Head of Expeditionary Operations Lab

Title:
Head, Expeditionary Operations Lab

Reports to:
Technical Director

Entity:
MAMK

Group:
EM&C

Work Arrangement:
Hybrid

Company Overview
Metrea delivers effects-as-a-service to national security partners across five domains and more than a dozen mission areas—including airborne ISR, electronic warfare, secure communications, aerial refueling, special mission aviation, aerial firefighting, and advanced simulation.

Wherever we operate, we build vertically integrated full stacks of capability—designing, building, and operating turnkey solutions that let customers scale capacity while benefiting from continuous cycles of innovation. With operators and engineers under one roof, we close the gap between lab and field—what we call connecting design with effect.

Metrea's solutions are built for elegance: effective, efficient, and evolving. This approach enables our partners to do more with less and achieve outsized, asymmetric advantage against rapidly evolving threats.

Headquartered in Washington, DC, Metrea has facilities across the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe, and beyond.

Support Groups
Special Air Missions Group (SAM)
is responsible for developing and delivering Metrea's Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR), Special Mobility, and Aerial Firefighting (AFF) capabilities. SAM oversees the integration of new mission systems, ensuring operational readiness across specialized aviation operations. It manages fleet maintenance, regulatory compliance, and strategic partnerships to enhance mission effectiveness. By consolidating expertise and infrastructure, SAM ensures Metrea's

airborne capabilities remain adaptable and mission-ready across dynamic operational environments.

The
Digital and Synthetic Capability Unit (D&S)
is committed to providing mission-driven information solutions that seamlessly bridge the digital and physical realms. Leveraging cutting-edge technologies and advanced platforms, we empower operational readiness and elevate situational awareness across diverse domains—including air, maritime, and space.

Air Mobility Group (AIRMOB)
is responsible for developing and delivering Metrea's aerial refueling (AAR) capabilities, ensuring the readiness and operational effectiveness of the tanker fleet. AIRMOB oversees fleet management, maintenance, and airworthiness, working to sustain and enhance refueling operations. It manages the integration of new processes and technologies, ensuring that tanker aircraft remain mission-ready through effective logistics, maintenance oversight, and regulatory compliance. By coordinating across various teams, AIRMOB ensures the fleet meets both current and future operational needs, supporting a range of specialized air mobility missions.

Electromagnetic and Cyber Group (EM&C)
is responsible for developing flexible and survivable advanced electronic warfare and secure communications equipment while providing the industry's leading signals intelligence, electronic warfare, and cyber experts.  Metrea specializes in signal classification, direction finding, advanced geolocation techniques, and waveform development including waveforms for MANET and LPI/LPD applications. Metrea also develops special purpose radios for government customers and licenses DF and geolocation solutions to multiple OEMs.

Position Summary
Reporting to the Technical Director of EMCO, the Head, Expeditionary Operations Lab (H/EXOLAB) is responsible for guiding a forward leaning, electronic warfare (EW) and cyberspace operations focused engineering team in the development of its specialized products and support to the larger Metrea enterprise. The H/EXOLAB will focus upon key operational goals while simultaneously tracking and reporting technical developmental progress to Metrea Aerospace Management (MAM) executive leadership. The Head, Expeditionary Operations Lab (H/EXOLAB) must possess a strong knowledge and experience working with EW, cyber, and radio frequency systems supporting all-domain operations. The Head, Expeditionary Operations Lab (H/EXOLAB) shall possess organizational design and leadership experience in EW, cyber, and RF products and its customers, which extends to the establishment of company policies and culture. An understanding of enterprise agility and its application to the organization is a must.

In addition to inward-facing execution, the Head, Expeditionary Operations Lab (H/EXOLAB) will meet with external customers and partners to further Metrea's success. Frequent travel and face-to-face business development may be required. The Head, Expeditionary Operations Lab (H/EXOLAB) must maintain relationships across Metrea and often engage in "solutioning" and the co-development of full-stack capabilities for the greater enterprise. As a member of the senior management team, the H/EXOLAB must have leadership and managerial responsibilities that demand clear communication and presentation skills, as well as the ability to develop trusting relationships with senior and junior teammates across the enterprise. This position provides the opportunity to grow business knowledge in a dynamic, ever-evolving aerospace company.

What You'll Do
Process, Systems & Frameworks Development:
Lead the design, development, and management of EXOLAB with particular focus on the implementation of effective, efficient, and scalable technologies and processes that assist in execution of mission support.

Develop the necessary technological and engineering frameworks and models, and in partnership across Metrea Aerospace, acquire and implement systems and engineering methodologies that will best facilitate process automation and decision support from tactical to strategic levels across the group.

People Development:
Identify areas of growth in EXOLAB's knowledge, skillsets, and attitudes, and develop a systematic approach to professional development and talent acquisition to build a high-performing, embedded systems engineering team.

Strategy BCA:
Support Strategy to inform enterprise strategy with key Electromagnetic and Cyber Group (EMCG) considerations and remain an active participant on all major enterprise technical decisions, to include the commencement of new EW, cyber and RF systems and payloads lines or the cessation of extant ones, the acquisition or disposal of key assets, and all investment decisions for all kinds of assets (hardware, software, technologies, IP, businesses, etc.).

