Program Manager

Program Manager

The Program Manager (PM) is the day-to-day operations officer of the SDA TAP Lab Texas, working in close, seamless partnership with — and under the technical direction of — Prof. Moriba Jah, the Principal Investigator and Director of TAP Lab Texas. The PM serves as the hub through which cohorts, USSF mission partners, university administration, and external stakeholders connect, translating the PI's strategic and technical vision into executable operational plans. The PM is accountable for cost, schedule, and performance delivery across all grant-funded activities, and is the first point of contact for cohort teams as they prototype, integrate, and validate their tools and applications within the lab environment.

This role requires a disciplined project-management professional who can operate with minimal friction alongside a technically demanding PI, receive and execute on technical direction without requiring extensive re-explanation, and represent the lab's mission credibly to both DoD leadership and academic innovators. Deep familiarity with federally funded research administration, a collaborative and proactive working style, and the flexibility to travel as mission requirements dictate are essential.

Working Relationship with the PI/Director

• Internalize and operationalize the PI/Director's technical direction without requiring re-explanation of underlying scientific rationale.
• Anticipate the PI/Director's needs, surface emerging issues before they escalate, and bring proposed solutions rather than problems alone.
• Represent the PI/Director's technical and programmatic positions accurately and confidently to cohort teams, USSF partners, and UT Austin administration.
• Maintain a seamless operational cadence with the PI/Director through regular briefings, shared dashboards, and a mutual commitment to mission success over bureaucratic friction.
• Exercise independent judgment on day-to-day operational matters within the boundaries set by the PI/Director, escalating strategic or technical decisions appropriately.

Responsibilities

Day-to-Day Operations & Cohort Integration

• Serve as the resident operations officer for TAP Lab Texas, maintaining daily situational awareness of all active cohort activities, resources, and timelines.
• Sit with cohort teams during sprint cycles to facilitate the integration of their tools, applications, and datasets into the SDA TAP Lab Texas infrastructure and data environment.
• Coordinate access to lab computational resources, secure data feeds, and GaiaGraph integration pipelines on behalf of cohort teams.
• Manage onboarding and off-boarding of cohort participants, including data-sharing agreements, lab access, and orientation to USSF mission context.
• Serve as the primary operational interface between cohort teams and TAP Lab technical leads, ensuring that technical direction from the PI/Director is clearly communicated, understood, and executed by cohort participants.

Cost / Schedule / Performance Management

• Own the integrated master schedule (IMS) for all TAP Lab Texas activities, tracking milestones across cohort cycles, infrastructure buildout, and reporting obligations.
• Monitor grant expenditures against the approved budget, coordinate with UT Austin Office of Sponsored Projects (OSP) on financial reporting, and proactively flag variances and risks to the PI/Director to enable timely course correction.
• Prepare and deliver periodic programmatic and financial status reports to the Texas Space Commission, USSF mission partners, and UT Austin leadership.
• Maintain risk registers and mitigation plans; proactively escalate issues that threaten cost, schedule, or performance baselines.
• Ensure deliverables comply with TSC grant terms, UT Austin sponsored project policies, and applicable federal regulations (2 CFR Part 200, DoD flow-down clauses).

Stakeholder Coordination & Liaison

• Serve as the primary liaison to U.S. Space Force System Delta 85 and the SDA TAP Lab national program office located in Colorado Springs, CO (sdataplab.org).
• Coordinate with the SDA TAP Lab Maui node on shared cohort resources, joint activities, and cross-site programmatic alignment.
• Represent TAP Lab Texas at USSF headquarters meetings, program reviews, and coordination sessions as directed by the PI/Director.
• Cultivate and maintain productive relationships with DoD program officers, AFRL, AFWERX/ SpaceWERX, DIU, and other innovation ecosystem partners.
• Interface with UT Austin's Office of Sponsored Projects, Office of Research, and legal/contracts offices on sub-award, teaming, and compliance matters.

Technology Transition & Reporting

• Track the technology readiness levels (TRLs) and transition status of cohort solutions, maintaining an up-to-date capability mapping aligned to USSF mission threads.
• Support the PI and GaiaVerse GaiaGraph team in benchmarking cohort performance and identifying gaps relative to operational priorities.
• Contribute to after-action reports, cohort outcome summaries, and transition packages submitted to TSC and USSF mission partners.
• Support preparation of presentations, white papers, and briefings for DoD audiences under the direction of the PI/Director and in coordination with JDIG staff.

Travel

• Travel as mission requirements demand to:
• U.S. Space Force Headquarters, Colorado Springs, CO — program reviews, partner coordination, and SDA TAP Lab national program office meetings.
• SDA TAP Lab Maui node — cross-site coordination and joint cohort activities.
• Other locations as required for conferences, technology demonstrations, or stakeholder engagement.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering, systems engineering, business administration, public administration, or a closely related field.
• Minimum five (5) years of experience in program/project management, research administration, or a related role within a federally sponsored research or DoD program environment.
• Demonstrated experience managing cost, schedule, and performance for multi-year, multi-stakeholder programs (>$1M annual budget).
• Familiarity with federal grant regulations (2 CFR Part 200) and sponsored project administration processes.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to prepare clear briefings and reports for both technical and executive audiences.
• Proficiency in project management tools (e.g., MS Project, Smartsheet, Jira, or equivalent) and standard office productivity software.
• U.S. citizenship and ability to obtain and maintain a DoD security clearance.
• Willingness and ability to travel domestically as required (estimated 15–25% travel).
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree or PMP / PMI-ACP certification.
• Prior experience working with or within the U.S. Space Force, Air Force Research Laboratory, DoD innovation hubs (AFWERX, SpaceWERX, DIU), or a university-affiliated defense research center.
• Familiarity with Space Domain Awareness, astrodynamics, cybersecurity, or AI/ML applications in defense contexts.
• Experience with technology accelerator or cohort-based R&D programs.
• Active DoD security clearance (Secret or higher).
• Experience with sub-award management, teaming agreements, and SBIR/STTR program administration.

Core Competencies

• Mission Orientation: deep commitment to national security, space sustainability, and the U.S. Space Force mission.
• Operational Discipline: rigorous adherence to cost/schedule/performance baselines with a proactive, solutions-oriented mindset.
• Collaborative Leadership: ability to convene and align various stakeholders—researchers, Guardians, engineers, and administrators—around shared objectives.
• Technical Literacy: capacity to engage substantively with space technology, AI/ML, and cybersecurity topics without being a domain expert.
• Adaptability: comfort operating in a fast-paced, sprint-cycle environment with evolving sponsor requirements.
• Integrity & Trustworthiness: highest ethical standards consistent with handling sensitive government program information.

Salary Range

$150,000 + depending on qualifications

Working Conditions

• Work is performed in a standard office environment.
• Repetitive use of keyboard at workstation.
• Occasional on-call/travel duties.