Program Acquisition Manager

Precise Systems, Inc. • Bethesda, MD

10d • $98,041 - $150,136

About The Position

Precise Systems is seeking an engineering professional to support external technical engagement and opportunity development at Naval Surface Warfare Center, Carderock Division (NSWC Carderock), in West Bethesda, Maryland. The role uses naval engineering or related technical expertise and professional relationships to identify prospective government and industry customers whose mission requirements, research initiatives, or engineering challenges align with Carderock’s specialized research, testing, laboratory, facility, and equipment capabilities.

The Acquisition Manager engages prospective customers to understand their technical needs and explains relevant Carderock capabilities in engineering terms. The role coordinates with Carderock subject-matter experts to assess technical suitability, qualifies potential external laboratory engagements, and hands suitable opportunities to designated business development and Work with Private Parties (WWPP) personnel for subsequent business development and agreement processes. The position emphasizes technical relationship development, customer discovery, and identifying opportunities for external use and sustained utilization of Carderock’s resources.

The position requires a bachelor’s degree in engineering and at least five years of relevant professional experience. The successful candidate must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance; U.S. citizenship is required. The annualized salary range is $98,041.42 to $150,135.62. Precise Systems notes that its benefits summary is available online and describes its STAR Award recognition program, but does not list specific benefits in this posting.

Requirements

• At least five years of professional experience in naval engineering, marine engineering, materials engineering, structural engineering, corrosion engineering, fracture mechanics, hydrodynamics, or a closely related technical discipline.
• Experience applying engineering knowledge to technical problems, research, testing, analysis, design, or evaluation of systems, structures, materials, or components relevant to naval or maritime applications.
• Experience communicating technical concepts, engineering requirements, or specialized capabilities to engineers, technical program managers, government customers, or industry stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to establish and maintain professional relationships with technical personnel, engineering organizations, government agencies, or commercial customers.
• Experience evaluating technical requirements and identifying potential solutions, capabilities, or resources to address engineering challenges.
• Familiarity with Navy, DoD, federal laboratory, defense industry, or maritime engineering environments.
• Ability to engage prospective customers, understand their technical needs, and coordinate with subject-matter experts to assess laboratory testing, research, analysis, or engineering support opportunities.
• Ability to understand and discuss engineering problems, technical requirements, and laboratory capabilities with experienced engineers and technical decision-makers.
• Ability to explain complex engineering capabilities clearly and relevantly to prospective customers.
• Ability to ask informed technical questions, uncover unmet requirements, recognize opportunities, and connect customer challenges to research and testing resources.
• Strong interpersonal and networking skills, with the ability to build relationships across government, industry, academia, and technical communities.
• Ability to review engineering requirements, assess preliminary technical alignment, research prospective organizations, and coordinate with subject-matter experts.
• Ability to collaborate with multidisciplinary engineering teams, laboratory personnel, government stakeholders, and business development representatives.
• Self-directed approach to prospect identification, customer outreach, relationship management, and opportunity development.
• Ability to maintain accurate contact records, document discussions, track follow-up activities, and communicate progress to leadership.
• Working proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams.
• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from an accredited institution; preferred fields include Mechanical Engineering, Naval Architecture, Marine Engineering, Materials Engineering, Civil or Structural Engineering, or a related discipline.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance.
• U.S. citizenship is required due to the sensitivity of customer-related requirements.

Nice To Haves

• Five or more years of experience supporting Navy, DoD, federal laboratory, shipbuilding, maritime engineering, or defense industrial base activities.
• Familiarity with NSWC Carderock’s mission and capabilities in naval architecture, ship design, hydrodynamics, structural engineering, materials research, corrosion, fracture mechanics, model testing, and related disciplines.
• Experience working directly with engineering customers, technical program offices, government research organizations, or commercial engineering teams.
• Established professional relationships across Navy engineering organizations, warfare centers, federal laboratories, defense contractors, shipbuilders, maritime companies, or academic research institutions.
• Experience identifying potential applications for specialized test facilities, research laboratories, engineering analysis, or technical services.
• Professional Engineer (PE) license, where applicable; desirable but not required.
• Experience with technical presentations, customer briefings, industry engagement, or collaborative research and testing initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Identify and develop opportunities for external organizations to use Carderock’s engineering expertise, research capabilities, testing facilities, specialized equipment, and laboratory resources.
• Establish and cultivate relationships with engineers, technical program managers, research organizations, government laboratories and agencies, defense contractors, commercial companies, and academic institutions.
• Engage prospective customers to understand engineering problems, research objectives, testing requirements, and capability gaps.
• Develop a working understanding of Carderock’s laboratories, equipment, facilities, and technical disciplines, and coordinate with subject-matter experts to assess technical suitability.
• Communicate Carderock’s capabilities through technical briefings, customer meetings, facility visits, industry events, and discussions with government and commercial engineering organizations.
• Build and maintain a network of technical contacts across the Navy, Department of Defense, federal laboratories, defense industry, commercial engineering organizations, and academia.
• Identify, document, and evaluate potential external laboratory engagements based on technical alignment, customer interest, mission relevance, facility suitability, and potential follow-on work.
• Identify prospects for sustained use of Carderock facilities, specialized equipment, and technical workforce, including recurring testing, research, and engineering needs.
• Conduct cross-disciplinary engineering outreach in areas such as materials science, corrosion engineering, fracture mechanics, structural engineering, hydrodynamics, model testing, ship design, and systems engineering.
• Coordinate with Carderock engineers, laboratory managers, technical points of contact, and research personnel to evaluate customer requirements and facilitate technical exchanges.
• Coordinate qualified opportunities with designated business development and WWPP personnel, transferring customer contacts, technical requirements, proposed scope, capability alignment, and engagement history.
• Maintain records of outreach, technical discussions, prospective requirements, potential laboratory engagements, and follow-up actions; provide periodic opportunity updates.
• Build technical relationships and identify meaningful external-use opportunities, facilitate discussions with Carderock experts, increase external awareness of capabilities, and contribute to sustained engagement and utilization of facilities and resources.

Benefits

• The company provides a STAR Award recognition program for exceptional performance and alignment with its core values.
• The company refers applicants to its comprehensive, employee-friendly benefits summary online; specific benefits are not enumerated in this posting.

What This Job Offers

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