied to launch and reentry site operations. Work is ordered and scoped through individual task orders, so the mix of activity evolves with AST's priorities. All contractor personnel must satisfy applicable FAA personnel security requirements (per FAA Personnel Security Order 1600.1) and complete required information systems security training. Mission Driven Research is an Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability/veterans. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran. If you are interested in applying for employment with Mission Driven Research and need special assistance or an accommodation to use our website, please contact us by email ([e-mail]) or by phone by calling [phone]. When contacting us, please provide your contact information and state the nature of your accessibility issue.