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Salary: USD 145,000 - 185,000 / annual
Defense Unicorns is seeking a Mission Director to lead business development and program execution for the Army, specifically targeting PAE Fires/Maneuver Ground opportunities. This is a quota-carrying, full-lifecycle business ownership role combining sales, program management, and team leadership.
You will identify and develop net-new opportunities with Army stakeholders, shape solutions using Defense Unicorns' cloud-native software delivery products (Kubernetes, CI/CD, DevSecOps), and lead deals from discovery through contract award. Post-award, you own the entire contract lifecycle—cost, schedule, performance, staffing, margin, and customer satisfaction. As your portfolio grows, you will transition from hands-on execution to leading program managers and delivery leaders while retaining accountability for outcomes.
Key responsibilities include:
- Building trusted relationships with Army customers and key stakeholders in the Fires/Maneuver Ground domain
- Owning a revenue quota and growing a diversified business portfolio
- Defining customer problems and shaping solutions using Defense Unicorns products and appropriate acquisition strategies
- Leading proposals, negotiations, and contract awards
- Serving as program leader for new contracts, managing delivery risks and scope changes
- Building and leading teams required to execute contracts
- Maintaining an active pipeline, identifying follow-on work, and driving customer retention and gross margin growth
This role is designed for someone comfortable with broad ownership, operating with ambiguity, and personally driving critical work while scaling team capabilities. Travel of 25-40% is expected, with preference for candidates located near major Army hubs.
REQUIREMENTS:
- Experience within PAE Fires/Maneuver Ground or closely related defense environment
- Strong understanding of domain culture, mission, stakeholders, and terminology
- Background in one or more of: military operations, government program management, acquisition, contracting, business development, or defense industry program leadership
- Working knowledge of federal acquisition, including contract vehicles, acquisition strategies, and contract negotiations
- Strong commercial judgment and comfort owning revenue-generating activities
- Demonstrated ability to lead teams and hold accountability for outcomes
- Willingness to operate across business development, contracting, staffing, and execution
- Comfort operating with ambiguity and creating paths forward without predefined playbooks
- Technical fluency sufficient to understand and communicate Defense Unicorns products, cloud-native technologies, DevSecOps, Kubernetes, and modern software delivery concepts
