Capabilities Director

There was a time when all of America believed that the future of the physical world could be radically different. The engineers of the mid-1900s put a man on the moon in eight years, designed and built planes and submarines from scratch in under three, and conceived of building things we wouldn’t even be able to dream up today.

Today, the last of the engineers who imagined and built these systems are retiring. As they go, we lose not only the engineering knowledge gained from their decades of imagination and trial-and-error, but also the spirit that made that imagination possible.

Amca is working day-in and day-out to restore America’s ability to engineer anything that our critical systems depend on, and reinvigorate the cycle of creation that allows imagination to shape physical reality. We rapidly develop and manufacture new critical components and subsystems required to build and sustain the planes, military vehicles, and core infrastructure America needs. By restoring the capability of our antiquated supply chains, we increase the country’s capacity to imagine and realize new systems, and make a physical world that looks very different from today.

Summary: Our Capabilities Director is a high-horsepower, intellectually curious team member who sits at the center of Amca’s acquisition and growth strategy – supplying rigorous commercial diligence on acquisitions, researching companies and capabilities Amca should buy or build, and supporting post-close value creation. This role is designed for someone who can move fluidly between deal analysis, market research, and operational execution, and who thrives in environments where the work is broad, the stakes are high, and no two weeks look the same. Over time, this individual will have the opportunity to take on special projects that touch every part of the Amca platform.

ABOUT THE TEAM

This role is part of Amca’s Corporate Development team and reports directly to Matt Soulas (CFO), with frequent interaction with the executive team, engineering and operations leadership, and general managers across Amca’s growing portfolio. This role is an excellent fit for someone who is analytically sharp, relentlessly curious, and excited to work on hard problems across M&A, strategy, and commercial execution. The successful candidate will be both a skilled analyst and a capable operator – equally comfortable building a market sizing model, conducting program diligence on a target’s customer relationships, and rolling up their sleeves to support a newly acquired business.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• You will supply commercial diligence on Amca’s acquisitions – sizing addressable markets, assessing market dynamics and competitive positioning, conducting program-level diligence on customer relationships and contract structures, and helping the deal team develop a grounded view of a target’s commercial trajectory
• You will research companies and capabilities that Amca should acquire or build – identifying targets that fill strategic gaps in Amca’s portfolio, developing buy vs. build analyses, and synthesizing findings into clear investment theses that inform Amca’s capital deployment priorities
• You will support post-close execution – helping newly acquired businesses identify and capture commercial value creation opportunities, tracking performance against acquisition theses, and providing analytical and operational support during the integration period
• You will take on special projects that span the full breadth of the Amca platform – from strategic planning and competitive benchmarking to operational analysis and new market entry assessments – bringing rigorous thinking and a bias toward action to whatever the business needs most
• You will develop deep expertise in the aerospace and defense supply chain – building fluency in part families, manufacturing processes, customer structures, and program economics that sharpens Amca’s edge in evaluating and integrating acquisitions
• You will work closely with engineering, operations, and general managers to ground commercial analyses in operational reality and ensure recommendations are actionable
• You will communicate findings clearly and concisely to senior leadership – producing crisp written analyses, market assessments, and investment memos that drive conviction and support fast decision-making

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• 3–6 years of work experience with demonstrated success in a high-pressure, analytically rigorous role – investment banking, private equity, management consulting, corporate development, or strategic finance
• Exceptional analytical and research skills – you can size a market, assess competitive dynamics, and build a business case from first principles with limited data and limited hand-holding
• Strong commercial instincts – you understand what drives customer relationships, contract structures, and revenue quality in industrial and aerospace businesses
• Ability to move fluidly between deal work and operational support – you are as comfortable in a diligence process as you are helping a general manager think through a commercial problem post-close
• Combination ability to execute on a tactical level as well as develop strategy to solve complex, cross-functional problems. You produce high-quality work product quickly and without sacrificing rigor
• Exceptional written and oral communication skills – clear, concise, and compelling. You drive conviction through grounded arguments and can distill complex analyses into executive-ready outputs
• High ownership with the ability to manage multiple workstreams in parallel at a rapid pace without dropping balls
• Genuine intellectual curiosity and enthusiasm for learning – you get excited about understanding how things are made, how markets work, and how businesses create value
• Comfortable working in a fast-moving, ambiguous environment and excited by a large breadth of problems
• Humble attitude, relentless work ethic, and passion for solving hard problems

Annual Salary Range

$200,000—$300,000 USD

This position requires use of information which is subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). All applicants must be U.S. persons within the meaning of ITAR. ITAR defines a US person as: any individual who is granted U.S. citizenship; or. any individual who is granted U.S. permanent residence ("Green Card" holder); or. any individual who is granted status as a "protected person" under 8 U.S.C 1324b(a)(3).

The Advanced Manufacturing Company of America prohibits discrimination or harassment based on the following categories: race, color, religion, religious creed (including religious dress and grooming practices), national origin, ancestry, citizenship, physical or mental disability, medical condition (including cancer and genetic characteristics), genetic information, marital status, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), gender, gender identity, gender expression, age (40 years and over), sexual orientation, veteran and/or military status, protected medical leaves (requesting or approved for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act or the California Family Rights Act), domestic violence victim status, political affiliation, and any other status protected by state or federal law.