Army Program Manager-Texas

Company DescriptionDcode is a team of doers dedicated to bridging the gap between the speed of technology and the federal government. We align people, culture, policies, and processes to get tech in the hands of those who need it most. Operating at the nexus of government leaders, emerging tech companies, and venture capital, we turn roadblocks into results.Job DescriptionDcode is seeking three high-performing Program Managers to support a defense client at Fort Hood in a dynamic, fast-paced Army innovation environment supporting military vehicle acquisition, modernization, and enabling digital capabilities. This single posting will be used to hire one Program Manager in each of the following specialties:Software AcquisitionAutomation & OperationsAcquisition & Contracting Vehicle ExecutionEach selected Program Manager will own one primary specialty. Candidates are not expected to demonstrate deep expertise in all three areas and should identify the specialty that best matches their experience.Across the team, the Program Managers will translate mission needs into executable plans, manage efforts from problem definition through award, pilot, fielding, transition, or sustained operations, and coordinate multidisciplinary teams that may include operators, systems developers, software vendors, cybersecurity stakeholders, data owners, contracting professionals, legal and fiscal advisors, industry, academia, and senior Army acquisition leaders.The work blends program management, agile delivery, stakeholder facilitation, technical fluency, and operational ownership. One day you might be aligning a software licensing and fielding strategy; the next, stabilizing an automation workflow, developing an acquisition package, or facilitating a decision with operators, developers, and contracting professionals. Success is measured by reliable operations, executable awards, fielded outcomes, and capabilities that transition to sustained Army use.Duty Station: Fort Hood, TXSalary range: $98,000-$130,000 plus bi-annual bonuses.Top Secret clearance or higher is strongly preferred. Eligibility for clearance is required.Job ResponsibilitiesCore Responsibilities Across All SpecialtiesClient & Mission SuccessServe as a trusted partner to Army and DoW stakeholders operating across operational, program, and acquisition ecosystemsTranslate operational problems into clear user outcomes, requirements, scope, acquisition constraints, deliverables, and measurable acceptance criteriaFacilitate collaboration across operators, product and technical teams, Systems Developers, software vendors, cybersecurity, data owners, contracting, legal, fiscal, and senior acquisition stakeholdersHelp structure pilots, prototypes, experiments, and operational assessments so they generate evidence for adoption, scaling, transition, and sustainment decisionsLead workshops, process reviews, assessments, and decision packages that make options, tradeoffs, timelines, risks, and required government actions clear to technical and nontechnical leadersContinuously collect user feedback and refine execution, adoption, fielding, and transition approaches based on mission outcomesProgram and Project DeliveryOwn day-to-day delivery for assigned workstreams from need identification through the appropriate end state, including acquisition, pilot, deployment, award, transition, or sustained operationsBuild integrated plans, schedules, and backlogs with clear owners, dependencies, milestones, decision points, acceptance criteria, and fallback routesApply agile and Scrum methods to plan, execute, and adapt work in small increments while protecting ongoing mission operationsDefine and track performance measures such as milestone achievement, cycle time, reliability, adoption, data quality, user outcomes, and time savedCoordinate closely with Dcode leadership and Field Experts to bring the right expertise into projects at the right timeIdentify risks and blockers early, drive coordinated mitigation, and communicate status, tradeoffs, decisions, and support requests clearly to internal and external stakeholdersMaintain high-quality requirements, plans, trackers, decision logs, user guidance, transition materials, and lessons-learned documentationTechnical & Systems Support (Program-Level)Partner with Systems Developers, platform and tool teams, vendors, and technical and operational subject matter experts while remaining accountable for program-level outcomesUnderstand software, automation, integration, testing, deployment, and sustainment considerations well enough to translate between operational users, acquisition stakeholders, and technical contributorsPull cybersecurity, RMF/ATO, identity and access, data handling, IP/data rights, interoperability, hosting, integration, and security constraints forward so they do not become late-stage blockersSupport