Work closely with the strategy and investment team to support potential investment assessments, including strategic acquisitions. Support the strategy and research team in areas of research requiring EW, cyber and RF and other technical related subject matter experts (SMEs). Direct the research team to conduct supporting research for EMCG-related projects or interests as applicable.

Advise the strategy and risk team on technical, EW, cyber, RF, software defined radios, and/or payloads, or business risk exposure dashboards with EMCO EXOLAB risks, and support risk mitigation efforts.

Operations:
Work closely with the EMCO Leadership Team to inform the design, implementation, and further development of Metrea's technical methodologies.

Legal:
Provide the legal and compliance team with EXOLAB inputs that are required to perform all necessary compliance functions and ensure that Metrea's compliance policies cover all known requirements as required.

Work closely with legal to ensure that contract structure and economics supports EXOLAB objectives and customer requirements.

Market Engagement Support:
Support market engagement efforts where required. Enhance Metrea's Market Engagement efforts by supplementing Strategy's cueing and tasking of our Market Engagement Teams (METs) by directly engaging with enabling or decisive stakeholders. Represent the company, as required, in external fora or venues.

Risk Management Support:
Actively participate in reviewing and understanding EMCO risk exposure (REX) to target and shape internal programs and future acquisitions which positively contribute to an appropriate and balanced overall risk exposure. Actively contribute to program risk exposure assessment and management by contributing with your unique perspective and experience around market, and particularly customer-related risks, such as those emanating from the requirements, technology, market trends, contracting, funding, and other related layers and sub-layers

What You'll Bring

• 15+ years of experience in EW, cyber and/or RF engineering related to signals intelligence (SI), electronic support operations, RF operations, access operations, technical report writing, technical project planning, and EW, cyber and RF systems and related manufacturing.
• Experience with the development and architecture of EW, cyber and RF and communication solutions.
• Familiarity with establishing project plans and budgets.
• Experience leading large teams.
• Ability to align business and technical roadmaps.
• Deep interest in SI, RF, and communication solutions.

Additional Eligibility Qualifications

• Experience within the aerospace, defence, security and/or government contracting space in a leadership role managing several programs and/or projects simultaneously.
• Skilled in gathering customer requirements and contributing to the creation of Statements of Work (SOW), project plans, technical roadmaps, action plans, and milestone schedules, while maintaining strong customer engagement throughout.
• Expert knowledge of the human terrain around the UK Government's SI, RF, and communications-based ISR community, coupled with extensive personal contacts and a proven ability to generate high-impact networks.
• Proven ability to engage with stakeholders across industry, science, technology, military, policy, and finance sectors, leveraging insights to inform the development of technical roadmaps and innovative solutions.
• Ability to communicate effectively across cultures, regions and industries, and experience in working in diverse international environments. Experience managing people with measurable performance.
• Flexibility to travel frequently and on short notice, both domestically and internationally.
• Ability to gather, filter and analyse information and pinpoint key issues that support the achievement of long-term strategic objectives.
• Capacity to balance strategic vs. operational mind-sets and results vs. process orientation. Strongly orientated towards performance with a solid and consistent ethical compass.
• Ability to travel approximately 30% of the time.

Our Firmware
At Metrea, our single core value, Rooted in Humility, and our four cornerstone attributes—Entrepreneurial, Systematic, Discerning, and Over-Deliver. These form what we call our Teammate Firmware. Just like technical firmware connects software and hardware, our Firmware is the constant interface between our mission and our people. It defines how we show up, how we work together, and how we solve complex problems.

Our team Firmware creates a web-like, hyper-collaborative, dynamically hierarchical way of working that helps us adapt quickly, communicate openly, and distribute decision-making to where expertise actually lives. It enables groups to self-organize around hard problems, shift fluidly as priorities evolve, and operate with the trust, curiosity, and discipline required in a complex mission space. This foundation allows us to deliver elegant, effective solutions and uphold our purpose: protecting our precious inheritance.

Benefits
UK Benefits

Private Medical Insurance

Subsided gym membership / plans through Wellhub

Electric Car scheme

Cycle to work scheme

Salary sacrificed pension scheme

Free lunch on office days

Enhanced Parental Leave

30 days annual PTO plus b/h

Bonus Scheme

Personal development opportunities

Right to Work
The employee will have the legal right to work in the (relevant country) and will be able to produce right to work documentation.

Equal Opportunities Statement
Metrea Management Limited (MAM) (edit as per capability) is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or other characteristics protected by law.

Position Type and Expected Hours of Work (please verify the below)
This is a full-time non-exempt position with typical working hours of Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Hours and work shifts may change in accordance with department and business needs. Exempt Employees must have the ability to be on-call and available, as business needs require. Non-Exempt employees may be required to work over 40 hours per week with approval from the department manager.

Work Location
Lincoln – Hybrid

Work Environment
This job operates in an office setting

Travel
30%