(C) Program Manager - Defense Manufaturing

THE MCHENRY MANAGEMENT GROUP, LLC•Cincinnati, OH

8d•Onsite

About The Position

The Program Manager serves as the single point of accountability for cost, schedule, technical, and contractual execution of Navy/DoD programs at the Federal Equipment Cincinnati facility. This is a hands-on, onsite execution role requiring daily presence, direct engagement with manufacturing, engineering, quality, and suppliers, and continuous coordination with Fairbanks Morse Defense leadership, DCMA, and Navy stakeholders. This role exists to remove execution risk early, protect margin, and ensure programs remain predictable, inspection-ready, and aligned with contract commitments.

Requirements

10–20+ years in defense manufacturing, shipbuilding, aerospace, or heavy industrial environments
Prior experience executing Navy / DoD programs
Strong understanding of manufacturing operations and quality systems
Proven ability to manage multiple concurrent workstreams
Comfortable working daily on the shop floor
Demonstrated success leading cross-functional teams under schedule pressure

Nice To Haves

Direct experience with DCMA and customer oversight
Familiarity with MIL-STD environments
Manufacturing or project engineering background
PMP or equivalent helpful but not required

Responsibilities

Own program cost, schedule, technical, and contractual performance from award through delivery
Establish and maintain baseline schedules, tracking planned vs. actual labor and progress weekly
Maintain awareness of overall program financial health, including labor, material, rework, and change impacts
Lead weekly execution reviews, focusing on risks, recovery actions, and near-term priorities
Control scope, ECPs, deviations, waivers, and engineering changes, ensuring no unauthorized work proceeds
Coordinate engineering release flow to manufacturing to prevent idle labor or rework
Actively manage supplier performance and long-lead material, including expediting and mitigation planning
Serve as primary interface for DCMA, Navy, and customer inspections, ensuring inspection readiness
Maintain configuration control, documentation discipline, and contract compliance
Identify, assess, and mitigate risks using an active program risk register
Develop and execute schedule recovery plans when deviations occur
Prevent quality escapes through close coordination with Quality and Manufacturing
Provide clear, concise, fact-based reporting to FMD leadership
Act as FMD’s onsite execution representative, aligning Federal Equipment operations with FMD objectives