Leonardo is a global industrial group, among the main global players in Aerospace, Defence and Security that realises multi-domain technological capabilities in Helicopters, Aircraft, Aerostructures, Electronics, Cyber Security and Space. With over 60,000 employees worldwide, the company has a solid industrial presence in Italy, the UK, Poland and the US. It also operates in 150 countries through subsidiaries, joint ventures and investments. A key player in major international strategic programmes, it is a technological and industrial partner of governments, defence administrations, institutions and companies.
Within the GCAP Joint Venture, in the GCAP Technical Leadership UO, we are looking for a Delivery Manager - Synthetics for GCAP HQ in Reading (UK).
The Product Delivery Manager - Synthetics is accountable for the end-to-end delivery, evolution, and service of the enterprise Synthetics Product Line. This includes the Virtual Platform (VP), the Synthetic Environment (SE), and the Simulation Framework that integrates models and connects the VP to the SE. The role enables iterative integration as a primary means to accelerate the delivery of pan-enterprise products, supporting operational analysis and CONOPS validation, concept development, engineering design, system and subsystem integration, test and evaluation (HIL, SIL, MIL), core platform certification and qualification, and synthetic training. The post drives a common set of tools, processes, data models, and standards across partners and domains, underpinned by a shared model and data repository and a collaborative IT environment that supports connectivity with partner edge devices. The Product Delivery Manager ensures seamless interoperability across tools and simulator hardware in line with digital thread principles, while establishing robust V&V of models and data to support certification and evidence-based assurance.
Objectives
Product Delivery and Lifecycle Management
- Own the delivery and continuous improvement of Synthetics products and services, including the Virtual Platform, Synthetic Environment, Simulation Framework, scenario libraries, behavioral models, visualization, data capture, and post-processing and analytics tools.
- Provide specialist expertise in modeling and simulation, co-simulation, distributed simulation, and HIL/SIL/MIL integration, supporting deployment, customization, and optimization of lifecycle processes.
- Translate business and engineering needs into clear roadmaps, delivery plans, and prioritized backlogs spanning operational analysis, concept development, engineering design, integration, test and evaluation, certification, and training.
- Advise on best practices across teams (e.g., model development workflows, V&V and model maturity, correlation with rig and real platform data, configuration management, scenario authoring and governance).
- Define, develop, and deploy processes, methods, and work instructions for Synthetics, including integration points with enterprise systems (e.g., Digital Thread, PLM, requirements, test management, data lake) and with Parent Companies and Domains capabilities.
- Ensure solutions are delivered on time, within scope, budget, and agreed quality and performance targets (e.g., fidelity, determinism, latency, frame rate, availability).
- Manage upgrades, enhancements, obsolescence, and decommissioning across the product lifecycle, including toolchain refresh, model baselines, scenario catalogs, simulator hardware refresh, and cloud or on-premise environments.
Stakeholder and Business Engagement
- Capture, challenge, and consolidate requirements across partners and domains to avoid duplication and fragmentation and to drive convergence on common toolsets and methods.
- Communicate product vision, scope, risks, and progress to technical and non-technical audiences, providing transparent release notes, roadmaps, and service performance reports.
- Develop and implement workforce and cultural initiatives, including common training pipelines and materials to ensure consistent understanding and application of processes and methods.
- Liase with other relevant DE&D Product Owners and Delivery Managers and Engineering Stakeholders.
- Define and design domain and supply chain integration into the Synthetics Product Line, coordinating dependencies with simulator hardware providers, model suppliers, and system integrators.
- Lead business change to embed digital thread ways of working and support the transition of people to the processes, frameworks, and tools in scope, including the production of targeted training and enablement materials.
Governance, Standards, and Data Quality
- Ensure adherence to relevant enterprise standards, promoting aligned toolsets and documenting any agreed and justified differences endorsed by SMEs.
- Define and enforce data models, naming conventions, metadata standards, model maturity labels, V&V status tags, scenario catalogue structures, and access controls, including IP protection and export control considerations.
- Support regulatory, safety, quality, and audit requirements related to engineering data and digital continuity, ensuring traceability from models and simulations to requirements, tests, and certification evidence.
- Embed robust configuration management and change control for models, scenarios, interfaces, and simulation software, with clear baselining and release governance.
- Delivery Execution and Operational Excellence
- Coordinate delivery across internal teams, partners, suppliers, and enabling functions with clear ownership, RACI, and interface control, including the collaborative working environment and partner edge connectivity.
- Monitor service performance, model fidelity and correlation, technical debt, risks, and dependencies, and manage capacity for priority campaigns and program milestones.
- Drive incident resolution, root cause analysis, corrective and preventive actions, and continuous service improvement to increase simulation throughput and reliability.
- Balance near‑term delivery needs with long‑term architecture and data strategy, maintaining modular, open, scalable, and secure simulation capabilities aligned to digital thread principles and multi‑level security needs.
- Ensure seamless interoperability across tools and simulator hardware needed for Synthetics activities, minimizing friction across pillars and domains.
- Vendor and Technology Management
- Support relationships with key technology vendors, system integrators, cloud and infrastructure providers, and simulator hardware suppliers.
- Support contract management, license optimization, and vendor performance reviews; define SLAs and acceptance criteria relevant to Synthetics (e.g., determinism, latency budgets, fidelity metrics).
- Contribute to technology evaluations, proofs of concept, and strategic tool selection (e.g., co-simulation, HIL interfaces, orchestration frameworks, visualization pipelines, model repositories).
- Drive technology innovation, including CI/CD for models, containerization, GPU acceleration, AI‑assisted scenario generation and data synthesis, configuration‑as‑code, and MBSE integration.
Essential Qualifications
- Previous experience in a similar role (minimum 5 years) within defence or aerospace, ideally in modeling and simulation or synthetic environments.
- Degree in engineering, computer science, or a related technical discipline.
- Service Management certification or experience (e.g., ITIL).
- First‑hand knowledge of relevant technologies in synthetics, including simulation frameworks, virtual platforms, distributed simulation, and HIL/SIL/MIL integration.
- Proven experience delivering modeling and simulation solutions in complex, multi‑partner environments.
- Strong understanding of engineering processes, data governance, and digital thread principles.
- Experience working with cross‑functional teams (engineering, manufacturing, IT, quality, and system integrators).
- Ability to manage multiple stakeholders, dependencies, and competing priorities across domains and partners.
- Strong delivery mindset with experience in waterfall, agile, or hybrid delivery models.
- Excellent communication, influencing, and stakeholder engagement skills, including the ability to translate technical concepts for non‑technical audiences.
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