Program Manager

Voyager is an innovative space, defense, and national security technology company committed to advancing and delivering transformative, mission-critical solutions. We tackle the most complex challenges to unlock new frontiers for human progress, fortify national security, and protect critical assets to lead in the race for technological and operational superiority from ground to space. 

Forge the Future: Join Voyager Technologies  

The future belongs to those who build it. At Voyager Technologies, we’re building technologies that protect lives, expand frontiers and prepare us for what’s next. And we’re doing that with people who are wired to solve, build, adapt and lead. These roles are not for the faint of heart.  

You’ll help lay the foundation for humanity's future. Join a culture where innovation thrives, curiosity is rewarded, and impact is real. We’re a company of doers, thinkers and builders, united by purpose and grounded in reality. 

If you want to put your skills to work where the stakes are real and the mission is bigger than any one person,forge the future with Voyager.  

Program Managers own the delivery of machine learning programs, from customer need to fielded software. You will lead a cross-functional team of machine learning engineers, software engineers, and sensor subject-matter experts, and customers will rely on you to keep cost, schedule, and technical performance on track. This is an on-site role in El Segundo, CA.

The role carries considerable responsibility and a direct impact on problems facing the United States government and other customers. You will shift quickly among leadership, technical, communication, and stakeholder tasks.

This posting stays open year-round, and we consider candidates at a range of experience levels. If you have led technical programs, teams, or customer delivery in defense, intelligence, or a comparable field, apply even if you don’t match every bullet below.

In this role, the essential functions are:

You will run programs end to end, guide the technical work, and be the face of the team to customers, growing the relationship and the program over time.

Deliver programs

• Own cost, schedule, and technical performance for one or more machine learning and software programs, from kickoff through delivery and sustainment.
• Turn customer needs into requirements, technical performance measures (TPMs), acceptance criteria, and work plans.
• Maintain integrated schedules, budgets, and risk registers, and report status clearly to leadership and customers.
• Manage contract deliverables, reporting requirements, and milestone reviews, including work shared with partners and subcontractors.

Guide the technical work

• Lead machine learning engineers, software engineers, and sensor experts through the full model lifecycle: data curation, simulation, training, evaluation, deployment, and monitoring.
• Learn the phenomenology behind our sensors (SAR, EO/IR, RF, or similar) well enough to challenge assumptions and explain tradeoffs to non-technical audiences.
• Oversee physics-based simulation and synthetic data, and the methods that account for bias between simulated and real-world data.
• Push for automation in data ingest, training, evaluation, and deployment packaging.

Engage customers and stakeholders

• Act as a primary point of contact for government customers and partners, and keep them engaged with clear written and visual briefings.
• Grow customer relationships over time, becoming the trusted partner they turn to first as their needs evolve.
• Facilitate communication up, down, and across the organization so executives, engineers, and customers share one picture of progress.
• Brief technical audiences and senior leaders at program reviews, technical exchanges, and industry events.

Lead people

• Mentor team members, give actionable feedback, and conduct performance evaluations.
• Support hiring and onboarding, and guide interns and early-career staff.

Grow the business

• Own the long-term health of your program: keep it funded and growing by finding follow-on work, new funding paths, and expanded scope with the customer.
• Write and contribute to technical proposals, including technical approach, estimates, and schedules.
• Support business development by tracking customer needs, shaping new opportunities, and contributing to strategic planning.
• Improve how EMSI runs programs by sharing templates, tools, and lessons learned.

If your experience aligns with our basic qualifications and you are inspired by our mission, we’d like to connect. If you don’t see the right role right now, Join Our Talent Community and stay connected as we continue to build what’s next. 

• We weigh demonstrated results over exact titles or years, so equivalent experience counts.
• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, physics, computer science, mathematics, or a related technical field, or equivalent experience.
• Experience leading technical teams or programs, typically 3 or more years in program management, engineering management, or a technical lead role.
• Working knowledge of how machine learning or software systems are built and delivered, such as deep neural networks, data pipelines, or software development lifecycles.
• Familiarity with remote sensing or ISR data (SAR, EO/IR, RF, or similar) and the ability to learn new sensor phenomenology quickly.
• A record of delivering on time, on budget, and to technical performance measures.
• Executive communication skills, shown by independently creating clear written and visual technical content for customers and for stakeholders at every level of the organization.
• Experience writing or contributing to technical proposals, or supporting business development.
• Ability to mentor team members, give actionable feedback, and conduct performance evaluations.
• Ability to build productive relationships with customers and partners and to resolve complex technical and business problems independently.

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Experience with SAR phenomenology, imaging, and signal processing, including moving and stationary target recognition.
• Experience building physics-based simulations or synthetic data and managing bias between simulated and real-world data.
• Background in automatic target recognition, computer vision, or geospatial intelligence.
• Hands-on machine learning engineering experience, including MLOps practices such as data versioning, automated training and evaluation, and containerized deployment.
• Government contracting experience, such as FAR/DFARS, IDIQs, SBIR/STTR, OTAs, and subcontractor management.
• Program management credentials such as PMP, PgMP, or Agile certifications, and familiarity with earned value management.
• Experience supporting the Intelligence Community, DoD, or a prime contractor.
• Master’s degree or PhD in a technical field.

Travel, Physical and/or Government Mandated Requirements:

• Minimum active Secret US Government Security Clearance

The good faith base salary range for this role is $180,000 - $290,000 at the time of this posting. Where you fall within the range depends on your experience, skills, and location. This range reflects base salary only and does not include benefits or bonus/incentive. This range may be adjusted in the future.

Voyager offers a highly competitive total compensation package designed to support the well-being, growth, and success of our employees. Employees benefit from a flexible and comprehensive rewards program that supports both professional and personal well-being.  

• Flexible Time Off (FTO), empowering employees to take the time they need to recharge and maintain a healthy work-life balance
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and their families, with a significant portion of premiums covered by the company and many benefits paid at 100% for employees
• Flexible, affordable gym memberships with 12,700+ options nationwide, including 24 Hour Fitness, EoS Fitness, Crunch Fitness, Anytime Fitness, Blink Fitness, Chuze Fitness, and more! No long-term contracts and FREE on-demand workout videos before you enroll
• 401(k) retirement plan with a 50% company match on contributions up to 8%, supporting long-term financial security
• Company wellness programs that support physical and mental well-being
• Additional voluntary benefits and employee support resources
• The opportunity to work alongside a highly talented team in an innovative, mission-driven environment

Voyager is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, protected veteran status, or other characteristics protected by law.  

To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) (22 CFR Parts 120-130) and the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) (15 CFR Parts 730-774), applicants for this position must be a U.S. Person: a US Citizen, a lawful permanent resident of the U.S., or a protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. § 1324b(a)(3). Applicants must be eligible to obtain any required export authorizations from the U.S. Department of State or the U.S. Department of Commerce. 

Minority/Female/Disabled/Veteran 

The statements contained in this job description are intended to describe the general content and requirements for performance of this job. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all job duties, responsibilities, and requirements. This job description is not an employment agreement or contract. Management has the exclusive right to alter the scope of work within the framework of this job description at any time without prior notice. 

California pay range

$180,000—$290,000 USD