Vice President of Defense & Security

Skylight; United States; Remote; USD 210,000 - 270,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

Flexible paid-time-off policy

Annual professional development allowance

Job summary

A digital consultancy is looking for a leader to manage and expand its defense and security portfolio. You will drive relationships with government stakeholders and oversee proposal processes. Ideal candidates possess experience in defense environments and demonstrate strong management and communication skills. This full-time, remote position offers a salary range of $210,000 to $270,000 based on qualifications. Join us in creating impactful public outcomes through technology.

Qualifications

• Ability to sustain and grow a professional services business through business development.
• Passionate about creating better public outcomes through great government services.

Responsibilities

• Own and expand Skylight's portfolio of work with defense and security customers.
• Build strategic relationships with government stakeholders and vendor partners.
• Lead and oversee bid & proposal processes for client engagements.

Skills

Experience in defense, homeland security, or justice mission environments

Ability to manage a multi-million-dollar profit & loss business

Strong understanding of professional services and government contracting

Excellent general management and leadership skills

Superb written and oral communication skills

Education

Legally authorized to work in the U.S.

Job description

About the job

Skylight is a digital consultancy using design and technology to help government agencies deliver better public services. We’re at the forefront of a civic movement to reinvent how all levels of government serve families, patients, and many others in today’s digital world.

If you want to play a part in driving this movement forward, we’d love for you to join our growing team of public interest technologists. The work we do matters.

What you’ll do

• Own and expand Skylight’s portfolio of work with defense and security customers, managing it as an independent business.
• Research and interpret key market drivers (policy shifts, mission priorities, funding patterns, evolving threat landscapes) and proactively understand each defense and security customer’s goals, challenges, and requirements.
• Translate market insights and customer feedback into innovative or enhanced service offerings, aligned with Skylight’s strategy and core capabilities.
• Build strategic relationships with government stakeholders, mission leadership (military and civilian), change agents, and vendor partners to identify and pursue new business opportunities.
• Lead and oversee bid & proposal processes to successfully secure client engagements.
• Transform each client’s objectives and constraints into customized engagement strategies, delivering unique experiences and impactful results efficiently.
• Assemble and manage multi-disciplinary teams — leveraging talent sourcing and subcontracting with vendor partners — to ensure successful client outcomes.
• Provide transparent oversight and ongoing visibility into the status, health, and effectiveness of each client engagement.
• Facilitate open retrospectives with clients and Skylight teams to assess effectiveness, identify improvement areas, and implement actionable changes.
• Step in with hands-on client delivery support when necessary to maintain high-quality outcomes.
• Oversee and support core operational functions, including human resources management, to enable team success and organizational effectiveness.

What we're looking for

• Experience in defense, homeland security, or justice mission environments.
• Ability to manage a multi-million-dollar profit & loss business, including multiple client engagements with multiple subcontractors.
• Ability to sustain and grow a professional services business through business development, opportunity capture, and bid & proposal.
• Strong understanding of how a professional services and government contracting business works.
• Startup mentality, including a high degree of entrepreneurialism and resourcefulness.
• Excellent general management and leadership skills.
• Outstanding organizational skills, including attention to detail.
• Experience building and managing high-performing teams.
• Relentless commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Collaborative, supportive leadership style.
• Excellent interpersonal and problem-solving skills.
• Strong business acumen.
• Superb written and oral communication skills.
• Relentless commitment to excellence and quality in everything we do.
• Strong understanding of business functions such as people ops, finance, marketing, business development, etc.
• Ability to collect, analyze, and derive actionable insights from financial, operational, and performance data.
• Ability to serve as a coach/mentor to other leaders and managers.
• Ability to work successfully within a professional services environment (e.g., can communicate effectively with clients).
• Passionate about creating better public outcomes through great government services.
• Ability to travel for work from time to time.

Nice-to-have qualifications

• Prior experience working in the civic tech space.
• Experience working in a remote-team environment.

Other requirements

• All work must be conducted within the U.S., excluding U.S. territories. Some federal contracts require U.S. citizenship to be eligible for employment.
• You must be legally authorized to work in the U.S. now and in the future without sponsorship.
• As a government contractor, you may be required to obtain a public trust or security clearance.
• You may be required to complete a company background check successfully.
• Some of our available roles are on federal contracts that require a degree or additional years of experience as a substitute.

Position type

This is a full-time, exempt position.

Location

This is a fully remote position.

The salary range for this position is between $210,000 and $270,000, based on experience and qualifications.

Benefits and well-being

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Short-term and long-term disability insurance
• Life and AD&D insurance
• Dependent care FSA, healthcare FSA, health savings account
• Dollar-for-dollar 401(k) match up to 10% of salary
• Flexible paid-time-off policy (about 25 days per year) plus 11 paid federal holidays
• Up to 12 weeks paid time off for new birth, adoption, or foster parent leave
• Performance rewards, including annual salary increases, performance bonuses, spot bonuses, and stock options
• Company performance and growth bonuses
• Annual $2,000 allowance for professional development
• Annual $750 allowance for tech-related purchases
• Annual Skylight swag budget
• Charity donation matching up to $500 per year
• Flexible, remote-friendly work environment
• An environment that empowers you to contribute to public good

Interview tips

• Visit our join page to learn about our interview process.
• Check out our Career Pathways framework to learn about roles and skills at Skylight.
• If you’d like to request reasonable accommodations during the application or interviewing process, contact our recruiting team at [e-mail].

Equal Opportunity and compliance

We participate in E-Verify and, upon hire, will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, veteran status, or any other category protected by applicable law.