Senior Field Operations Manager

Viasat, Inc. • Duluth, MN

8h • Onsite

About The Position

At Viasat, we are dedicated to delivering connections that can change the world, with over 35 years of experience in global communication. We seek individuals who are ambitious, fearless, and foster an inclusive environment. Viasat is looking for a highly motivated and innovative Senior Field Operations Manager for the Duluth Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) Business Area (BA). The ISR BA provides complex turnkey satellite ground stations to US Government (USG) end users, utilizing advanced technologies in antennas, modems, encryption, cybersecurity, and related fields. In this role, you will be responsible for leading and optimizing cross-functional teams to support satellite ground systems sustainment contracts for both government and commercial customers. This position involves leading a geographically distributed team of engineers and support staff, ensuring critical systems maintain high availability and performance. The role emphasizes process involvement, operational excellence, and customer satisfaction across long-term sustainment programs.

Requirements

• 10+years of experience in field operations, sustainment support, or technical services for complex systems
• 5+years of experience managing field engineering or technical support teams
• Demonstrated experience supporting government customers, preferably in aerospace, defense, satellite, or ground systems in classified environments
• Strong understanding of sustainment operations, maintenance concepts, and lifecycle support
• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations Management or related technical field, or equivalent experience
• US Government position. US Citizenship required
• Current DoD TS/SCI clearance or ability to obtain
• Ability to travel up to 20%

Nice To Haves

• Experience supporting satellite ground systems, mission control systems, or RF/communications infrastructure
• Active TS/SCI
• Familiarity with Six Sigma, or other process improvement methodologies
• Experience working under government contracts (e.g. DoD, civil agencies)
• Strong leadership and team-building skills
• Customer-focused mindset with strong communication and stakeholder management abilities
• Analytical and process-oriented problem solver
• Ability to operate effectively in mission-critical, high-reliability environments
• Comfortable balancing day-to-day operational execution with long-term improvement initiatives

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor a team of engineers, technicians, and support personnel supporting satellite ground systems at customer sites
• Ensure staffing levels, skills, and certifications align with contract requirements and mission needs
• Establish clear performance expectations and conduct regular team performance reviews and development planning
• Serve as the primary operational interface to government customers for system sustainment and field support activities
• Ensure compliance with contractual service level agreements (SLAs), performance metrics, and renewals
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives across field operations, including maintenance procedures, incident response, logistics, subcontractor management, and reporting
• Standardize field processes and documentation to improve efficiency, reliability, and knowledge transfer
• Implement best practices to reduce downtime, improve mean time to repair (MTTR) and enhance system availability
• Oversee scheduling, prioritization, and execution of field activities including sustainment, preventative maintenance, upgrades, and issue resolution
• Coordinate with engineering, logistics, cybersecurity, and program teams to resolve complex technical and operational challenges
• Ensure effective configuration control and documentation of fielded systems
• Ensure adherence to government regulations, security requirements, and site-specific access protocols
• Promote a strong safety culture and ensure compliance with company and safety standards
• Support audits, inspections, and customer reviews related to field operations and sustainment performance

Benefits

• A range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the position offered. Learn more about Viasat’s comprehensive benefit offerings that are focused on your holistic health and wellness at https://careers.viasat.com/benefits.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Number of Employees: 1,001-5,000 employees