Senior Project Manager

About the Role

The Senior Project Manager leads the end-to-end delivery of complex, multidisciplinary projects by managing contractual, financial, technical and operational requirements. The role ensures successful project execution, regulatory compliance and customer satisfaction within agreed scope, budget, quality and schedule parameters.

Qualifications and experience:

• Minimum Engineering Degree or equivalent technical qualification.
• Formal training in Project Management or equivalent.
• Project Management Professional (PMP) certification will be advantageous.
• Minimum 4 years’ experience in project and operational management environments, including customer and stakeholder engagement, non-co-located team leadership and cross-functional collaboration.
• Proven track record in managing budgets, resources and schedules within complex engineering environments.
• Knowledge of aviation, airport management or air traffic management products and systems will be advantageous.

Key technical skills:

• Strong knowledge of project planning methodologies, tools and techniques.
• Expertise in stakeholder engagement, influence and negotiation.
• In-depth understanding of the project lifecycle, scope and change management in complex environments.
• Proficiency in contracting and managing technical workstreams.
• Knowledge of systems engineering, manufacturing processes and lifecycle costing.
• Ability to lead diverse technical teams, including engineers, operators and technicians.
• Competence in SAP and other project execution and monitoring tools.
• Familiarity with defence industry compliance requirements.

Key responsibilities:

Contractual Project Execution and Governance

Establish and implement project governance structures, define team roles and accountabilities, and lead project initiation, contractual execution, scope control and milestone delivery while monitoring performance against KPIs, managing contractual changes and ensuring adherence to company policies, regulatory requirements and PMO standards to fulfil contractual obligations and achieve successful project outcomes.

Project Planning and Technical Delivery

Develop and execute comprehensive project plans covering budgets, schedules, resources, procurement, technical workstreams and risk management, while overseeing multidisciplinary teams, conducting technical and commercial gate reviews, and proactively resolving project risks, issues and scope deviations to deliver compliant, cost-effective solutions that meet customer and business requirements.

Financial Management and Project Performance

Monitor and control project budgets, expenditure, resource utilisation and financial performance against approved baselines, while evaluating cost and schedule variances, implementing corrective actions and providing accurate performance forecasts to ensure financial accountability, effective resource utilisation and delivery within agreed commercial parameters.

Stakeholder Engagement and Project Reporting

Manage engagement with customers, internal stakeholders and multidisciplinary project teams by providing transparent reporting on project progress, financial performance, technical deliverables, schedules and risks, while negotiating requirements, managing expectations and representing the Voice of the Customer to maintain stakeholder alignment, support effective decision-making and achieve customer satisfaction.

Project Closure and Continuous Improvement

Lead project closure activities by conducting production readiness and final delivery gate reviews, evaluating performance against contractual, financial, technical and schedule objectives, compiling closure reports and lessons learned, and implementing improvement recommendations to ensure successful project handover, compliance with organisational standards and continuous improvement of project management practices.

Our recruitment values:

HENSOLDT South Africa focuses on diversity, equity, and inclusion in our organisational strategy. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive corporate culture that benefits our employees and delivers better outcomes for our clients. In line with our commitment to equal employment opportunities and our focus on diversity in the operational environment, we welcome applications from all ethnic groups. In line with HENSOLDT's commitment to equal employment opportunities and our focus on diversity in the operational environment, preference will be given to suitable candidates from designated groups.

Application Deadline: 23 November 2026.

How to Apply:

Please submit your CV by applying directly on the HENSOLDT Careers page.

If you have not been contacted within 14 days of the closing date, please consider your application unsuccessful.