Director, USAF Growth Campaign Leader (X-BAT Family of Systems) (R6358)

The Director, USAF Growth Campaign Leader leads the internal operating rhythm that enables Shield AI's UAS pursuits with the United States Air Force. The role serves as the connective tissue across opportunity-focused Go-To-Market (GTM) leaders, integrating information across the USAF portfolio and providing the VP, Mission Solutions for the X-BAT FoS with a clear, decision-ready view of campaign health, priorities, dependencies, risks, mitigations, and resource requirements. This is a senior, high-visibility leadership-by-influence role with a standing seat in USAF bid/no-bid and investment-prioritization reviews. It includes a growth path toward senior Department of the Navy growth or general-management leadership at Shield AI. Veterans and transitioning service members are actively sought. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Shield AI is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer.

Responsibilities

Build and maintain the integrated USAF campaign picture across all X-BAT FoS USAF pursuits; enable GTM leads with templates, playbooks, data, competitive inputs, cost and schedule inputs, and cross-functional access; synchronize engineering, product, export, legal, contracts, finance, government relations, and business operations against a single prioritized campaign plan; surface conflicts between campaigns and bring executive leadership tradeoffs and recommendations; drive executive decision quality through campaign reviews, gate reviews, risk registers, action tracking, and executive dashboards; steward indirect investment with Finance and Business Operations; capture lessons learned and translate them into repeatable tools, templates, metrics, and playbooks; support a culture of accountability, urgency, collaboration, and continuous improvement; personally drive execution of critical customer responses (RFI, RFP, CSO, and other solicitations), including cross-functional inputs, response schedule, and on-time submission; hold a standing seat in USAF bid/no-bid and investment-prioritization reviews and set the agenda for the executive campaign review

Requirements

U.S. person as defined by ITAR (22 CFR 120.62); ability to obtain and maintain a DoD Top Secret/SCI clearance and Special Access Program (SAP) eligibility; 12–20+ years in capture management, program management, strategic operations, business operations, technical program management, or a comparable cross-functional leadership role; demonstrated success leading highly complex initiatives with multiple interdependent workstreams across engineering, business development, operations, finance, and executive leadership; working knowledge of how USAF programs are funded and fielded (SAF/AQ and HAF staffing, PEO and program-office dynamics, PPBE/POM cycle, OTAs, CSOs, SBIR/STRATFI, AFWERX, transition from prototype to program of record); proven ability to influence without direct authority and drive accountability across functions and geographies; strong executive communication (leadership briefings, dashboards, metrics, decision-support materials); deep operational rigor in integrated schedules, critical path, milestones, action tracking, dependency management, and risk mitigation; comfort operating in ambiguous, fast-changing environments across multiple time zones; service orientation toward GTM leads and judgment on when to escalate versus resolve quietly

Nice to have

Active DoD Top Secret/SCI clearance and current SAP accesses; experience supporting DoW, aerospace, autonomy, robotics, aviation, or defense-technology organizations; experience in business development, capture, proposal operations, strategic planning, or growth organizations running multiple concurrent U.S. Government pursuits; familiarity with export and international mechanisms (foreign disclosure determinations, FMS/DCS pathways, security cooperation planning); experience building executive dashboards, KPIs, operational scorecards, or portfolio health metrics; experience supporting executive staff, chief-of-staff organizations, Strategy and Operations teams, or enterprise PMOs; fluency with integrated schedule and work-management tools (Microsoft Project, Smartsheet, Jira); advanced degree or certification (MBA, PMP, Lean Six Sigma); U.S. Air Force operational, staff, or acquisition experience (veterans and transitioning service members encouraged to apply)

Benefits

Full-time regular employee package: bonus, benefits, and equity; temporary employee package: temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment); salary compensation influenced by skill set, experience, licenses and certifications, and work location