Principal Project Manager​/Programme Delivery Manager Mission Systems Engineering

Overview

At Rowden we design and integrate mission‑critical technology for Defence and National Security. Our delivery approach is straightforward: be transparent, stay practical, and focus on outcomes that make a real difference. After several years of successfully delivering and fielding critical systems, we are now moving into the next phase of scaled delivery, and this role will be key to making that happen.

• Own the day‑to‑day delivery of a complex systems integration programme, ensuring progress against agreed milestones, budgets and outcomes.
• Own contract scope and manage the commercial landscape across the programme, operating within commercial boundaries while maximising delivery impact.
• Translate high‑level programme outcomes into actionable delivery plans, work streams and outputs, identifying and communicating internal and external dependencies.
• Drive alignment across business, engineering and third‑party delivery teams with differing priorities, managing inter‑dependencies.
• Anticipate and identify delivery risks and issues early, proactively shaping mitigation strategies rather than reacting late.
• Establish and run effective programme governance, including steering forums, status reporting, RAID management and decision tracking.
• Produce clear, concise, decision‑oriented reporting for senior stakeholders and sponsors.
• Maintain strong financial and delivery discipline, ensuring scope, cost and timelines are actively controlled.
• Organise and mobilise busy senior stakeholders, ensuring the right conversations happen at the right time.
• Escalate issues, concerns and risks to the appropriate level at the right time, knowing when to ask for direction and guidance.
• Act as a trusted delivery partner to sponsors, providing clear recommendations and honest assessments of progress and risk.
• Bring structure to ambiguity and create clarity where requirements, ownership or sequencing are not yet fully defined.
• Push momentum, challenge inertia and keep delivery moving forward in complex environments.

The role will be based predominantly in Bristol, with an expectation to travel to customer sites and partners within the UK up to a couple of times a week and infrequent overseas travel as required.

• Significant experience delivering complex technology or systems integration projects or programmes, preferably within Defence/NS.
• Demonstrable programme management capability beyond single‑stream project delivery, with expectation of leading multi‑year, multi‑million‑pound projects or programmes.
• Experience operating within formal governance frameworks while enabling pace and pragmatism.
• A proven track record of coordinating across multiple stakeholders, teams and vendors.
• Proven experience leading multi‑disciplined technical teams, including systems engineers, software engineers, infrastructure engineers, safety and security experts.

You may have initiated, designed, governed and led:

• Large‑scale, complex systems design and integration or digital platform transformations.
• Data, cloud or infrastructure modernisation or delivery projects/programmes.
• Technology integration or business transformation initiatives in a complex stakeholder environment.
• Projects or programmes in multi‑vendor or outsourced procurement/delivery environments.
• Complex multi‑year, multi‑million‑pound projects or programmes within Defence or other similar government‑led organisations.

You will be comfortable in environments where requirements evolve and adapt, bringing your experts together to make informed decisions. Highly organised with strong attention to detail, you will not lose sight of the bigger picture. You are an exceptional communicator who can distil complexity into clear, actionable messages and have the confidence to engage and influence stakeholders, building and maintaining strategic relationships.

You thrive as a member of a team but also operate autonomously, taking ownership of delivery and anticipating issues before escalation.

We are committed to building a flexible, inclusive and enabling company, and we support flexible…