Director of Information Technology

Machine Sciences is a precision manufacturing platform for aerospace, defense, and space. Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Tualatin, Oregon, the platform has grown by acquisition to more than 400 people across machining, metal finishing, metal spinning, and hot isostatic pressing, with operations in Oregon, California, Illinois, and Florida. We are ITAR registered and we build the parts that go on the hardest programs in the country. Machine Sciences is a portfolio company of Viking Global Investors.

THE ROLE

Reporting to the CFO, the Director of IT is the senior technology leader for the platform and a foundational hire. This is a build seat, not a maintain seat. As the platform scales, the role is positioned to grow into the CIO chair.

The mandate is security first. We make mission-critical components for defense and space customers, which makes our security posture a commercial asset rather than an overhead line. You own the controls that protect that work: ITAR data governance, NIST SP 800-171 implementation, and DFARS cybersecurity obligations. Ready for customers, primes, and regulators at any time, and ahead of the requirements as they move.

You also own the infrastructure that keeps a 24/7 floor running, the ERP and business systems the platform reports on, the AI and data agenda, and the IT workstream on every acquisition we close. Five OpCos today and more coming. Each one arrives with its own systems, its own gaps, and a clock on getting it onto our standard.

WHAT YOU OWN

Security, ITAR and Compliance

• The platform security posture end to end: NIST SP 800-171 implementation, System Security Plan and POA&M ownership, SPRS self-assessment and affirmation, and assessment readiness as the CMMC program lands.
• ITAR technical data controls, including physical and logical access governance, segregation of export-controlled data, CUI marking and handling, and employee training, working with our empowered official and outside counsel.
• Threat monitoring, vulnerability management, incident response, and DFARS View phone number on click.appcast.io reporting readiness, plus business continuity and disaster recovery sized for a 24/7 operation.
• The security relationship with customers, primes, and assessors, and a security-aware culture in the office and on the floor.

AI, Data and Analytics

• The AI roadmap: find the applications that actually move the business, such as quoting, predictive maintenance, demand planning, and document processing, deploy them, and measure what they return.
• Workforce enablement: approved tools, training, and real internal capability in the office and on the shop floor.
• AI governance built for an export-controlled environment, so adoption moves fast without putting CUI or ITAR data anywhere it does not belong.
• The data layer: KPI visibility across operations, finance, and quality, and the reporting the CEO, CFO, and sponsor run on.

Infrastructure and Operations

• Secure, reliable infrastructure at every site, covering network, endpoints, identity, cloud, collaboration, and helpdesk, held to uptime standards that match a floor that never stops.
• A documented platform stack, so every acquired site lands on a known-good baseline instead of a one-off.
• The IT budget, licensing, and vendor and MSP relationships, and a deliberate call on what we build in house versus buy.

ERP and Business Systems

• ERP strategy and lifecycle across the platform, spanning job costing, quoting, scheduling, quality, and financial systems, partnering with the CFO and Corporate Controller on selection, implementation, and multi-site rollout.
• Master data governance, data integrity, and cross-site process alignment that hold up under consolidated reporting and audit.
• Integration of business systems with the compliance boundary, so CUI and export-controlled data stay inside approved enclaves as we scale.

M&A Diligence and Integration

• IT diligence on targets: security posture, compliance gaps, systems landscape, contracts, and what it costs and takes to bring them onto our standard.
• The integration playbook from Day 1 connectivity through full migration of identity, email, network, ERP, and the security baseline, sharpened after every deal.
• Remediation cost estimates good enough to price into the deal before we sign, not after.

Team

• Build the IT organization deliberately. Start lean, add site support and security depth as acquisitions close, and give people clear roles and a path.
• Partner with Finance, Operations, Quality, Program Management, and HR so IT is a lever, not a queue.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

A security-credentialed IT leader who has run technology for a regulated manufacturer, is comfortable in the details, and can hold a room with our CEO, our sponsor, a customer, or an assessor. Non-negotiable:

• Hands-on NIST SP 800-171 implementation in a defense supply chain, including SSP and POA&M ownership and SPRS reporting.
• Working command of ITAR and EAR data controls and DFARS View phone number on click.appcast.io obligations.
• 10+ years in IT with 5+ years leading it, in a manufacturing or engineering-centric environment.
• Hands-on ERP ownership in manufacturing: implementation, migration, or multi-site rollout.
• U.S. Person as defined by ITAR.

What moves you to the front of the line:

• Aerospace, defense, or precision machining background.
• AI, automation, or advanced analytics you have taken from selection through adoption, not just piloted.
• M&A IT diligence or integration experience, and time in a PE-backed or high-growth platform.
• CISSP, CISM, Security+, or CMMC-RP/CCP, and experience through a third-party assessment.
• Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.

LOCATION

Hybrid, based out of Tualatin, Oregon, with regular time on site and travel to our other sites and to targets as the platform grows.