Project Manager, Defence

Location Hybrid Didcot, UK Harwell, Didcot, Oxfordshire (onsite 3-4 days per week)

Team Delivery Team

Seniority Mid-level

• Closing:5:00pm, 23rd Mar 2026 GMT

Perks and benefits

Work from home option

Life Insurance

Wellness programs

Employee Assistance Programme

Enhanced maternity and paternity leave

Sabbatical Opportunities

Salary sacrifice

Team social events

Extracurricular clubs

Cycle to work scheme

Candidate happiness

8.44 (2180)

Job Description

Project Manager, Defence

The Defence Project Manager will be responsible for the successful management and delivery of tactical and technically complex Project at the Catapult specifically for one of our Defence and Security clients.

This is a role that is fully aligned to serve the current contractual obligation from the client with internal reporting as appropriate.

You will be able to be based at our offices in Harwell (or Westcott) as well as our customers premises 3 to 4 days a week.

Security clearance is required for this role and eligibility to hold higher levels of clearance as needed.

Key Responsibilities

Holds the overall operational relationship with key client project management teams and customer technical/other relevant staff.

Feeds into and helps grow the Defence and Security programme of work to ensure alignment.

Quality assurance of deliverables required by the client.

Leading the operational engagement with the customer in the delivery environment.

Project management of the overall delivery plan inclusive of resources, finances, risk and change management required of the business to deliver.

Facilitation of new work being scoped, costed, and mobilised.

Organising and participating in stakeholder meetings.

Report preparation for internal and external stakeholders.

Other requirements as set out by the client.

You are

Successful at building relationships with project teams and the wider project Stakeholder community.

Able to define and structure Tactical and Complex projects during the bid phase to shape the delivery structure.

Successful at managing and delivering Complex and Tactical Projects and projects throughout the project lifecycle.

A strong decision maker with confidence to own client relationship from a delivery perspective.

A contributor to the development and continuous improvements of the process and systems in use.

A multitasker who can successfully manage project finances, resource requests, forecasting, claims, purchase orders, invoices etc.

Delivering the necessary reports as appropriate internally and to the funding body/customer.

Comfortable to engage with procurement and contract management to ensure successful delivery of the project/s.

Required Skills & Experience

Worked extensively previously for UK MOD on sensitive space projects.

Experience of delivering Complex and Tactical projects including risk management and managing project managers to deliver programmatic results.

Demonstrable experience of delivering to specific customer derived requirements.

Demonstrable understanding of DEFCONS with contracts.

Demonstrable experience of managing projects managers and technical teams to deliver customer requirements.

Demonstrable experience of budget management and reporting.

Demonstrable Procurement and Contract management acumen to ensure successful project delivery.

Effective verbal, written and presentation skills with attention to detail and a high degree of accuracy.

The ability to work effectively independently and to motivate your project team.

The ability to manage stakeholder engagement, tailoring communication style accordingly.

A high level of competency in Microsoft applications including Word, Excel, Outlook, and MS Project and SharePoint.

Organisational skills and ability to work to deadlines and work on multiple deliverables simultaneously.

Demonstratable experience of applying Waterfall/Agile or other appropriate Project Management methodologies as required.

Has undertaken formal Project Management training and gained relevant qualifications in Prince2/APM/Agile.

Industry experience of satellite manufacture and complex payload integration at a technical / engineering level.

Demonstrable experience of delivering successful space and satellite projects throughout the project life cycle.

About us & how we work

We strive to create a high trust, high performance and inclusive environment that enables team members to bring their whole selves to work. This helps to create the foundations of an innovation culture. Our shared values are critical to this:

We care - for our people, our partners, and our planet.

We connect - and engage with people and ideas.

We learn - and grow, as people and as an industry.

Underpinning this is our belief in great teams. Our combined efforts will always deliver outcomes beyond that of any individual, providing we are honest through debate, experiment and reflect, and create shared resolutions in support of our purpose. Live these values, work to our principles, take ownership to deliver, and we are certain you will thrive with us.

This job description sets out the skills and experience we think are needed to be able to perform in this job. If you believe you can deliver in this role then we want to hear from you.

We offer a hybrid policy which is designed around collaboration, one 'anchor' day per week collaborating with your direct team and another flexible day per week to be spent collaborating or collaborating with other colleagues. This may differ depending on the role you are applying for. Some roles may require more office presence or travel.

At Satellite Applications Catapult, we are committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workforce. We welcome candidates from all corners of the globe, but due to legal and logistical considerations, we want to be transparent about the potential visa-related challenges that could arise. Our ability to offer sponsorship will depend on the level of interest for our roles and salary level.

Please note that we offer study support (at our discretion) and on the job training will be provided.