Program Manager Jobs in Auburn, AL (NOW HIRING)

Overview
Location: Washington, DC / Auburn, Alabama / Hybrid
The Charles D. McCrary Institute is accepting applications for a Program Manager, Energy & Infrastructure. This position serves as McCrary's external-facing program lead for the DOE-funded Southeast Region Cybersecurity Collaboration Center (SERC3) - one of the nation's premier applied research and testbed environments for operational technology (OT), industrial control systems (ICS), and critical infrastructure cybersecurity.
The Program Manager is the primary face of McCrary to SERC3's key stakeholders, including DOE CESER, national laboratories, the national industry advisory board, utility operators, and technology partners. The role is accountable for ensuring McCrary delivers valuable, mission-focused products and services on time and within budget, supporting existing sponsored research programs and developing new capabilities for current and future energy and infrastructure customers.
This is a program leadership and external engagement role, not a technical operations role. The Program Manager drives strategy, partnership development, funding capture, program execution, and transition outcomes. The Program Manager, Energy & Infrastructure works alongside two peer Program Managers - for Defense & National Security and State & Local Government, respectively - in a matrixed organizational structure in which all technical staff report to the Deputy Director for Applied Research & Services/Edge Lab Director and are matrixed to each Program Manager for contract deliverables and execution within their respective portfolios. Technical direction, laboratory operations, technical vendor relationships, and execution of McCrary's Edge Lab demonstrations and cyber-physical test environments remain the responsibility of the Deputy Director for Applied Research & Services/Edge Lab Director and technical teams.
For McCrary's current sponsored research in support of DOE CESER, the role will advance three high-level priorities: faster, better AI-assisted and threat-informed OT incident response; hardening distributed energy resources and other high-consequence critical infrastructure assets; and safer evaluation and adoption of emerging OT cybersecurity technologies through tested evidence in utility-like environments.
About SERC3
SERC3 is a formal partnership with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), operating in close collaboration with EPRI and other national laboratories to deliver joint applied research, testbed activities, and operationally useful cybersecurity outcomes for America's critical infrastructure operators.
SERC3's national industry advisory board draws cybersecurity leaders from Southern Company, NextEra Energy, Berkshire Hathaway Energy, TVA, PowerSouth, Energy Southeast, EPB Chattanooga, Commonwealth LNG, and other major utilities and critical infrastructure organizations.
An emerging strategic priority for SERC3 is the development of an independent technology validation and verification (TV&V) capability - bringing together McCrary's testbed infrastructure, ORNL partnership, and trusted operator network to produce vendor-independent, hardware-in-the-loop evaluation reports that utility operators can rely on for procurement decisions. No comparable capability exists for the OT/ICS cybersecurity sector today. The Program Manager will help define, develop, and commercialize this capability as a new revenue stream, in partnership with utility operators, cybersecurity technology companies, and energy and national-security investment partners.
Formal AU Job Title: Program Director, Southeast Region Cybersecurity Collaboration Center
Special Instructions:
Required Documents:

• Resume
• Cover letter

Combine into one document and upload your cover letter and resume under the "Resume Upload" section (maximum file size: 5 MB).
Responsibilities
Customer & Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as McCrary's primary external representative for SERC3, accountable for the quality, timeliness, and mission relevance of products and services delivered to existing and future energy and infrastructure customers.
• Build and maintain relationships with DOE CESER, national laboratories, EPRI, utility operators, cybersecurity technology companies, industry advisory board members, and selected energy and national-security investment partners.
• Engage senior cybersecurity leaders from utilities and critical infrastructure operators to identify priority use cases, capability gaps, adoption barriers, and deployment opportunities.
• Support and staff the national industry advisory board; ensure advisory board feedback directly informs SERC3 priorities, research design, and transition pathways.
• Represent SERC3 at national convenings, federal engagements, technical workshops, industry forums, and media engagements as needed.

Program Delivery & Accountability

• Ensure SERC3 consistently delivers valuable, mission-focused products and services on time and within budget across all active sponsored research programs and customer engagements.
• Translate partner requirements, DOE CESER priorities, operator needs, and technology-provider capabilities into clear scopes of work, milestones, deliverables, and decision points.
• Manage program operations, partner coordination, deliverable tracking, financial reporting, and customer engagement in coordination with McCrary leadership and Auburn University stakeholders.
• Ensure research and partner activities produce practical, customer-ready outputs: test reports, implementation playbooks, hardening guidance, procurement evidence, transition plans, and executive briefings.
• Direct the work of a matrixed multidisciplinary team of researchers, engineers, students, and contractors in support of SERC3 contract deliverables and execution; technical staff report to the Deputy Director for Applied Research & Services/Edge Lab Director and are matrixed to this role for program performance.
• Foster a collaborative environment that balances technical rigor, operator relevance, and timely delivery.