configuration, testing, deployment, documentation, and sustainment planning appropriate to the assigned specialty and workstreamOperational & Contract ManagementUnderstand and manage Dcode contract requirements while driving measurable delivery and mission outcomes for the clientMaintain operating cadence, issue tracking, backlog or package hygiene, funding and milestone visibility, and follow-through across multiple simultaneous effortsIdentify recurring manual work, unnecessary approvals, administrative delays, policy barriers, and coordination bottlenecks and drive practical fixesBuild repeatable playbooks, templates, checklists, workflows, and transition practices that increase speed, transparency, compliance, and resilience to personnel turnoverOperate with minimal oversight, elevate issues with a clear decision or support request, and keep work moving from identification to closureRole-Specific ResponsibilitiesProgram Manager - Software AcquisitionManage software-enabled efforts from problem definition through acquisition, pilot, contract action, deployment, user feedback, and transition to sustained Army useTranslate mission outcomes into product backlogs, release goals, acceptance criteria, and measurable adoption and performance metrics; align iterative delivery with acquisition and fielding actionsDevelop acquisition and licensing strategies for commercial software, SaaS/PaaS, and software-enabled servicesEvaluate license structures, renewal models, consumption assumptions, enterprise scaling, total lifecycle cost, data and IP rights, portability, and vendor lock-in risk before commitments are madeNavigate software buying channels and pathways such as GSA Multiple Award Schedule IT (formerly Schedule 70), Army Digital Market (formerly CHESS), enterprise license agreements, BPAs, IDIQs, and the DoD Software Acquisition PathwayCoordinate cybersecurity, RMF/ATO, hosting, integration, release management, and transition dependencies to support rapid software fielding and prototype transitionProgram Manager - Automation & OperationsOwn the health and evolution of the team's existing workflow automation ecosystem; inherit what is built, stabilize what is working, improve what is not, and keep the operating environment reliableMap how capability intake, vetting, validation, experimentation, decisions, and transition work before changing the toolingMaintain a prioritized automation backlog that balances operational reliability, defect resolution, user requests, technical debt, and new opportunitiesImplement maintainable automation across intake, routing, status tracking, approvals, notifications, reporting, dashboards, and decision support without creating one-off processes or unmanaged complexityTroubleshoot failed automations and integration issues by isolating process, data, permission, configuration, API, webhook, and technical causes and coordinating fixes with tool owners and administratorsApply practical configuration management, testing, change control, access control, documentation, runbooks, user training, and adoption support; track automation health, cycle time, data quality, adoption, and time savedProgram Manager - Acquisition & Contracting Vehicle ExecutionMove validated mission needs from identification through market research, acquisition pathway and contracting vehicle selection, acquisition package development, solicitation or award action, and post-award handoffChoose among OTAs, SBIR/STTR, BPAs, IDIQs, commercial and FAR-based strategies, and other appropriate mechanisms based on requirement maturity, competition, funding, timeline, and transition intentConduct or coordinate market research, vendor engagement, acquisition strategy, scope development, cost and price inputs, and integrated award schedulesDevelop or support acquisition artifacts such as statements of work, performance work statements, statements of objectives, independent government cost estimates, evaluation criteria, and required approval packagesCoordinate contracting officers, legal counsel, resource managers, technical SMEs, security and cyber stakeholders, and operational leaders while respecting government roles and contracting authoritySurface funding timing, fiscal year, competition, data and IP rights, security, legal, and contracting constraints early enough to preserve schedule options and fallback routesTrack actions to closure and connect prototype or contract awards to test, fielding, transition, follow-on production, sustainment, or program adoption plans so the award is not the end stateQualificationsCommon Key Skills5+ years of acquisition, project/program management, operations, process improvement, contracting, or technical delivery experience in a federal, DoW, or defense-adjacent environmentExperience working in innovation-focused organizations, rapid capability offices, labs, acquisition programs, or