Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)

Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)

Falcata is seeking a hands-on, business-oriented Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) to lead and scale the company's Contracts function and core administrative operations in support of rapid growth, active acquisition activity, and a more mature platform operating model.

The CAO will serve as a builder, operator, and enterprise partner. The successful candidate must be equally comfortable providing executive leadership to Contracts, strengthening policies and controls, integrating acquired administrative functions, improving service delivery, and solving detailed operational issues that affect contract performance, compliance, risk, and scalability.

The CAO will have executive ownership of Contracts and related administrative functions assigned to the role, including Facilities and Real Estate, Physical Security, Records and Administrative Services, and other enterprise support capabilities. Legal will remain a separate function. As a member of the Executive Leadership Team, the CAO will report to the CEO and work closely with the CFO, COO, CPO, CGO, Corporate Development, Legal, IT/Cybersecurity, Industrial Security, P&L leaders, Program Management, Finance, and the broader Executive Leadership Team.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide executive leadership for the Contracts and Subcontracts function and establish a scalable operating model aligned with TSC's growth strategy, customer commitments, acquisition activity, and risk profile.
• Oversee the full contract lifecycle, including proposal and pre-award support, contract review and negotiation, administration, modifications, change management, claims support, compliance, closeout, and records.
• Partner with Growth, Finance, Operations, Program Management, and Legal to evaluate contractual terms, risk, pricing and business assumptions, customer requirements, and execution obligations before commitments are made.
• Establish contract/subcontract policies, delegations of authority, review thresholds, approval workflows, templates, playbooks, metrics, and escalation protocols that improve speed, consistency, accountability, and risk management.
• Identify and establish metrics and dashboard to measure organization goals, performance, and overall productivity.
• Ensure appropriate interpretation and administration of FAR, DFARS, agency supplements, contract clauses, flow-down requirements, representations and certifications, and other GovCon obligations in coordination with Legal and subject-matter experts.
• Build strong relationships with contracting officers, customers, prime contractors, subcontractors, and internal stakeholders while maintaining appropriate separation between business, contractual, and legal decision-making.
• Provide executive oversight for Subcontracts, with clear accountability for subcontract administration, subcontractor performance, and compliant file documentation.
• Ensure subcontracting practices support program execution while meeting applicable FAR/DFARS, CPSR, small-business, cost/price analysis, consent, flow-down, and recordkeeping requirements.
• Work with Supply Chain to ensure that policies, procedures, and practices are aligned and consistently implemented between the two organizations.
• Provide the CEO and Executive Leadership Team with visibility into material contractual risks, disputes, obligations, trends, and decisions requiring executive attention.
• Lead assigned enterprise administrative functions such as Facilities and Real Estate, Physical Security, Records and Administrative Services, and other shared support capabilities designated by the CEO.
• Develop consistent service standards, policies, budgets, vendor-management practices, performance metrics, and escalation paths across assigned functions.
• Partner with business-unit and functional leaders on facility capacity, office and site requirements, leases, relocations, acquired locations, workplace services, and other infrastructure needs that support growth.
• Ensure assigned administrative functions operate with clear ownership, practical controls, responsive service delivery, and appropriate business continuity and risk-management practices.
• Provide executive oversight of enterprise physical security, including site access controls, visitor management, physical protection standards, and coordination of security requirements across company facilities.
• Partner with Facilities, Industrial Security, IT/Cybersecurity, Legal, and business leaders to align physical security controls with classified-program, customer, regulatory, and business-continuity requirements.
• Integrate physical security requirements into new facilities, relocations, and acquired locations, with consistent standards, accountability, incident escalation, and vendor oversight.
• Partner with Corporate Development, Finance, Legal, Human Capital, IT, Security, and operating leaders across the M&A lifecycle, including diligence, Day 1 readiness, integration planning, and post-close execution for Contracts and assigned administrative functions.
• Assess target-company contract portfolios, customer and prime relationships, subcontract/procurement practices, facilities, security posture, administrative systems, policies, staffing, and related risks.
• Develop and execute functional integration plans addressing contract novations and consents, policies, systems, delegations, facilities, security, procurement/subcontracts, records, and acquired-team transition.
• Establish repeatable administrative integration playbooks, decision rights, metrics, and reporting routines that support multiple acquisitions and preserve customer and program continuity.
• Partner with Legal as a separate enterprise function on legal interpretation, disputes, investigations, claims, litigation, regulatory matters, and other issues requiring legal judgment or privilege.
• Partner with Finance on DCAA/DCMA-sensitive processes, purchasing-system requirements, cost allowability considerations, indirect-rate implications, and audit support related to Contracts and assigned administrative functions.
• Partner with Human Capital on workforce policies and with IT/Cybersecurity and Industrial Security on contractual, CMMC, classified, facility-clearance, export-control, personnel-security, and customer-security obligations, while maintaining CAO accountability for physical security.
• Establish risk-based governance that identifies material administrative and contractual issues early, assigns accountable owners, and escalates decisions to the appropriate executive forum.
• Maintain audit-ready documentation, records-retention practices, policies, and controls across assigned functions.
• Serve as a trusted business partner to the CEO on contracting, administrative infrastructure, enterprise risk, scalability, and operating effectiveness.
• Build and lead a high-performing administrative organization with clear role accountability, succession depth, talent development, operating cadence, and continuous-improvement discipline.
• Develop budgets, staffing plans, vendor strategies, systems roadmaps, and investment priorities for assigned functions.
• Use data and operating metrics to identify bottlenecks, improve cycle time and service quality, and create scalable processes without unnecessary bureaucracy.
• Present material risks, trends, performance, and recommendations to executive leadership, the Board, sponsor representatives, customers, or advisors as appropriate.

Required Qualifications

• 15+ years of progressive leadership experience in Contracts/Subcontracts, Administration, Operations, or related GovCon functions, including significant responsibility for federal government contracting.
• 5+ years in a senior executive or enterprise functional leadership role such as Chief Administrative Officer, Chief Contracts Officer, SVP/VP Contracts, VP Administration, or equivalent.
• Demonstrated experience leading the full government-contract lifecycle in a complex defense, aerospace, technology, engineering, or professional-services environment.
• Deep working knowledge of FAR, DFARS, agency supplements, contract types, flow-down requirements, subcontracting, procurement controls, change management, claims/disputes support, and audit readiness.
• Experience with commercial item justification under FAR 2.101 and in receiving commercial item determinations.
• Experience building or scaling Contracts and administrative operating models, including policies, systems, metrics, delegations, service delivery, and functional teams.
• Proven experience supporting M&A diligence and post-close integration involving contracts, novations/consents, administrative functions, facilities, security, procurement/subcontracts, or related infrastructure.
• Ability to work effectively with P&L leaders, program managers, engineers, growth leaders, Finance, Legal, Human Capital, IT, Security, customers, contracting officers, advisors, and Board or sponsor stakeholders.
• Strong analytical, organizational, negotiation, communication, executive-influence, and problem-solving skills with a practical, business-oriented approach to risk.
• Experience developing and managing functional budgets, vendors, priorities, systems, and staffing in a growth or integration environment.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in defense, aerospace, government contracting, advanced manufacturing, electronics, hardware/software, engineering services, or other complex technical businesses.
• Experience in a private equity-backed company or an organization scaling through both organic growth and multiple acquisitions.
• Experience with DCAA/DCMA audits, purchasing systems, subcontract compliance, and government-property or related administrative requirements.
• Experience overseeing Facilities/Real Estate, Physical Security, Records Management, Procurement/Subcontracts, or other shared administrative services in addition to Contracts.
• Experience with Deltek