Government Supply Manager

Viasat, Inc. • Tempe, AZ

4d • Hybrid

About The Position

Viasat is seeking a highly driven Government Supply Manager to manage and scale procurement of fully assembled, finished electronic products through contract manufacturers. The role leads sourcing, contracting, and supplier management for development and new product introduction, while ensuring supply continuity, cost competitiveness, and production readiness across complex technical programs. It requires strategic thinking, strong execution, ownership, and the ability to anticipate and mitigate supply chain risks in fast-changing environments.

The manager works closely with engineering, manufacturing, quality, finance, planning, suppliers, and government program stakeholders. The role covers supplier selection and negotiation, supply assurance, supplier readiness and lifecycle optimization, operational improvements, and government compliance and contracting. The position is hybrid and requires residency in Arizona.

Requirements

• 10 or more years of directly applicable supply-chain experience.
• Experience managing suppliers in manufacturing, technology, aerospace, or another complex operational environment.
• Broad commodity knowledge.
• Working knowledge of federal and defense contracting requirements, including DFAR/FAR/ITAR.
• Familiarity with Microsoft Office, ERP/MRP systems, and supply-planning tools.
• Bachelor’s degree focused on business, supply chain, or a related area, or related experience.
• U.S. citizenship.
• Ability to travel up to 25%, including local travel and attendance at onsite meetings, supplier engagements, and other in-person business activities as needed.

Nice To Haves

• Familiarity with space-rated government programs.
• Experience with contract manufacturers.
• Excellent verbal, written, and presentation communication skills, including the ability to influence internal stakeholders at all levels.
• Self-starter who can adapt, improve processes, and find solutions.
• Experience managing supply constraints, shortages, or production escalations.
• Strong analytical, negotiation, and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrated ability to manage competing priorities in fast-paced environments.
• Experience using detailed data analysis to inform recommendations and decisions.
• Experience supporting high-rate manufacturing or production-ramp environments.
• Technical understanding of mechanical, electrical, or electromechanical components.
• Experience with NPI.
• Experience in aerospace, defense, autonomous systems, or space industries.
• Ability to negotiate strong pricing, business, and legal terms.
• Ability to manage supplier issues and conflicts logically.
• Ability to foster collaboration, influence others, and act as a change agent.
• Ability to adapt to change in an evolving business landscape.
• Flexibility to learn and work across a variety of commodities.

Responsibilities

• Own procurement strategy across development, qualification, and production phases.
• Identify, qualify, and onboard contract manufacturers that meet government program requirements for quality, security, compliance, and scalability.
• Lead competitive sourcing events, evaluate suppliers, negotiate pricing and lead times, and establish supply agreements such as program-specific agreements.
• Develop dual-source and contingency strategies for high-risk or sole-source components.
• Build supplier relationships and manage supplier delivery, cost, quality, lead-time, and performance commitments.
• Identify supply risks, create and execute mitigation plans, resolve supplier issues, and develop recovery plans for constrained or underperforming suppliers.
• Translate quarterly forecasts and demand signals into supply, supplier-capacity, and ramp plans; monitor commitments against build schedules and demand forecasts.
• Conduct supplier business reviews and drive corrective actions for performance gaps.
• Participate in program reviews, build-readiness meetings, and engineering-change discussions.
• Support NPI supplier onboarding, qualification, production-ramp readiness, and transition from prototype through LRIP to full-rate production.
• Influence design-for-manufacturability and design-for-supply-chain decisions; work with engineering to improve availability, manufacturability, lead times, and cost.
• Coordinate with planning and program teams to align material availability with production schedules; support engineering changes, alternate-part qualifications, redesigns, and end-of-life transitions.
• Ensure contract manufacturers are prepared to scale, including tooling, staffing, process maturity, and readiness against program ramp schedules.
• Track and close supply-chain actions, shortages, and escalations; make timely decisions, escalate appropriately, and communicate status, risks, and recovery plans to stakeholders and leadership.
• Balance cost, delivery, quality, inventory, and supply-risk tradeoffs.
• Improve supply-chain processes, visibility, scalability, and efficiency; use ERP, MRP, and supplier-performance data to prioritize and make decisions.
• Develop reporting and tracking tools for shortages, supplier performance, and operational risks; support long-term sourcing, dual-source, and supply-continuity strategies.
• Track costs and drive cost-reduction, automation, and standardization initiatives.
• Ensure procurement complies with applicable federal acquisition regulations, including FAR and DFARS where applicable.
• Partner with contracts, legal, and compliance teams on government-compliant contracts and awards; maintain traceable documentation and support audits, program reviews, and government reporting.
• Serve as the primary procurement interface for government program stakeholders when required.

Benefits

• Medical, financial, and other benefits focused on holistic health and wellness.
• Additional cash or stock incentives may be provided as part of the compensation package.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior