Dir, Programs

VIAVI Solutions•Santa Rosa, CA

About The Position

VIAVI (NASDAQ: VIAV) has a 90+ year history of technical innovations that have evolved to keep pace and address our customer’s most pressing business issues. We make equipment, software, and systems that help to plan, deploy, certify, monitor, and optimize all kinds of networks - like those for mobile phones, service providers, large businesses and data centers. And, we are also at the forefront of optical security – we bend light to develop and deliver optical solutions that provide security to the world’s currencies and safety and performance applications for consumer electronics and spectrometry. We are the people behind the products that help keep the world connected – at home, school, work, at play, and everywhere in between. VIAVI employees are fierce about supporting customer success and we welcome people who bring their best every day to the company - to question, to collaborate and to push for solutions that will delight our customers. The Director of Programs owns and leads the execution and scaling of VIAVI Solutions portfolio of programs from concept through delivery. This role is responsible for ensuring cost, schedule, and performance objectives are met across all staged-gate efforts. This leader will be responsible for all programs across current and next generation platforms. The ideal candidate brings deep experience managing cross-functional engineering teams, customer relationships, and scalable program management processes in a fast-paced manufacturing environment. They will have significant experience coordinating with Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Finance, Compliance, and Business Development teams to industrialize programs both domestically and internationally.

Requirements

Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration, Management, Computer Science or related field or equivalent experience.
Demonstrated experience in program or project management within a technical field, with experience in a leadership role.
Proven experience managing complex systems and manufacturing execution (automotive, consumer electronics, aerospace, defense systems).
Strong understanding of product development lifecycles, from R&D through production.
Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams in a fast-moving environment.
Excellent communication skills, with experience briefing executives and customers.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree a plus
Experience in optics, coating, semiconductor processing a plus
Familiarity with DoD or government contracting environments.
PMP or similar certification.
Ability to obtain and maintain a US DoD Secret Clearance.

Responsibilities

Own end-to-end execution of multiple programs, including R&D, prototyping, production transition, and sustainment.
Ensure programs meet contractual, technical, cost, schedule, and performance requirements.
Own the establishment and maintenance of schedules, budgets, and risk management plans.
Lead program execution for all customers and production initiatives.
Establish and improve program management processes, tools, and governance structures.
Implement best practices for risk management and change control, as appropriate.
Support company growth by enabling repeatable execution across multiple product lines and customers.
Partner with Product Line Management on roadmap localization and customer-specific variants.
Partner with Operations on factory readiness, co-manufacturing audits, and yield ramp.
Partner with Engineering on certification, qualification, and design packages.
Partner with Supply Chain on global sourcing strategy and geopolitical risk mitigation.
Partner with Legal/Compliance on regulatory alignment.
Provide programmatic input on cost estimates, schedules, and execution risks.
Lead, mentor, and scale a capable team of Program and Project Managers.
Develop leaders capable of managing partner programs and site launches.
Drive accountability, clear communication, and execution discipline across engineering, manufacturing, supply chain, test, and operations.
Partner with functional leaders to resolve resource conflicts and prioritize work across programs.