Senior Director, Facilities (R4677)

Shield AI • Dallas, TX

4h • $200,000 - $300,000

About The Position

Shape the global footprint behind the future of autonomous defense. In this role, you will lead Shield AI’s worldwide facilities strategy—scaling secure offices, R&D labs, manufacturing sites, and classified environments to power rapid growth and mission execution. From site selection and ground-up builds to SCIF delivery and international expansion, you’ll create secure, high-performance workplaces that enable our teams to build and deploy cutting-edge autonomous systems around the world.

Requirements

• 12+ years of progressive facilities leadership experience, including global oversight.
• Experience supporting production or manufacturing environments, ideally within aerospace, defense, robotics, or other hardware-centric industries.
• Deep expertise in building secure environments, SCIFs, and export-controlled spaces.
• Demonstrated success managing significant capital budgets and optimizing large-scale facilities spend.
• Experience leading international expansions and navigating regional regulatory requirements.
• Strong financial acumen and ability to align facilities strategy with business performance.

Nice To Haves

• Executive presence and strong judgment—polished communicator with discretion appropriate for sensitive environments.
• Ability to operate strategically while remaining hands-on in high-growth, fast-moving environments.

Responsibilities

• Strategic Leadership & Planning:
• Own and evolve Shield AI’s global facilities strategy across corporate offices, R&D labs, production/manufacturing sites, and SCIFs.
• Develop long-range capacity models aligned to program growth, production scaling, and workforce expansion.
• Lead site selection, lease negotiations, expansions, consolidations, and ground-up build-outs aligned to program needs, talent density, and government/customer proximity.
• Oversee capital planning and the Annual Operating Plan (AOP) for Facilities, including leases, FF&E, workplace standards, and infrastructure investments.
• Manage significant facilities spend with a focus on cost optimization, vendor strategy, and long-term financial efficiency.
• Secure & Compliant Environments:
• Partner closely with Security, IT, Legal, and Operations to deliver compliant, secure, and export-controlled environments.
• Lead the design and management of SCIFs and classified program spaces in accordance with U.S. government requirements.
• Ensure global compliance with safety, regulatory, and security standards across all sites.
• Proactively assess and mitigate site-related risks (e.g., safety, crime exposure, infrastructure constraints).
• Global Expansion & Operational Scale:
• Oversee the build-out of newly leased international sites, including London, ensuring alignment with security requirements and operational needs.
• Address space constraints and growth challenges in major hubs such as Frisco and San Diego.
• Lead the development of production-capable facilities, including new ground-up manufacturing sites.
• Scale facilities operations globally, including maintenance, workplace systems, badging/access (e.g., Envoy), move management, and EHS programs.
• Workplace Experience & Operational Excellence:
• Deliver a thoughtful, mission-aligned workplace experience across domestic and international offices.
• Establish global workplace standards that balance security, productivity, and employee engagement.
• Stay ahead of infrastructure and capacity risks before they impact operations.
• Build and lead a high-performing global facilities team.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Education Level: No Education Listed