Program Chief Engineer

L3Harris•Herndon, VA

3d•$153,000 - $284,000•Onsite

About The Position

L3Harris is seeking a Program Chief Engineer (PCE) for its Integrate Sonars & Software (ISS) Business Unit to lead engineering for Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) systems. The PCE is the primary engineering representative for an assigned program or portfolio and is accountable for engineering performance, including technical execution, cost, and schedule. The role works with senior business and customer leadership to deliver mission-critical programs and ensure alignment with customer commitments and organizational objectives. The PCE leads and develops a team of 20 to 40 engineers across multiple disciplines and oversees Integrated Product Team (IPT) Leads, workforce planning, and staffing strategies. The role manages the program technical baseline, milestones, deliverables, technical risks, and opportunities; serves as the engineering liaison among program, functional, business, customer, and vendor stakeholders; and leads regular engineering performance reviews. The position also supports continuous improvement and innovation, maintains engineering staffing forecasts, and requires travel of up to 25%. Ability to obtain a U.S. Secret Clearance is required.

Requirements

Bachelor of Science in Engineering or a related technical field and at least 12 years of prior related experience, or a graduate degree in Engineering or a related technical field and at least 10 years of prior related experience.
Prior experience in an Integrated Product Team (IPT) environment as a Program Chief Engineer or IPT Lead/Control Account Manager (CAM) on a program or control account with more than $10 million per year of engineering content, excluding material.
Demonstrated experience with Earned Value management, including working knowledge of CAM and risk and opportunity management, and the ability to use engineering metrics, earned value metrics, and technical inputs to drive program execution decisions.
Demonstrated experience presenting high-stakes technical briefings to internal senior leadership and external customer stakeholders.
Broad management and leadership knowledge, with a proven ability to lead and develop cross-functional teams across multiple disciplines and organizational boundaries.
Experience guiding and reviewing Root Cause and Corrective Action (RCCA) efforts to resolve complex technical challenges.
Mastery-level knowledge in a specific technical area or broad expertise across multiple related engineering disciplines.
Familiarity with Jira or similar agile project management and engineering metrics tracking tools.
Ability to obtain a U.S. Secret Clearance.

Nice To Haves

Background in undersea or subsea systems engineering, including direct experience in undersea acoustics, sonar systems, or related sensor technologies.
Experience leading complex embedded software-intensive sensor development programs, including hardware/software co-development integration and verification challenges.
Experience leading cross-functional engineering teams through full program lifecycles, from proposal development through production and sustainment.
Experience using artificial intelligence tools and technologies to accelerate engineering execution, improve deliverable quality, and enhance program performance visibility.
Bid and proposal development experience, including technical volume writing and Basis of Estimate (BOE) review and approval.
Experience transitioning development programs through qualification into production, including managing technical and organizational transition challenges.
Experience with U.S. Department of Defense and international fixed-price development and qualification program execution.

Responsibilities

Serve as the single point of accountability for engineering performance—technical, cost, and schedule—for an assigned program and/or portfolio, aligning execution with customer commitments and organizational objectives.
Lead and develop IPT Leads and oversee workforce planning and staffing strategies to ensure appropriate skills are available for program milestones.
Lead, mentor, and develop a diverse team of 20 to 40 engineers across multiple disciplines; foster accountability, technical excellence, and professional growth; and allocate resources effectively.
Establish, maintain, and manage the program technical baseline, milestones, deliverables, and customer commitments, while identifying, assessing, and managing technical risks and opportunities throughout the program lifecycle.
Serve as the primary engineering liaison among the Program Manager, functional engineering leadership, senior business leaders, external customers, and vendors; conduct briefings and influence acceptance of new concepts, practices, and approaches.
Lead regular engineering program performance reviews covering metrics, challenges, mitigation strategies, risks, and opportunities; recommend and implement operational plans, processes, policies, and standards to improve program execution.
Champion innovation, continuous improvement, new technologies, and best practices, using broad-based analytical thinking to solve complex, cross-functional problems.
Develop and maintain accurate engineering staffing demand forecasts to support workforce planning and continuity across program phases.
Travel up to 25% for customer engagements, program reviews, and cross-site collaboration.