SlipstreamJobs tracks this role from the company's public career site. Apply directly on the employer's site.
Kela Technologies is seeking a Technical Program Manager to own the execution of complex, multidisciplinary programs spanning hardware, software, systems engineering, manufacturing, testing, supply chain, and customer delivery.
You will partner closely with engineering, product, operations, and company leadership to translate program objectives into clear plans, priorities, deliverables, schedules, and ownership. You'll drive programs from early requirements and system definition through design, integration, qualification, production, and field delivery.
Key responsibilities include:
- Develop and maintain integrated program plans connecting technical development, procurement, manufacturing, testing, documentation, and customer milestones
- Identify critical-path activities, technical and schedule dependencies, resource constraints, and execution risks; drive mitigation plans and escalate issues
- Lead cross-functional execution across internal teams and external partners, ensuring decisions, actions, owners, and deadlines are clearly documented
- Serve as central point of coordination between engineering teams, company leadership, customers, government stakeholders, vendors, test facilities, and manufacturing partners
- Own preparation and coordination of key program reviews, customer deliverables, technical data packages, test documentation, and contractual submissions
- Work with engineering teams to establish clear requirements, interfaces, configuration baselines, verification plans, and acceptance criteria
- Coordinate system integration and test activities, including test planning, hardware availability, facility scheduling, and issue resolution
- Partner with manufacturing and supply-chain teams to support production readiness, supplier execution, material availability, and delivery commitments
- Establish practical program-management processes, tools, and reporting structures that improve execution
- Track and communicate program status, risks, decisions, dependencies, and areas requiring leadership attention
- Create clarity in fast-moving or ambiguous situations, remove obstacles, and drive teams toward decisions and results
- Develop sufficient technical understanding to ask effective questions, challenge assumptions, and facilitate informed decisions
- Support proposal efforts, statements of work, program estimates, and planning for future work phases
REQUIREMENTS:
- Bachelor's degree in engineering, a technical discipline, business, or related field
- Five or more years of experience in technical program management, systems engineering, engineering project management, operations, or related role supporting complex technical products
- Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional programs involving multiple engineering disciplines
- Experience managing programs combining hardware and software development, system integration, manufacturing, and testing
- Strong project-management skills: develop schedules, establish priorities, manage dependencies, track risks, drive action across teams
- Ability to operate effectively in fast-paced environment with evolving requirements, limited structure, and competing priorities
- Strong technical aptitude and ability to understand system architectures, interfaces, development lifecycles, technical risks, and verification approaches
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills with engineers, executives, customers, vendors, and government stakeholders
- Strong attention to detail, sound judgment, commitment to quality and follow-through
- Ability to take ownership of complex problems, create structure, and drive work to completion with limited direction
- Experience working with government customers, government contracts, proposals, contractual deliverables, or technical data requirements
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:
- Experience delivering aerospace, defense, robotics, autonomous systems, unmanned systems, or other highly integrated technical products
- Experience taking new hardware or software-enabled product from development through qualification, production, and delivery
- Experience with defense-system safety, qualification testing, compliance documentation, technical reviews, or government concurrence processes
- Experience managing external suppliers, contract manufacturers, test laboratories, and other technical partners
- Familiarity with government contract structures, statements of work, contract data requirements lists, data-item descriptions, and formal delivery documentation
- Experience supporting production planning, configuration management, supplier management, or manufacturing-readiness activities
- Experience developing or improving organizational processes, program reporting, communication plans, and execution workflows
- Experience with tools such as Linear, Notion, Jira, Google Workspace, or equivalent program-management platforms
- Strong analytical and quantitative skills to use data and metrics to inform priorities, recommendations, and decisions
