Managing Director, Government Relations - Defense Budgeting

HADRIAN - MANUFACTURING THE FUTURE

Hadrian is building autonomous factories to reindustrialize America. By combining AI, advanced software, robotics, and full-stack manufacturing, we help aerospace and defense companies build rockets, satellites, aircraft, ships, and other mission-critical systems up to 10x faster and at significantly lower cost.

Following our $1.37B Series D at a $7.87B valuation, Hadrian is rapidly expanding our manufacturing footprint, launching new capabilities across welding, casting, forging, electronics, additive manufacturing, and more, while scaling our Factory-as-a-Service platform to transform how critical products are built.

Backed by leading investors including JPMorgan Chase, Valor Equity Partners, Andreessen Horowitz, Founders Fund, 137 Ventures, Lux Capital, T. Rowe Price, and Morgan Stanley, we’re building the future of American manufacturing—and looking for exceptional people to help make it happen.

If you’re ready to take on the most challenging and rewarding work of your career while helping create American manufacturing jobs for generations to come, you’re exactly who we’re looking for.

THE ROLE

This is a dual-front role built for someone with 15-20+ years inside the defense budget process. The core of the job is shaping the budget build inside the Pentagon and OMB, and engaging the process by which Congress sets the defense topline — a process driven heavily by congressional leadership, Armed Services Committee leaders, and the Budget Committees. This role also requires close fluency in how funding is actually spent once it's appropriated — apportionment, allocation, obligation, and execution. Particular depth on how the organic industrial base is managed and funded, how the National Defense Stockpile is managed, defense working capital funds, and the reprogramming process is also desired.

Appropriations Committee engagement and NDAA authorization requests are owned day to day by the Head of Government Relations - Federal Legislative; this role supports that work rather than leading it. Because this role's core relationships — Pentagon and OMB budget staff, Armed Services Committee and Budget Committee leadership, and the comptroller community — cross executive and legislative branches, it reports directly to the SVP, Public Policy. On Appropriations Committee engagement and NDAA authorization requests, this role works in a dotted-line partnership with the Head of Government Relations - Federal Legislative, supporting rather than owning those relationships. Similarly, this role will closely collaborate with the Head of Government Relations – Executive Branch, especially at the White House offices.

This is an individual contributor role to start, built for someone who can operate through expertise, judgment, and relationships rather than headcount. As the budget and execution portfolio matures, the scope is expected to grow — potentially into a small team — but this is not a role that starts with people management built in.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

Budget Build & Topline Strategy

- Own Hadrian's engagement on how the President's Budget request is built inside the Pentagon and OMB, before it ever reaches Congress.

- Build and hold relationships with congressional leadership and the leadership of the House and Senate Armed Services and Budget Committees — the offices most responsible for setting the defense topline — distinct from the appropriations process itself.

- Bring a fluent understanding of the distinction between mandatory and discretionary spending and how the reconciliation process can affect the defense topline, translating that distinction into clear implications for Hadrian.

- Support the Head of Government Relations - Federal Legislative on Appropriations Committee engagement, on NDAA authorization requests, congressional oversight and and testimony prep, as a dotted-line partner; represent Hadrian on budget-build and topline matters directly.

- Translate the federal budget calendar — President's Budget rollout, markups, topline agreements, continuing resolutions — into concrete, timely guidance for the CEO, SVP, the Federal sales lead, and Hadrian's executive team.

Execution-Year Budget Management

- Bring deep fluency in how funding actually moves once appropriated — apportionment, allocation, obligation, and execution — and use that fluency to anticipate rather than just react to funding shifts affecting Hadrian.

- Understand closely how the organic industrial base is managed and funded, and flag where Hadrian's factories and public private partnership plans intersect with those investment decisions.

- Understand closely how the National Defense Stockpile is managed and funded, and where it bears on Hadrian's business.

- Own oversight of defense working capital funds and the reprogramming process — including above- and below-threshold reprogramming and the omnibus reprogramming action — especially how to influence reprogrammings prior to submission to the congressional defense committees.

- Operate proactively, not reactively: identify and help Hadrian seize opportunities during the year of execution, and surface and mitigate risk before it becomes a problem.

