A

Akima

Federal contractor delivering facilities, IT, logistics

Executive Vice President - Integrated Air and Missile Defense

Full-TimeDeadline 8/25/27
$250k - $300k
Expert
Bachelor's
Arlington County, Arlington, VA, USA+2 moreMore locations: Columbia, MD, USA | Huntsville, AL, USA
In Person
Business & Strategy
No H1B Sponsorship
US Citizenship Required

About the job

Requirements
  • A bachelor's degree in engineering, science, national security, business, public policy, or a related field, or equivalent military/government executive experience; an advanced degree may be considered in lieu of a portion of experience where consistent with company policy.
  • At least 20 years of progressively responsible leadership experience in defense, aerospace, national security, missile defense, air defense, C4ISR, acquisition, test, systems engineering, operations, or a closely related mission environment.
  • Demonstrated executive leadership of complex organizations, portfolios, programs, or mission areas with accountability for financial performance, customer outcomes, staffing, risk, quality, compliance, and growth.
  • Experience engaging senior U.S. Government, Congressional, military, or defense acquisition stakeholders and translating mission requirements into executable business, technical, and program strategies.
  • Demonstrated understanding of government contracting, including FAR/DFARS-driven execution, procurement integrity, competitive captures, recompetes, contract performance, scope management, and compliant customer engagement.
  • Ability to lead through subordinate executives, directors, program managers, technical leaders, and cross-functional partners in a matrixed government contracting environment.
  • Strong business judgment, including the ability to manage revenue, margin, cash, staffing, investment, and operating risk while preserving mission performance and customer trust.
  • Demonstrated ability to build, assess, retain, and hold accountable high-performing leadership teams and critical technical talent.
  • Ability to brief senior customers, Board-level stakeholders, industry partners, and internal executive leadership with clarity and candor.
  • Ability to obtain and maintain the U.S. Government security clearance required for assigned contracts and customer engagements; U.S. citizenship is required.
Responsibilities
  • Set and execute the IAMD mission-area strategy, including market positioning, customer priorities, portfolio shaping, growth investments, and cross-enterprise operating plans aligned to company financial and strategic objectives.
  • Own mission-area performance against revenue, adjusted EBITDA/margin, cash, DSO, recompete, award-fee, CPARS, quality, safety, security, and customer-performance expectations established through the executive scorecard and Board-approved plans.
  • Build trusted senior relationships with government customers, industry partners, and mission stakeholders across IAMD, including MDA, Service air and missile defense organizations, Combatant Commands, acquisition authorities, and national-level policy or coordination bodies.
  • Translate customer mission needs into differentiated services, capabilities, and repeatable solutions that can be placed under contract, deployed in the field, reused across customers, and measured for margin, adoption, and mission impact.
  • Lead growth for the IAMD mission area by shaping opportunities, supporting capture strategy, improving pipeline quality, winning recompetes, and ensuring proposed solutions are executable, compliant, profitable, and aligned to customer mission outcomes.
  • Provide executive oversight of program execution through subordinate leaders, ensuring contract performance, funding visibility, staffing readiness, risk management, scope discipline, subcontractor alignment, and timely corrective action when programs trend off plan.
  • Strengthen the IAMD leadership team by attracting, selecting, developing, and retaining high-performing leaders and technical experts; building succession coverage for critical roles; and holding leaders accountable for performance, collaboration, integrity, and employee treatment.
  • Drive operating discipline through monthly and weekly reviews focused on facts, trends, recovery actions, decisions required, accountable owners, and dates for closure.
  • Improve productivity, cycle time, efficiency, and operating leverage across the mission area by simplifying work, removing low-value activity, and driving practices that improve output, quality, economics, or mission performance.
  • Lead business, technical, and organizational transformation and change management across the IAMD mission area by leveraging the company's technical advisory foundation and customer relationships to develop, scale, and sustain innovative software, technology, and mission solutions that drive growth across priority defense customers.
  • Ensure the mission area operates in compliance with applicable FAR, DFARS, contract, ethics, security, export control, procurement integrity, cybersecurity, classified-information, and organizational conflict-of-interest requirements.
  • Represent the company in senior customer briefings, industry engagements, Board or investor-facing discussions, strategic partner discussions, and enterprise planning forums.
  • Model the executive standard of mission-first focus, whole-result ownership, early risk disclosure, speed with judgment, direct accountability, respect for people, and commitment to leave the company stronger.
  • Contribute directly to the executive performance model through enterprise-level performance in talent density and succession, high-performing talent retention, leadership clarity, critical-role staffing, Board financial plan delivery, customer and mission performance, quality growth, funded solution adoption, verified productivity gain, and operating leverage.
  • Expose gaps early, bring facts and recovery actions to executive reviews, own decisions and dates, and collaborate across the enterprise so the IAMD mission area contributes to the shared scorecard and long-term enterprise value.
Desired Qualifications
  • Prior O6/O7 military leadership experience, Senior Executive Service experience, or comparable senior civilian defense executive leadership.
  • Senior-level experience with Integrated Air and Missile Defense, missile defense architecture, air defense operations, sensor-to-shooter integration, command and control, fires, threat-informed requirements, and related test or acquisition environments.
  • Experience with Golden Dome for America or comparable national missile defense, homeland defense, or strategic defense architecture initiatives.
  • Direct experience with the Missile Defense Agency, Service air and missile defense organizations, Combatant Commands, Joint Staff, Office of the Secretary of Defense, or national council-level policy, strategy, or coordination forums.
  • Senior-level Department of War/Department of Defense procurement, acquisition, programming, requirements, or resourcing exposure, including ability to operate credibly with senior acquisition and mission stakeholders.
  • Experience engaging senior officials across allied militaries and governments on the development of capabilities in the Integrated Air and Missile Defense mission area.
  • Experience winning and scaling major defense services, engineering, test, digital, C4ISR, modeling and simulation, or mission-solution portfolios in the government contracting market.
  • Experience converting operational mission insight into paid field deployments, repeat deployments, reusable solutions, or differentiated offerings with measurable margin and mission value.
  • Active Secret, Top Secret, or TS/SCI clearance, depending on customer and contract need.
  • Demonstrated success leading enterprise-level transformation, productivity, AI-enabled workflow improvement, or operating-system modernization without degrading mission performance or compliance.

