Program Manager

Employer description

Hadrian - Manufacturing the FutureHadrian is building autonomous factories to reindustrialize America. By combining AI, advanced software, robotics, and full-stack manufacturing, we help aerospace and defense companies build rockets, satellites, aircraft, ships, and other mission-critical systems up to 10x faster and at significantly lower cost.

Following our $1.37B Series D at a $7.87B valuation, Hadrian is rapidly expanding our manufacturing footprint, launching new capabilities across welding, casting, forging, electronics, additive manufacturing, and more, while scaling our Factory-as-a-Service platform to transform how critical products are built.

Backed by leading investors including JPMorgan Chase, Valor Equity Partners, Andreessen Horowitz, Founders Fund, 137 Ventures, Lux Capital, T. Rowe Price, and Morgan Stanley, we’re building the future of American manufacturing—and looking for exceptional people to help make it happen.

If you’re ready to take on the most challenging and rewarding work of your career while helping create American manufacturing jobs for generations to come, you’re exactly who we’re looking for.

The Role:

Hadrian builds autonomous, scalable manufacturing to strengthen the national security supply chain. As Program Manager, customer deployments, you’ll scope, execute, and ultimately own the high-impact customer programs and factory stand-ups necessary to enable Hadrian’s mission to reindustrialize defense and aerospace.

You’ll turn ambiguous customer problem sets into structured analyses, program strategies, and business cases that drive go/no-go decisions and execution. Applying first-principles thinking, you’ll produce the executive-ready deliverables that move programs forward: customer proposals, pricing analyses, execution plans, and schedules. You’ll also run and execute these programs with direct P&L responsibility.

You’ll work directly with the CEO and senior leaders, connecting shop-floor reality, executive priorities, and government opportunities to define and launch new programs across the U.S. defense industrial base. We’re looking for someone who can own outcomes and can seamlessly move from a conversation with a C—suite customer to making sure your colleagues complete their badge paperwork.

What You’ll Do

Program Development & Scoping

Define new programs and their early execution phases alongside the CEO and senior leaders

Run customer discovery, working meetings, and site visits to gather unstructured data and shape programs

Surface cost, schedule, and delivery risks early, and drive the mitigation and execution plans

Own factory and production-line stand-ups end to end — capital plan, long-lead equipment, site readiness, workforce ramp, and the reviews that clear a line to start producing

Strategic Problem Solving & Business Analysis

Drive high-impact initiatives that accelerate Hadrian’s growth across aerospace and defense

Build quantitative models that turn operational and customer problems into roadmaps, investment cases, and ROI frameworks

Connect manufacturing performance data to business priorities and government program needs

Bring structure and decisions to ambiguous, high-stakes manufacturing and execution challenges

Support proposal development and capture management, including for follow-on business (e.g., RFP submissions, Statement of Work development)

Own program financials: budget, cost-to-complete, and margin, with a clear forecast of where each program lands

Work with contracts, quality, and legal to keep programs inside their contractual and regulatory obligations, and flag early where contract terms, export rules, or security requirements drive cost and schedule

Cross-Functional Execution & Delivery

Drive execution across engineering, operations, supply chain, and software

Own cross-functional workstreams end to end — scope, schedule, risk, and stakeholder alignment

Stand up and scale PMO systems (e.g., Work Breakdown Structures, Integrated Master Schedules, Earned Value Management)

Run the operating rhythm: recurring reviews, milestone and dependency tracking, and program dashboards

Carry programs from qualification and first-article approval through full rate production and handoff to steady-state operations

Executive Communication & Stakeholder Leadership

Build and deliver executive presentations, business cases, customer proposals, and internal program materials

Synthesize technical, operational, and strategic inputs into clear narratives

Lead program reviews, status updates, and risk reporting

Act as the primary point of contact for customer program offices, including on site at customer facilities, and position Hadrian for follow-on work

What We’re Looking For

Experience: 6+ years in management consulting, federal programs, manufacturing, or operations/strategy roles, ideally within aerospace, defense, or industrial environments. You’ve owned programs or workstreams, not just supported them.

Education: Bachelor’s in Business, Economics, Operations, Engineering, or a related field. Master’s degree is a plus.

Travel: Willingness to travel 20–40% domestically to customer and manufacturing sites.

A&D Familiarity: Direct work in aerospace and defense manufacturing — with Primes, OEMs, Tier 1/2 suppliers, or large industrial programs. Cross-functional experience across Operations, Finance, Engineering, Program Management, or Business teams is a plus.

Communication: Strong written and verbal skills. You build executive-grade PowerPoint independently and present to senior internal and external stakeholders on your own.

Ownership & Ambiguity: You thrive in fast-paced, evolving environments — proactive, organized, and able to bring structure to complex problems without being told how.

Eligibility: U.S. person status required. Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance is a plus.

Compensation

For this role, the target salary range is $151,000 - 220,000 (actual range may vary based on experience).

This is the lowest to highest salary we reasonably and in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range, and the range may be modified in the future. An employee’s pay position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, performance, and business or organizational needs.

Benefits for Full-time EmployeesMedical, dental, vision, and life insurance plans for employees

401k

Relocation support may be provided for certain situations, based on business need.

Flexible vacation policy

Equity

 ITAR RequirementsTo conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.

 Use of AI in hiringHadrian uses AI-assisted tools in our recruiting and hiring processes to help our team work more efficiently. This may include tools that help organize and analyze recruiting data, as well as an AI-powered notetaker that can record and transcribe interviews and help coordinate feedback. These tools support our team and are not used to make hiring decisions. All candidate evaluations and hiring decisions are performed by humans. If an interview will be recorded, you will be notified in advance and may opt out at any time with no impact on your candidacy. Candidate data processed through these tools is subject to the same protections described in our Privacy Policy.

 Consideration of Criminal HistoryHadrian will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of all applicable laws. We do not ask about criminal history on our application, and we do not consider criminal history before making a conditional offer of employment.

 Hadrian Is An Equal Opportunity EmployerIt is the Company’s policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and employees. The Company does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race inclusive of traits historically associated with race (including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles, such as braids, locks and twists), color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, national origin (including, in California, possession of a drivers license), ancestry, citizenship, age, physical or mental disability, height or weight, medical condition, family care status, military or veteran status, marital status, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, genetic information, exercise of reproductive rights, any other basis protected by local, state, or federal laws, or any combination of the above characteristics. When necessary, the Company also makes reasonable accommodations for disabled candidates and employees, including for candidates or employees who are disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.