• Chief People Officer

    JHNA (Patuxent River, MD)


    Patuxent River, MD, USA | Full Time

    Overview:

    JHNA is seeking a seasoned Chief People Officer (CPO) to join our leadership team. This role is responsible for developing and executing an integrated people strategy that supports JHNA's mission-focused culture, growth objectives, and operational excellence across the DoD contracting environment.

    Responsibilities:

    Talent Management & Organizational Effectiveness

     

    + Design, implement, and continuously evolve enterprise performance management framework, including performance review cycles, evaluation criteria, leadership calibration, and feedback mechanisms.

    + Develop and oversee structured bonus and incentive compensation programs aligned to individual performance, company profitability, contract performance, and strategic growth objectives.

    + Partner with executive leadership and Finance to ensure incentive plans are competitive, equitable, fiscally responsible, and aligned with government contracting requirements.

    + Establish formal career pathing, progression frameworks, and competency models across technical, functional, and leadership roles.

    + Lead the development of career tracking and professional development programs that support employee growth, retention, and succession planning.

    + Create scalable leadership development and mentoring programs to strengthen management capability and future executive readiness.

    + Drive initiatives that enhance employee engagement, performance accountability, and long-term retention.

     

    Compliance, Governance & Risk

     

    + Work with HR to ensure HR policies, programs, and practices comply with federal labor laws, government contracting requirements, and internal governance standards.

    + Provide oversight of people-related risk management, workforce compliance, and ethical standards.

    + Support audits, due diligence activities, and internal controls related to human capital.

    Required Qualifications:

    + Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university (Master's degree preferred).

    + 10+ years of progressive experience in workforce planning, human capital strategy, talent management, or management consulting.

    + Experience supporting or operating within federal government, defense, intelligence, or professional services environments.

    + Experience leading workforce strategy during periods of rapid growth, transformation, or organizational change.

    + Strong knowledge of talent deployment models, workforce optimization, and organizational design.

    + Demonstrated experience translating enterprise workforce strategies into operationally executable solutions.

    + Proven ability to partner with senior leaders and influence decision-making at the executive level.

    + Strong analytical skills with experience leveraging workforce data to drive business outcomes.