Program Manager – Security Operations

Location: Washington, DC, Ft. Collins, CO, or Kansas City, MO (remote optional, local preferred)

Terms: Full-time

Clearance: Active Secret required; Top Secret/SCI eligibility required

Salary Range: $165-220k DOE

Travel: 0-10%

Project Description

This position leads program delivery for a large-scale federal security operations program encompassing 24/7/365 SOC operations, continuous monitoring, incident response, threat intelligence, vulnerability management, and penetration testing across a complex enterprise network environment. The program operates under demanding federal cybersecurity compliance requirements and supports multiple government stakeholders.

The core challenge: sustaining no-fail security operations at enterprise scale while managing multiple technical workstreams, a large multidisciplinary team, and the full range of contractual, financial, and customer obligations that come with a program of this consequence.

Position Description

As Program Manager, you are the single point of contact for all contract execution and delivery activities. You have full authority to commit contractor resources, make operational decisions, and drive successful execution across all technical, operational, financial, and contractual requirements. You are accountable for program outcomes — not just program reporting.

You bring 15+ years of federal program management experience, deep familiarity with security operations environments, and the executive presence to lead a complex organization and manage senior government stakeholders with credibility. You operate with urgency, hold your team to high standards, and treat every contractual obligation as a personal commitment.

What You Will Own

• Overall contract performance and customer satisfaction
• Program execution and operational oversight across all security operations workstreams
• Financial management, forecasting, and resource planning
• Delivery of all contractual deliverables on schedule and to standard
• Quality management and continuous improvement across program operations
• Executive communications and senior stakeholder management
• Program governance, risk management, and issue resolution
• Transition-in and transition-out planning and execution

Responsibilities

• Serve as the authorized Program Manager and primary point of contact for all contract activities; possess full authority to commit contractor resources and make operational decisions
• Direct all technical, operational, financial, and administrative aspects of program execution across security operations, incident response, threat intelligence, vulnerability management, and penetration testing workstreams
• Develop, maintain, and execute the Project Management Plan, WBS, Quality Control Plan (QCP), Integrated Master Schedule (IMS), and program governance framework
• Lead transition-in and transition-out activities, ensuring continuity of 24/7/365 operations and full knowledge transfer
• Plan and facilitate kickoff meetings, executive reviews, governance meetings, and government customer briefings
• Submit weekly activity reports, monthly status reports, financial reports, and executive program updates on schedule
• Establish and monitor KPIs, SLAs, quality metrics, and performance dashboards aligned with contract requirements and federal cybersecurity standards
• Manage program budgets, forecasting, staffing plans, subcontractors, and resource allocation across a large, geographically distributed team
• Maintain risk registers, issue logs, dependency tracking, mitigation strategies, and corrective action plans
• Ensure alignment with Quality Assurance Surveillance Plans (QASP), contractual performance standards, and applicable federal cybersecurity compliance frameworks
• Coordinate activities across technical teams, vendors, subcontractors, and government stakeholders to ensure cohesive program delivery
• Drive continuous improvement through operational metrics, lessons learned, and process optimization

What You Bring (Requirements)

Baseline Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Business, Engineering, or related field (or equivalent experience)
• 15 or more years of experience leading large-scale federal technology or security operations programs
• Active Project Management Professional (PMP) certification
• Active Secret clearance; Top Secret/SCI eligibility required
• Proven experience serving as the primary customer interface on complex federal contracts

Technical & Domain Capabilities

• Experience managing federal cybersecurity, security operations, or enterprise technology programs at scale
• Strong understanding of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), contract management, and federal program governance
• Experience managing multiple task orders, contract deliverables, budgets, and financial reporting obligations
• Experience developing and managing Project Management Plans, WBS, IMS, QCPs, risk registers, and executive reporting
• Experience managing subcontractors, vendors, and geographically dispersed technical teams
• Experience establishing KPIs, SLAs, QASP metrics, and operational performance reporting for security operations programs
• Familiarity with 24/7/365 SOC operations, incident response, threat intelligence, vulnerability management, and penetration testing as program management disciplines
• Experience with Agile, Scrum, and SAFe delivery methodologies
• Proficiency with program management tooling: Microsoft Project, Jira, Confluence, ServiceNow, and reporting platforms

Core Strengths

• Executive presence: you brief senior government leadership with authority and maintain trusted relationships under pressure
• Strong financial, operational, and organizational leadership across large multidisciplinary programs
• Decisive risk manager — you surface issues early, own corrective actions, and don’t let problems age
• Drives execution across concurrent workstreams without losing sight of overall program health
• Strong customer focus with personal accountability for delivery outcomes, not just reporting compliance

Certifications

• PMP (required)
• Security certification required: CISSP, CISM, CEH, GIAC, or equivalent security/incident response credential

Nice to Have (Differentiators)

• Active TS/SCI clearance
• Prior experience managing a federal Cybersecurity Service Provider (CSP) or DoD Cyber Security Service Provider (CSSP) program
• ITIL certification
• Experience managing Security Operations, Infrastructure Operations, or Enterprise Modernization programs in federal environments
• Background in Zero Trust implementation, Post-Quantum Computing transition, or AI/ML cybersecurity programs
• Experience supporting programs with 24/7/365 operational continuity requirements

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