About the company

Akima provides services to the U.S. federal government across facilities, IT, logistics, protective services, systems engineering, mission support, FF&E, and construction. It delivers contracted, integrated services to help government missions succeed. As a subsidiary of NANA, an Alaska Native Corporation, Akima aims to create long-term value for its parent while achieving superior outcomes for customers, guided by Iñupiat values. Its differentiators include Alaska Native ownership, a broad multi-domain service footprint, and a focus on federal missions; its goal is to support customer missions and sustain value for NANA and the Iñupiat community.

Company Size

1,001-5,000

Company Stage

N/A

Total Funding

N/A

Headquarters

Colorado Springs, Colorado

Founded

1995

Get referred to Akima

See people who can refer or advise you

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Akima subsidiaries won MDA SHIELD positions on March 16, 2026.
  • Akima Data Management won FDA DevSecOps support worth $4.6 million in April 2026.
  • Akima’s 2025 Washington Technology rank improved to 31, signaling stronger scale.

What critics are saying

  • Akima faces dependence on federal spending and procurement timing across U.S. agencies.
  • Arevalo v. Akima, LLC reached the Fourth Circuit in July 2026.
  • Pinnacle Solutions' GSA schedule ends August 8, 2026, threatening recompete disruption.

What makes Akima unique

  • NANA-owned Alaska Native Corporation status helps Akima win set-aside federal work.
  • Akima spans facilities, IT, logistics, protective services, systems engineering, and construction.
  • Pinnacle Solutions adds Air Force training and sustainment depth after April 2023 acquisition.

Help us improve and share your feedback! Did you find this helpful?

Benefits

401(k) Retirement Plan

401(k) Company Match

Company News

PR Newswire
Oct 8th, 2026
Akima appoints Michael Teegardin as VP of marketing and communications

Akima, a federal government solutions provider with over 11,000 employees, has appointed Michael Teegardin as Vice President of Marketing & Communications. Teegardin will lead the company's brand, marketing, and communications strategy across the enterprise. Teegardin brings more than 20 years of experience advising senior leadership in the defence, aerospace, and federal services sectors. He most recently served as Chief Communications Officer at ASRC Federal, where he established the enterprise marketing function and led the company's rebranding. Previously, Teegardin held communications positions at BAE Systems and Weber Shandwick. A US Army veteran, he served as an intelligence analyst during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He holds a Master of Science in Communication from Purdue University. Akima is a subsidiary of NANA, an Alaska Native Corporation.

PR Newswire
Feb 19th, 2026
Akima appoints Lauren Cates as VP of business development for Emerging Markets Group

Akima, a federal government solutions provider, has appointed Lauren Cates as vice president of business development for its Emerging Markets Group. Cates will lead growth strategy and expand the company's presence in delivering mission-critical technologies to government and military customers. Cates brings over 15 years of federal contracting experience. She previously led Indigo IT's growth team, securing major contracts in cybersecurity, cloud and enterprise IT services, and spent more than a decade with Bowhead Family of Companies managing billion-dollar pipelines. Akima, a subsidiary of Alaska Native Corporation NANA, employs over 11,000 people and delivers solutions across IT, logistics, aerospace and construction. The company ranked #31 on Washington Technology's 2025 Top 100 government contractors list.

PR Newswire
Feb 12th, 2026
Akima appoints Marcus Lopez as chief operating officer to drive operational excellence

Akima, a federal government contractor, has appointed Marcus Lopez as chief operating officer. Lopez will report to president and CEO Bill Monet and oversee operational excellence and customer delivery. Lopez brings over 30 years of experience in government and commercial sectors. Most recently, he served as president and chief growth officer at Belcan, a Cognizant company, where he led the integration of a $20 billion enterprise. Previously, he headed ManTech's Advanced Research Technology Business Unit. A former US Navy officer and pilot, Lopez commanded an elite strike/fighter squadron. Akima is a subsidiary of NANA, an Alaska Native Corporation, employing 11,000 people and delivering solutions in IT, aerospace, construction and other areas. The company ranked 31st on Washington Technology's 2025 Top 100 government contractors list.

WashingtonExec
Apr 12th, 2023
Akima Buys Pinnacle Solutions | WashingtonExec

Akima has entered into a definitive agreement to buy Pinnacle Solutions, Inc., a provider of training and sustainment products and services to defense