V-DO Division Leader (R&D Manager 6)

Los Alamos National Laboratory; Los Alamos (NM); On-site; USD 140,000 - 185,000; Full time

Job summary

Los Alamos National Laboratory seeks an exceptional leader to serve as Division Leader for V Division (V-DO) within ALDW. As R&D Manager 6, you will guide strategic initiatives, foster innovation, and ensure program milestones are delivered.

This role demands deep Nuclear Weapons Program expertise, proven leadership, and a commitment to high-performing teams. You will collaborate with sister divisions, lead verification and validation activities, and shape the division's approach to

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree with 15+ years related experience.
• Proven leadership in large, complex technical programs.
• Expertise in engineering, testing, verification and validation within a nuclear weapons context.

Responsibilities

• Lead V Division and guide strategic initiatives to meet milestones.
• Drive verification and validation across weapon designs and tests.
• Foster collaboration with ALDW and sister divisions to ensure mission success.

Skills

Leadership

Technical Excellence

Strategic Thinking

Cross-Organizational Collaboration

Workforce Leadership

Operational Leadership

Communication

Program Management

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Job description

What You Will Do

Los Alamos National Laboratory is seeking an exceptional leader to serve as the Division Leader for V Division (V-DO) within the Associate Laboratory Directorate for Weapons Engineering (ALDW). As the R&D Manager 6, you will play a pivotal role in guiding strategic initiatives, fostering innovation, and ensuring the successful delivery of program milestones. This position requires deep expertise in the Nuclear Weapons Program, proven leadership in managing complex programs, and a commitment to developing high-performing teams. V Division verifies that weapon designs meet requirements and validates that the designs function as intended, ensuring the successful completion of investigations, qualification tests, and evaluations. This mission is accomplished through close communication and collaboration with sister divisions across ALDW and is carried out through assembly, non-destructive evaluation, test design and planning, and test execution. This leadership role requires a blend of technical knowledge, expertise in weapon verification and validation, test planning and execution, non-destructive evaluation, and the ability to foster collaboration across multidisciplinary teams to ensure mission success and continuous improvement. The division plays a critical role in supporting the safety, reliability, and performance of the nation's nuclear deterrent through rigorous verification and validation activities. We are seeking a visionary and accomplished R&D Manager to lead this dynamic division, strengthen partnerships across the Weapons Program, and drive excellence in verification and validation.

What You Need

Minimum Job Requirements:

• Leadership: Demonstrated experience leading large, complex technical organizations or programs with responsibility for people, mission delivery, organizational performance, and strategic direction.
• Technical and Programmatic Excellence: Extensive experience in engineering, testing, qualification, verification and validation, weapons engineering, or another highly complex technical environment where disciplined execution and technical rigor are essential.
• Strategic Thinking: Demonstrated ability to translate institutional and programmatic priorities into organizational strategy, capability development, workforce planning, and executable priorities.
• Cross-Organizational Collaboration: Proven ability to build effective partnerships across organizational boundaries and align stakeholders with differing responsibilities and priorities around shared mission outcomes.
• Workforce Leadership: Demonstrated success developing leaders and organizations, including workforce planning, succession development, performance management, recruiting, retention, and organizational change.
• Operational Leadership: Demonstrated ability to lead work in environments requiring strong safety, security, quality, operational discipline, and risk management.
• Communication: Exceptional interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills, including demonstrated effectiveness communicating complex technical and organizational matters with employees, technical experts, program leadership, and senior management.
• Education/Experience: Position requires a Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited institution and 15 years related experience; or, an equivalent combination of education and experience directly related to the occupation.

Desired Qualifications:

• Familiarity with DOE and LANL policies and procedures.
• Knowledge of the Nuclear Weapons Program and the U.S. Stockpile, with the ability to apply the information to ensure mission success.
• Familiarity and application of the SCoR principles of a safe workplace.
• Experience managing or operating within moderate hazard facilities, including work with
• hazardous, radiological, and/or explosives.
• Demonstrated experience with classified computing, classified data, and/or classified parts.
• Ability to obtain a Q Clearance, which normally requires US citizenship

Work Location:

The work location for this position is onsite and located