Budget Intelligence & Internal Advisory

- Partner with the Federal sales and capture teams to make sure budget-build, topline, and execution-year intelligence directly informs pursuit strategy, pricing, and timing on Hadrian's federal opportunities.

- Prepare board- and investor-facing materials on federal budget risk and opportunity exposure as needed.

- This role is an individual contributor to start. As the portfolio grows, it may expand into building and leading a small team — this role is expected to help define what that function looks like, not inherit it fully formed.

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR

- 15+ years alternating between the legislative and executive branches of the defense budget process, as well as an understanding of how these processes influence the defense industries’ business decisions and legislative engagement.

- Direct, hands-on ownership of the defense reprogramming review process — including omnibus reprogramming actions — and oversight of defense working capital funds, the organic industrial base, and the National Defense Stockpile, not just familiarity with how those programs work on paper.

- A track record of driving institutional change that only works with sustained relationships across the Pentagon and the Hill — the kind of multi-year advocacy that, for example, helped push the Department toward audit readiness.

- A level of recognized subject-matter authority such that outside institutional reviews of the defense budget process — for example, the PPBE Reform Commission — have sought your input directly.

- Experience translating a defense contractor's long-range business plan into federal fiscal-policy advocacy.

- A track record of being the person budget staff, defense committee staff, and financial managers call first — someone whose read of the budget, the policy, and the politics behind it is trusted at face value on both sides of the branch divide.

- Deep, working familiarity with the congressional budget committees, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the Government Accountability Office, and the Congressional Research Service (CRS), and how their analysis shapes appropriations and NDAA outcomes.

- Fluent in the distinction between mandatory and discretionary spending and in how the reconciliation process works, including its potential effects on the defense topline.

- Close, standing relationships across the military comptroller community — the kind built over a career, not assembled for a single engagement.

- Fluency in turning dense budget detail into clear, actionable intelligence for company executives, including knowing where to find execution and obligation rate data and how reprogramming actually moves through the system.

- Deep understanding of defense financial management regulations and the PPBE process from the inside.

- Comfortable operating with real independence and exercising judgment on what's binding, what's advisory, and what needs to go to the SVP directly.

- A relentless, genuine focus on Hadrian's mission: rebuilding American industrial capacity and the workforce that runs it.

- Proactive and collaborative, with a sense of levity that makes the work better without ever letting up on the bar for excellence.

- Currently practicing as a registered federal lobbyist, or immediately eligible to register.

- Holds or can obtain a national security clearance.

- An advanced degree in business administration, public administration, or a related field is a plus.

COMPENSATION

For this role, the target salary range is $224,000 - $260,000 (actual range may vary based on experience).

This is the lowest to highest salary we reasonably and in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range, and the range may be modified in the future. An employee's pay position within the salary range will be based on several factors, including, but not limited to, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, performance, and business or organizational needs.

BENEFITS FOR FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES

- Medical, dental, vision, and life insurance plans for employees

401k

- Relocation support may be provided for certain situations, based on business need.

- Flexible vacation policy

- Equity

ITAR REQUIREMENTS

To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen or national, lawful permanent resident, protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.

USE OF AI IN HIRING

Hadrian uses AI-assisted tools in our recruiting and hiring processes to help our team work more efficiently. This may include tools that help organize and analyze recruiting data, as well as an AI-powered notetaker that can record and transcribe interviews and help coordinate feedback. These tools support our team and are not used to make hiring decisions. All candidate evaluations and hiring decisions are performed by humans. If an interview will be recorded, you will be notified in advance and may opt out at any time with no impact on your candidacy. Candidate data processed through these tools is subject to the same protections described in our Privacy Policy https://www.hadrian.co/privacy-policy.

CONSIDERATION OF CRIMINAL HISTORY

Hadrian will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of all applicable laws. We do not ask about criminal history on our application, and we do not consider criminal history before making a conditional offer of employment.

HADRIAN IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

Hadrian does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, marital status, mental status, physical disability or any other legally protected status. When necessary, the Company also makes reasonable accommodations for disabled candidates and employees, including for candidates or employees who are disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.