Program Controls Lead

Thea Energy•Kearny, NJ

About The Position

Thea Energy is seeking an experienced Program Controls Lead to own the integrated master schedule for its fusion development program. This highly visible individual-contributor role within the Program Management team turns evolving plans across engineering, procurement, manufacturing, and integration into a schedule leadership can trust, while identifying early divergences between the plan and actual progress. The role helps the organization understand the critical path, risks, and trade-offs.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Construction Management, or a related technical field.
At least 5 years of experience leading, building, and owning integrated master schedules for large, complex hardware or capital programs in fusion, nuclear, aerospace, defense, or large-scale construction.
Expert-level proficiency in Smartsheet, Primavera P6, or Microsoft Project, including resource-loaded, logic-driven schedules, critical path analysis, and baseline and variance management.
Demonstrated experience with schedule risk analysis, such as Monte Carlo analysis, and turning results into mitigation options and clear recommendations.
Ability to work closely with technical teams, including physics, magnet engineering, mechanical engineering, manufacturing, and supply chain, to develop credible schedule logic and constructively challenge durations and assumptions.
Experience scheduling first-of-a-kind or R&D-heavy work with uncertain durations, iterative design, and long-lead custom hardware without imposing false precision.
Working knowledge of program controls practices, including earned value management (EVM), cost and schedule integration, and change control.
Excellent communication skills and ability to distill complex schedules into clear drivers, risks, and decisions for leadership audiences.
Comfort operating with high ownership and ambiguity in a fast-moving startup environment.

Responsibilities

Build, maintain, and own the integrated master schedule across engineering, procurement, manufacturing, installation, and commissioning workstreams.
Develop schedule logic, milestones, and interdependencies with technical leads, and constructively challenge durations and assumptions.
Identify and communicate the critical path, near-critical paths, and key schedule drivers.
Run schedule risk analyses and convert results into mitigation options and decision-ready recommendations.
Track progress, forecast completion, and regularly report variances and trends to leadership and stakeholders.
Manage schedule baselines and change control, and integrate vendor and long-lead procurement schedules into the integrated master schedule.
Partner with Program Managers and integrate cost control and risk management to keep schedule, budget, and risk data consistent across the program.