Senior Aerospace Program Leader

Oerlikon; Huntersville (NC); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical plan

Dental & Vision coverage

401(k) retirement savings plan

Tuition reimbursement

Paid time off

Life insurance

Referral bonus

Job summary

Oerlikon is seeking a Senior Program Engineer to lead aerospace and defense programs from contract award through delivery at our Huntersville, NC facility. You will manage scope, schedule, cost, and risk while aligning with contractual obligations and customer requirements.

The role requires 5+ years of program management experience, excellent communication, and the ability to coordinate across engineering, operations, quality, procurement, finance, and logistics. Travel ~10% is expected.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Business Management, Operations Management, or a related technical discipline.
• Minimum 5 years of experience managing Aerospace and Defense programs in a prime contractor, subcontractor, or advanced manufacturing environment.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex, multi-functional programs from proposal through production and delivery.
• Strong understanding of Aerospace and Defense contracting environments, customer expectations, and program execution requirements.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Project, Excel, PowerPoint, and ERP systems; SAP experience preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead, coordinate, and execute strategic Aerospace and Defense customer programs from contract award through final delivery.
• Develop, maintain, and execute integrated program plans, schedules, and resource requirements for complex, multi-disciplinary programs.
• Serve as the primary customer focal point for programs, building strong relationships and ensuring effective communication across all levels of customer organizations.
• Lead Integrated Product Teams (IPTs) and coordinate activities across engineering, operations, quality, procurement, finance, supply chain, and logistics to ensure successful program execution.
• Manage program scope, schedule, cost, quality, and risk while ensuring compliance with contractual obligations, customer requirements, and applicable RFQ/RFP documentation.
• Conduct regular program reviews with internal leadership and customers, providing clear updates on milestones, deliverables, financial performance, risks, and mitigation plans.
• Identify, assess, and proactively resolve program issues and execution risks to minimize impact on schedule, cost, and customer satisfaction.
• Escalate program concerns and recommend corrective actions when contractual commitments, operational performance, or strategic objectives are at risk.
• Drive resolution of manufacturing, supply chain, technical, quality, and customer-related issues throughout the program lifecycle.
• Maintain accountability for program financial performance, including forecasting, budgeting, revenue recognition, and profitability.
• Support contract reviews and ensure alignment between customer requirements and operational execution plans.
• Partner with Business Development and Application Engineering to support opportunity capture, proposal development, customer presentations, and transition from business capture to execution.
• Develop and maintain program performance metrics, dashboards, and reporting tools to measure execution effectiveness and support decision-making.
• Lead program closeout activities, including lessons learned, cost performance analysis, risk reviews, and the capture of best practices for future proposals and program execution.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of project management processes, tools, procedures, and governance frameworks.

Skills

Leadership

Program management

Cross-functional leadership

Communication

Travel

Risk management

ERP systems

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Microsoft Project

Excel

PowerPoint

ERP systems

SAP

Job description

Oerlikon is seeking a Senior Program Engineer to lead aerospace and defense programs from contract award through delivery at our Huntersville, NC facility. You will manage scope, schedule, cost, and risk while aligning with contractual obligations and customer requirements.

The role requires 5+ years of program management experience, excellent communication, and the ability to coordinate across engineering, operations, quality, procurement, finance, and logistics. Travel ~10% is expected.