SECURE Senior Project Manager

Job Description

The National Science Foundation (NSF) established the SECURE Center to strengthen the integrity and resilience of the U.S. research enterprise by empowering institutions of higher education, non‑profit research organizations, and small‑to‑medium enterprises to address foreign government interference and advance security‑informed decision‑making. In this leadership role, you will oversee high‑impact, multi‑stakeholder initiatives that bridge academia, industry, and government. You will provide strategic direction for programs that align institutional efforts with U.S. government priorities, ensuring the SECURE Center operates as a national nexus for collaboration, policy translation, and capacity building in research security.

As an Assistant Director of Program Operations, you will provide strategic leadership and operational oversight for complex, multi‑institutional projects advancing research security and integrity across the U.S. and globally. Reporting to the SECURE Center Principal Investigator/Faculty Director, you will lead cross‑functional teams of faculty and administrative leaders, and ensure accountability for project outcomes. This role will establish and oversee a comprehensive work breakdown structure tied to milestone‑based deliverables, ensuring execution aligns with Center goals, sponsor requirements, and timelines.

The Assistant Director of Program Operations will integrate strategic planning with financial management, guiding project teams through technical development, compliance, and budget execution in a dynamic research environment. Responsibilities also include staff supervision, coordination of partner institutions, and leadership of continuous improvement efforts to sustain long‑term program impact.

• Develop and maintain integrated roadmaps and timelines for all SECURE Center services, platforms, and products; leverage the roadmap and timeline established by the Co‑Creation teams and adjust as needed.
• Identify and manage interdependencies between SECURE Center services and the Secure Virtual Environment (SVE).
• Translate annual objectives into actionable plans across all teams.
• Perform schedule analysis, identify critical paths, and develop mitigation strategies.
• Develop strategies and systems to monitor and track progress, lead effective decision‑making to ensure that technical details are considered appropriately and decisions facilitate product quality and timely delivery.
• Translate high‑level annual objectives (new products, engaging additional stakeholders, updating existing products based on new policies and procedures, etc.) into actionable plans across all teams and ensure annual objectives are met.
• Oversee tech development at UW and externally to ensure timelines and deliverables. Document for the Director and Deputy Directors on a monthly basis regarding the status of project deliverables.
• Utilize specialized project management expertise to guide the development of appropriate strategic plans and lead implementation efforts to ensure timelines are met.

• Work with PI, Deputy Directors, Co‑Creation Director, Technical Solutions Director and the Leadership team in setting strategic and tactical directions of SECURE, developing shared objectives and service standards, and responding to unanticipated challenges.
• Lead collaboration between national center and regional centers.
• Mentor and coach diverse teams including engineering staff, technical leads, and product owners.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, transparency, and innovation.
• Document for the Director and Deputy Directors on a monthly basis regarding the status of project deliverables.
• Utilize specialized project management expertise to guide the development of appropriate strategic plans and lead implementation efforts to ensure timelines are met.
• Operations Readiness & Support includes collaborating with Leadership and product development teams to define customer support models.
• Coordinate operational readiness for product releases.
• Supervise staff that provide Center operations services and customer support.
• Risk…