Senior Programme Manager - Land

Who we are

Helsing is a defence AI company. Our mission is to protect our democracies. We aim to achieve technological leadership, so that open societies can continue to make sovereign decisions and control their ethical standards.

As democracies, we believe we have a special responsibility to be thoughtful about the development and deployment of powerful technologies like AI. We take this responsibility seriously.

We are an ambitious and committed team of engineers, AI specialists and customer-facing programme managers. We are looking for mission-driven people to join our European teams and apply their skills to solve the most complex and impactful problems. We embrace an open and transparent culture that welcomes healthy debates on the use of technology in defence, its benefits, and its ethical implications.

The role

As Senior Programme Manager for Helsing's Land domain, you are the primary point of contact for customers and partners across a complex, high-stakes defence programme. You own senior stakeholder relationships and take a considered approach to commercial engagement within a defined value proposition. Drawing on a thorough understanding of Helsing's capabilities, you align the right people and resources at the right time, keeping technical and commercial workstreams coordinated and on track. You translate programme performance into clear reporting for leadership, surface risks before they affect delivery, and drive durable improvements across teams.

The day-to-day

Serve as the primary point of contact for senior customer and partner stakeholders, managing relationships across programme delivery and ensuring Helsing's commitments are met at every milestone

Maintain and update programme roadmaps and steering dashboards, tracking KPIs across engineering milestones and contractual obligations to give leadership timely and accurate performance data

Manage commercial engagement within your programme, identifying opportunities, supporting proposals and keeping delivery progress aligned to agreed value propositions

Orchestrate Helsing's capabilities across engineering, commercial and operational workstreams, aligning contributors to the right challenges entirely independently over timelines spanning a month to a quarter

Monitor programme risks with a forward-looking approach, preparing structured course-correction recommendations for leadership before delivery timelines are affected

You should apply if you

Have managed day-to-day delivery operations for a full programme in a defence, aerospace, automotive or engineering environment, with direct experience working within or alongside defence customers or procurement structures prior to joining the defence sector

Have built and owned senior stakeholder relationships and can navigate complex, multi-party environments with clarity and commercial awareness

Have developed programme steering mechanisms, dashboards and risk frameworks, and can translate programme performance into clear, decision-ready reporting for senior leadership

Hold a PMP certification or equivalent, or are actively working towards one, and apply structured project management methodologies in high-accountability environments

Communicate with full fluency in English and German (C1), written and spoken, are willing to travel regularly across sites, and can meet all requirements for national security clearance under applicable law

Note: We operate in an industry where women, as well as other minority groups, are systematically under-represented. We encourage you to apply even if you don't meet all the listed qualifications; ability and impact cannot be summarised in a few bullet points.

Nice to have

Have familiarity with defence procurement structures or government contract environments, gained through supporting bids, proposals or contract delivery

What we offer

Competitive salary and VSOP options

Relocation support: up to €2,500 and 4 weeks temporary accommodation

Learning: €500/£450 yearly allowance

Health & wellness: gym membership and mental health support (Nilo.health)

Social: regular company events and monthly social allowances

Enhanced parental leave: 22 weeks fully paid for primary caregivers & 6 weeks for secondary caregivers

Family support: 5 days of paid family emergency leave, 100% remote work option during pregnancy and phased return to work

These are the core benefits across all locations; there may be additional benefits in specific sites.

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