Instructor & Customer Success Manager (UAV Training)

About the role

Shield AI, a venture-backed defense-tech company, is hiring an Instructor & Customer Success Manager in Lviv. The role leads a team that develops and delivers classroom, simulator, flight, maintenance and scenario-based training for Shield AI products, ensuring customers in Ukraine can safely operate, maintain and use the technology. It is a hands-on leadership position requiring close collaboration with customers, engineering, product, flight operations and business development.

Key responsibilities

• Lead, develop and mentor a team of customer training professionals and UAV instructors, setting priorities, performance expectations, staffing plans and development pathways.
• Oversee classroom, simulator, flight, maintenance and scenario-based training, and ensure students learn to safely operate, maintain, deploy and use Shield AI systems.
• Maintain high instructional standards through qualification, observation, coaching, certification and continuous evaluation.
• Develop and standardize curricula, lesson plans, simulator scenarios, assessments and documentation, and keep records and metrics current.
• Coordinate training schedules, aircraft, simulators, facilities, airspace and personnel, and adapt training to students' technical abilities and backgrounds.
• Work with customers and partner forces on training requirements, readiness and outcomes, and support domestic and international training events, including extended deployments.
• Deliver instruction and hands-on support when needed, and partner with engineering, product and flight-operations teams on feedback, new-product validation and product demonstrations.
• Monitor training metrics, improve safety and consistency, and ensure compliance with company policies, safety, security and aviation regulations.

Required profile

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent education and experience.
• Five or more years in technical, aviation, military or UAS training, and two or more years leading instructors or training teams.
• Demonstrated experience delivering classroom, simulator, flight, maintenance or scenario-based instruction.
• Working knowledge of UAS operations, flight and mission planning, aviation safety and training operations.
• Willingness to travel internationally up to 50%, including for extended periods.
• Fluent in Ukrainian; fluent English is implied by the role.
• Preferred: graduate degree, significant UAS experience as pilot-in-command or instructor, more than 1,000 hours as pilot-in-command, former Ukrainian military service, and experience with international customers.