About NGA

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) delivers world-class geospatial intelligence that provides a decisive advantage to policymakers, warfighters, intelligence professionals and first responders. Anyone who sails a U.S. ship, flies a U.S. aircraft, makes national policy decisions, fights wars, locates targets, responds to natural disasters, or even navigates with a cellphone relies on NGA. NGA enables all of these critical actions and shapes decisions that impact our world through the indispensable discipline of geospatial intelligence (GEOINT).

The challenge

How can we help NGA deliver products and services, as well as help develop a strong product organization within NGA.

The NGA CTO team is looking for two PIFs to help realize important aspects of NGA’s Technology Strategy. Specifically, NGA needs to grow its Product Management and User Experience research (UX) expertise. NGA has done something similar with software engineering and data science, with DevCorps and Data Corps respectively, in the past few years, so there is precedent for this type of work. Additionally there are already pockets of people practicing product management and human centered design/UX research in the agency, so we are not starting from scratch. However, we need experienced people to lead this effort and make this a reality within NGA.

To help mature and grow the PM and UX team and program at NGA, the right PIFs would be able to help NGA with the work - rolling up their sleeves as individual contributors and team members - while also providing long term strategic support in growing these competencies within NGA, including: defining these roles properly, building a hiring pipeline (and career path) for people with these skills, establishing/developing a community of folks practicing these skills already in NGA to support and learn from each other, and most importantly, helping evolve the culture to recognize how these skills add value to the tools and services NGA provides.

Skills Required:

• Leadership experience in the specific disciplines (PM/UX research)
• Strong, demonstrable relevant technical skills as revealed through portfolios or products launched
• Excellent communication skills in both written and presentation
• Ability to break down barriers with various tools (empathy, listening, speaking up, etc.)
• Experience building a product organization from the ground up (or close to it) - either within a large organization or leading a smaller organization.