Location, London

Post Number - DEX0110

This is a Voluntary National Contribution (VNC) post within DIANA. VNCs have and will keep their statutory and/or contractual relationship with their government or other national authority throughout the period of their assignment to DIANA. As such, please ensure you have national support before applying.  
 

The Project Manager, Adoption is responsible for overseeing the planning, execution, and the execution of adoption related projects. This includes implementing functions of the Rapid Adoption Service and supporting Challenge Managers with the challenge programme delivery. 

This role will involve leveraging relationships and networks established between DIANA, innovators, NATO community and other stakeholders as well as collaborating closely with operational end-users, capability developers, system integrators, scientists and technological experts that participate in DIANA’s challenge programs and Rapid Adoption Service. 

The Project Manager, Adoption will be responsible for engaging with NATO and Allied R&D, innovation and procurement agencies to identify and implement adoption pathways for DIANA innovators and ensuring these pathways are operationalized effectively, troubleshooting barriers to innovation.

Duties of this role include:
• Ensure effective collaboration across a wide array of stakeholders, including innovators, accelerators, test centres, operational end-users, capability developers, system integrators, scientists and technological experts
• Identify and manage risks including developing and executing mitigation plans. 
• Prepare contingency plans for the effective management of issues that may arise both internally at DIANA and across DIANA’s ecosystem of stakeholders.
• Create and maintain standard project management deliverables such as project plans, risk registers, highlight reports, etc. 
• Analyse risk, using quantitative and qualitative methodologies and management frameworks.
• Monitor the expenditure of the allocated grants, prizes and payments to innovators to ensure alignment with DIANA’s objectives.
• Develop, refine, and update Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for DIANA in concurrence with the Office of General Counsel.
• Share project management expertise and best practices across the DIANA team, including the use of tools, processes, training, and project management techniques. The aim of this being to improve the ability of all staff members to 
achieve DIANA objectives in a timely and predictable manner using a programmatic approach. 
• Perform any other related duties as may be required.

The incumbent must have:
• Knowledge of the procurement systems and processes of one or more Allied nations and/or of challenges relating to the adoption of new technologies by military and defence end users.
• Good stakeholder management skills, connecting innovators to end users to determine product fit.
• Ability to think creatively and innovatively.
• Ability to identify and manage risks including developing and executing mitigation plans.
• Experience in drafting standard project documents such as project mandates, project plans, highlight reports, lessons learned reports; demonstrating good writing skills.
• Ability to develop and deliver project briefs to diverse stakeholders
• Experience working with Microsoft Office suite (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, MS Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive).
• Possess the following minimum level of NATO official languages (English): IV (“Very Good”).