operational experimentation environments; familiarity with military vehicle, material acquisition, systems engineering, or rapid prototyping efforts is valuableExperience managing client-facing initiatives and multiple concurrent workstreams from planning through execution, adoption, award, fielding, or transitionStrong agile project management and continuous-improvement fluency; hands-on Scrum experience is preferredExcellent organizational, written, verbal, facilitation, and stakeholder-management skills, including the ability to brief senior military and acquisition leadersComfort working with military personnel, government civilians, technical experts, vendors, contracting professionals, and senior leaders with the professionalism and discretion required for high-stakes discussionsAbility to work independently, diagnose ambiguous and messy problems, make sound tradeoffs, and deliver results in fast-moving environments with minimal oversightA track record of converting complex operational, technical, acquisition, or process issues into clear decisions, owners, actions, and measurable outcomesSpecialty QualificationsSoftware AcquisitionDemonstrated experience acquiring, fielding, transitioning, or managing software capabilities - not solely developing softwareWorking knowledge of software development lifecycles, agile product delivery, DevSecOps concepts, release management, APIs, data integration, hosting, and user-centered iterationExperience evaluating software license structures and SaaS/PaaS considerations, including renewals, scaling, consumption, lifecycle cost, portability, and vendor lock-inFamiliarity with GSA MAS IT/legacy Schedule 70, Army Digital Market/legacy CHESS, enterprise license agreements, BPAs, IDIQs, and software-specific acquisition and fielding pathwaysWorking knowledge of cybersecurity, RMF/ATO, cloud and hosting, data and IP rights, and integration dependencies; rapid software fielding or prototype transition experience is strongly preferredAutomation & OperationsDemonstrated experience inheriting, maintaining, and improving an existing workflow automation or low-code ecosystem - not only building prototypesHands-on fluency with workflow and process automation, APIs and integrations, structured data, dashboards, and basic troubleshootingExperience mapping processes, defining requirements, prioritizing backlogs, testing changes, documenting operating procedures, and supporting user adoptionComfort with tools such as Jira/Confluence, Microsoft 365/Power Platform, Power BI, ServiceNow, or similar workflow and reporting ecosystems; an exact tool match is not requiredBasic scripting, SQL, API, or data transformation experience is a strong differentiator, as is experience with access, configuration, change control, user training, and enterprise operationsAcquisition & Contracting Vehicle ExecutionHands-on experience moving requirements from identification through acquisition package development and award; candidates should be able to name the artifacts and actions they personally ownedWorking fluency across acquisition authorities, programs, pathways, and contracting vehicles such as OTAs, SBIR/STTR, BPAs, and IDIQs, with the judgment to choose among them based on the requirementExperience with market research, requirements and scope documents, IGCE or cost inputs, acquisition strategies, evaluation criteria, vendor engagement, and award schedulesStrong understanding of funding timing, fiscal constraints, competition, data and IP rights, security, and other issues that can affect acquisition strategy and scheduleAbility to operate effectively with contracting officers, legal counsel, resource managers, technical SMEs, security and cyber stakeholders, and senior operational leadersExperience in rapid capability, innovation, SBIR, OTA, commercial technology, or prototype environments is strongly preferredPMP, Certified ScrumMaster (CSM), DAWIA/acquisition, FAC-C/FAC-COR, contracting, software/cloud, platform, Lean, or process-improvement certifications are useful differentiators, but they do not substitute for hands-on execution.Additional InformationYou’ll love it here if:Thrive in fast-paced, mission-driven environmentsLove figuring out how to make big, complex things run smoothlyAre energized by working with smart, passionate teammatesDon’t wait for permission to fix problems or seize opportunitiesCan give and take feedback without egoBring energy, creativity, and persistence to everything you doWe look for resilient hustlers:Our CEO busted her face on the balance beam in college and got back up... our CRO knocked on a thousand doors, was rejected 999 times, and kept on knocking... What is your story?Equal Opportunity StatementDcode is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We consider qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws.Powered by JazzHRC8ah2sHEAN