Coordination with Edge Lab and Technical Teams

• Serve as the external program and partner lead for SERC3 work that draws on Edge Lab capabilities, while the Deputy Director, Applied Research & Services/Edge Lab Director retains full responsibility for technical direction, laboratory operations, demonstrations, technical vendor relationships, and cyber-physical test environments.
• Coordinate requirements, schedules, funding expectations, deliverables, and partner participation for all SERC3 work that depends on Edge Lab capabilities.
• Translate operator requirements and federal priorities into proposed use cases, validation objectives, datasets, and transition plans for execution by the Edge Lab Director and technical teams.
• Collaborate with the Edge Lab Director and McCrary leadership to keep SERC3's program portfolio aligned with Edge Lab capabilities, customer needs, and DOE CESER priorities.

Funding Capture & Partnership Development

• Develop and execute a funding capture strategy spanning DOE, national laboratories, utilities, and industry partners.
• Serve as principal investigator (PI) or co-PI on major proposals, grants, cooperative agreements, and sponsored research efforts.
• Lead proposal strategy and development to secure new funding, expand SERC3's program portfolio, and deepen strategic partnerships across federal, operator, technology, and investment communities.
• Build public-private partnerships that connect operator needs, national security priorities, applied research outcomes, and practical deployment pathways.

Transition & Operational Impact

• Help develop and bring to market an independent technology validation and verification (TV&V) capability for OT/ICS cybersecurity defense products - producing vendor-neutral, testbed-validated evidence packages that operators can use for procurement decisions and that technology companies and investors can use to demonstrate real-world efficacy.
• Guide the transition of SERC3-supported tools, frameworks, datasets, validation results, and demonstrations into commercial, open-source, federal, or utility-adopted use.
• Develop evidence packages that help operators, funders, and partners make better decisions about emerging cybersecurity tools and defenses.
• Provide expert advice on cybersecurity policies, best practices, and defensive priorities for the energy, water, wastewater, and broader critical infrastructure sectors.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Cybersecurity, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or a related field, plus 10 years of relevant experience in operational technology, industrial control systems, critical infrastructure, power systems, cybersecurity, applied research, or related technical program leadership.

Or

• Master's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Cybersecurity, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or a related field, plus 8 years of relevant experience in operational technology, industrial control systems, critical infrastructure, power systems, cybersecurity, applied research, or related technical program leadership.

Candidates must demonstrate:

• Proven experience leading technical, multidisciplinary, or multi-institution programs.
• Experience managing large-scale, complex research, operational, or technology deployment projects.
• Knowledge of cybersecurity principles and practices applied to complex, non-routine OT security problems.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with federal agencies, national laboratories, utilities, technology providers, academic researchers, and industry partners.
• Strong communication, executive briefing, stakeholder management, and presentation skills.
• Ability to recognize, analyze, and solve complex technical and organizational problems.

Preferred Qualifications

• Senior experience in OT/ICS cybersecurity, power systems cybersecurity, energy systems, cyber-physical systems, or critical infrastructure security.
• Experience working with DOE CESER, national laboratories, CISA, DHS, DoD, FEMA, utilities, or other critical infrastructure stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to lead federal proposal capture, sponsored research portfolios, cooperative agreements, or public-private partnerships.
• Familiarity with AI-enabled cybersecurity, threat-informed defense, incident response, cyber ranges, digital twins, testbeds, or technology validation environments.
• Experience translating research into operational guidance, tested tools, deployment playbooks, procurement support, or operator-adopted solutions.
• Experience working with utility operators, cybersecurity technology providers, national laboratories, or energy and national-security investment communities.
• Experience in the energy, water, or wastewater sectors.
• Demonstrated success securing external funding and building durable public-private partnerships.

Contract Type
Limited Term
Why Work at Auburn?

• Life-Changing Impact: Our work changes lives through research, instruction, and outreach, making a lasting impact on our students, our communities, and the world.
• Culture of Excellence:We are committed to leveraging our strengths, resources, collaboration, and innovation as a top employer in higher education.
• We're Here for You:Auburn offers generous benefits, educational opportunities, and a culture of support and work/life balance.
• Sweet Home Alabama:The Auburn/Opelika area offers southern charm, vibrant downtown scenes, top-ranked schools, and easy access to Atlanta, Birmingham, and the Gulf of Mexico beaches.
• A Place for Everyone: Auburn is committed to fostering an environment where all faculty, staff, and students are welcomed, valued, respected, and engaged.
• Ready to lead and shape the future of higher education? Apply today! War Eagle!

Equal Opportunity Compliance Statement
It is our policy to provide equal employment and education opportunities for all individuals without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, age, disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, or any other classification protected by applicable law. Please visit the Office of Equal Opportunity Compliance's website to learn more.