Forward Deployed Product Manager (Manassas, VA / Senior)

We’re seeking a skilled Forward Deployed Product Manager to build the next-generation data management and artificial intelligence platform for maritime domain awareness.

As a Forward Deployed Product Manager, you’ll work on-site with customers — embedded in the mission, navigating ambiguous requirements, and solving hard problems in the field. You’re part product manager, part technical advisor, and wholly accountable for making the mission succeed. The position requires an active U.S. Secret clearance and is on-site at customer locations.

Spear AI is a growing defense contracting company dedicated to delivering cutting-edge solutions that support our nation’s security. As we expand, we’re building a culture where innovation meets mission-critical work. We operate with a flat organizational structure that empowers every team member to make an impact, collaborate directly with leadership, and contribute to projects that matter. Whether you’re joining our Hardware, Software, or Services division, you’ll work alongside talented professionals committed to excellence and to advancing the capabilities that keep our nation safe and secure.

Spear AI builds sonobuoy sensors that are deployed into the water and collect edge data. We also work with the U.S. Navy to collect and process their SONAR data. You’ll have an opportunity to work on real-world projects that directly impact warfighter capabilities and mission success.

## What you’ll do

We’re a small team wearing many hats, and you’d have a wide variety of responsibilities that include:

• Own discovery end-to-end — You don’t wait for requirements to arrive in a document. You’re conducting structured interviews, shadowing operators in the field, mapping workflows, and surfacing unmet needs before they become expensive misses. Discovery isn’t a phase — it’s a continuous practice.
• Define what gets built and why — Translate operator pain, mission gaps, and strategic objectives into crisp problem statements, user stories, and acceptance criteria. You’re the one who decides what’s worth building next and can defend that call with evidence.
• Shape the product vision at the edge — Maintain a living, prioritized roadmap grounded in real field context. You’re not just grooming a backlog — you’re making opinionated bets on where the platform needs to go and bringing the team along with you.
• Embed with customers on-site — Live and breathe their workflows, constraints, and environment. You’re not a visitor; you’re a teammate with a different badge. You understand the mission deeply enough to push back when a feature request is actually a symptom of a bigger problem.
• Bridge the gap between engineering and the field — Communicate customer context back to the team with enough technical depth that engineers can act on it immediately, without a game of telephone. You write specs that don’t need three clarification meetings to execute.
• Drive deployments and validation — Coordinate releases, integration milestones, and acceptance testing directly with the customer. You’re present for the moment of truth and accountable for the outcome.
• Represent Spear AI with credibility — Build trusted relationships with program offices, operators, and technical counterparts. You’re the face of the product in the room — and you’ve done enough homework to earn that position.

## Who you are

We’re looking for someone with strong product and technical instincts who shares our most important values:

• You’re fanatical about polish. Every detail matters. You love to make sure the product that lands in an operator’s hands is one you’re genuinely proud of — not a demo that barely survives a controlled environment.
• You care about correctness. You take pride in the fact that what you ship matches what was promised, what was tested, and what the customer actually needs. Ambiguity in requirements is a problem you chase down, not something you paper over.
• You obsess over performance. You daydream about cutting the number of steps it takes an operator to do their job. Friction is the enemy, and you track it obsessively.
• You dive deep. It’s important for you to really know how things work. You’re always building prototypes and setting up experiments to reinforce your understanding — whether that’s standing up a sandbox environment or learning just enough SONAR signal processing to ask better questions.
• You live on the bleeding edge. You’ve got a long list of upcoming platform features you’re excited about and can’t wait for the next release to drop. You follow the roadmap like it’s a sport.
• You’re a great teacher. You know how to break down a concept for a specific audience and make it click with them in a way that gets them excited — whether that’s a fleet operator learning a new interface or an admiral evaluating a capability demo.

## Why work with us

• We ship — We don’t work on 18-month projects that are irrelevant before they’re even finished.
• Our work has impact — We build products that are deployed to U.S. submarines and integrate with the sonobuoys we manufacture.
• We’re growing responsibly — We have the resources to hire a lot more people, but we don’t want to build a massive team of people who don’t share our values.
• We’re remote-friendly — We collaborate in real time on Slack or asynchronously via GitHub. For this role, you’ll be on-site with customers — but our internal team is distributed and knows how to work that way.
• We’re profitable — We aren’t burning through cash trying to make the business work. But we also have investors who believe in us and are committed to our success.
• We care about doing great work — You don’t need permission to sweat the details here.
• We don’t take ourselves too seriously — We’re building products that make the world safer. But we don’t let that get to our heads.

## Important Skills

• 4+ years of product management experience with technical products or platforms — not project management, not program management; you’ve owned a roadmap and made the hard prioritization calls.
• Deep fluency in discovery methodology — you have a toolkit (jobs-to-be-done, continuous interviewing, opportunity solution trees, or equivalent) and a track record of using it to find the right problem before building the wrong solution.
• Strong written and verbal communication — you can write a crisp one-pager, run a structured customer interview, and present confidently in a program review in the same afternoon.
• Demonstrated ability to define product strategy from ambiguous inputs — operators won’t hand you a PRD; you need to go get the insight yourself.
• Comfort operating in constrained, high-stakes environments where schedules are real, feedback loops are long, and the cost of building the wrong thing is high.
• Familiarity with software development workflows — you can contribute meaningfully to planning cycles, write acceptance criteria that engineers can actually execute against, and know when to push back on scope.
• Ability to work on-site at customer locations as required by the role.

## Nice To Have

• Experience with IoT devices and sensors.
• Digital signal processing or acoustics background.
• Geospatial analysis and GIS experience.
• Familiarity with working in multi-team engineering environments.
• Prior experience supporting DoD programs or working with U.S. Navy customers.

## What We Offer

• Unlimited PTO — Take the time you need to recharge and maintain work-life balance.
• Dedicated sick time — Your health and well-being come first.
• Comprehensive health and benefits – Medical, dental, and vision coverage to keep you and your family protected.
• 11 Paid Holidays — Enjoy time off throughout the year to celebrate and spend time with loved ones.
• Professional development — Educational opportunities and resources to help you grow your skills and advance your career.
• Collaborative environment — Work directly with leadership in our flat organizational structure, where your ideas and contributions matter.
• Mission-driven work — Contribute to projects that directly support national security and make a real-world impact.
• Growth opportunities — Join us during an exciting expansion phase where you can help shape our future.

## Additional Benefit Opportunities When You Choose Spear AI:

• 401(k) with company match.
• Onsite / Remote / Flexible work arrangements or hybrid options (position dependent).
• Relocation assistance (position dependent).
• Referral bonuses.
• Performance bonuses.
• Life insurance and disability coverage.
• Technology home office setup stipend.
• Professional certification reimbursement (position dependent).

We offer competitive compensation tailored to your experience, location, and the impact you’ll make. We’re committed to equitable pay and will share a range aligned to your level and geography during the hiring process. In accordance with state law, candidates in jurisdictions such as CA, CO, WA, NY, and others, where applicable, will be provided a good-faith salary range upon request and throughout the hiring process. This is a full-time, exempt position under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and is not eligible for overtime pay.
Compensation for this position is provided on a salaried basis and is not subject to reduction based on hours worked. At Spear AI, you’ll find more than just a job; you’ll join a mission-driven team where your work directly contributes to national security. Our flat organizational structure means your voice matters, your ideas reach leadership, and your impact is visible. As we grow, we’re committed to building robust processes and infrastructure that support both our mission and our people. We value collaboration, continuous improvement, and the expertise each team member brings to the table. If you’re looking for a place to grow professionally while working on projects that truly matter, we’d love to hear from you.