Senior Production Program Manager — Defense Manufacturing

Anduril Industries; Costa Mesa (CA); On-site; USD 166,000 - 220,000; Full time

Job summary

Anduril Industries seeks a seasoned Production Program Manager (Barracuda) to lead manufacturing and production lifecycle, reporting to the Head of Production. You will work with engineering, supply chain, operations, quality, and leadership to ensure on-time, within-scope, and on-budget program delivery.

You will drive process optimization, budget control, risk mitigation, and cross-functional collaboration to scale prototypes into full production while supporting growth and strategic defense

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Engineering, Operations Management or related field.
• 12+ years of experience in operations program management, production, manufacturing, preferably in defense, aerospace, or complex hardware industries
• Strong understanding of manufacturing processes, supply chain management, and production workflows
• Experience launching new products with condensed timelines
• Experience with project management methodologies (Agile, Lean, TPS, Six Sigma, etc.)
• Proficiency in project management tools (Jira, Confluence, MS Project, Gantt Charts)
• Excellent problem-solving, analytical, and organizational skills
• Strong communication and leadership abilities to influence and align cross functional teams
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, dynamic environment with evolving priorities
• Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. security clearance

Responsibilities

• Process Optimization - Drive continuous improvement initiatives aligned with our COGs objectives to enhance production efficiency, scalability, and cost effectiveness during the development and pre-production phase.
• Budget & Cost Control - Monitor project budgets, track progress and ensure we are continually focused on identifying and solving issues to enable a successful transition to full scale production.
• Stakeholder Communication - Provide regular updates to internal teams and leadership, ensuring transparency on project status, risks, and solutions.
• Resource Management - Ensure appropriate allocation of materials, labor and equipment to meet production readiness goals.
• Risk Management - Identify, assess, and mitigate potential risks and roadblocks that could impact project timelines or operational readiness.
• Cross Functional Collaboration - Coordinate between engineering, supply chain, manufacturing, program management, growth, quality and leadership teams to align pre-production efforts with business objectives leading up to program transition to full scale production.

Skills

Problem-solving

Analytical thinking

Organizational skills

Communication

Leadership

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Engineering, Operations Management or related field

Tools

Jira

Confluence

MS Project

Gantt Charts

Job description

Anduril Industries seeks a seasoned Production Program Manager (Barracuda) to lead manufacturing and production lifecycle, reporting to the Head of Production. You will work with engineering, supply chain, operations, quality, and leadership to ensure on-time, within-scope, and on-budget program delivery.

You will drive process optimization, budget control, risk mitigation, and cross-functional collaboration to scale prototypes into full production while supporting growth and strategic defense