Applied Innovation Intelligence Lead

• Engage directly with Tier 1, SOF, and special mission units to uncover operational needs and emerging challenges.
• Identify and articulate core problems-distilling feedback beyond what customers "say they want" to what they truly need.
• Maintain active involvement within the commercial shooting and training community, including participation in classes, forums, and events.
• Collaborate with engineering, design, and product management teams to guide early-stage product development and innovation roadmaps.
• Provide structured intelligence on current and emerging technologies, equipment trends, and pain points across defense and commercial markets.
• Contribute to ideation sessions, product evaluations, and prototype testing.

• Quality of Problem Identification
  • Number of clearly defined, high-impact problems identified that transition into funded design or prototype efforts.
  • Measured by clarity, novelty, and downstream product adoption.
• Field Intelligence Yield:
  • Frequency and value of actionable insights gathered from Tier 1 / SOF / commercial training networks.
  • Evaluated by relevance, depth, and contribution to design direction or product pivots.

• Strong understanding of the commercial shooting and defense market, including hands-on experience in training, equipment use, and community engagement.
• Established access and relationships within Tier 1 or special mission unit circles; familiarity with their equipment, operational workflows, and procurement ecosystems. Primarily diverse end users, not just procurement contacts.
• Ability to analyze, synthesize, and clearly communicate complex operational problems to design and engineering teams without historical bias
• Demonstrated capability to differentiate between symptoms and root causes, guiding teams toward solutions that matter.
• Excellent communication, situational awareness, and discretion in handling sensitive information.

• Experience in product design, R&D, or field evaluation is highly desirable.
• Tactically fluent innovator-someone who can operate comfortably in both the field and the design lab.
• Knows the culture, the gear, and is willing to fail fast and navigate an evolving landscape quickly
• Demonstrated ability to not only collect feedback; but also interpret it, connect it, and turn it into tangible product opportunities that push the boundaries of innovation.

Government Careers