Marketing Manager, Founding Marketing

About Aventra

Aventra builds long-range, low-cost strike and ISR systems for the US and its allies: stratospheric platforms, precision glide vehicles, and ultra long range attack drones. Mass at range, at a price that changes the math. We're venture-backed, based in Herndon, Virginia, and flying hardware today.

We are a mission-driven team moving at startup speed with defense-grade accountability. Our programs span contracted deliveries, government demonstrations, and ongoing system development, and our pace reflects the urgency of the problems we’re solving.

We're hiring our founding marketing hire — someone who can own the full marketing function end to end from day one and grow into a leadership role as the team scales. You'll work directly with the founders and executive team, shape how Aventra shows up publicly in a fast-moving defense-tech and national security landscape, and build the systems and team needed to support a company scaling through Series B and beyond.

Strong performance in this role comes with a clear path to Head of Marketing, including hiring and managing a team.

• Aventra's social media presence and brand voice across all platforms
• Content generation, from concept through production, in partnership with outside creative resources
• Inbound and outbound marketing campaigns, including planning, execution, and performance tracking
• A social and content calendar aligned to product milestones, funding announcements, and industry events
• Sourcing, hiring, and managing photography and video vendors/contractors
• Product collateral development (data sheets, one-pagers, web content, trade show materials) in partnership with engineering and product
• Client and partner-facing marketing support at conferences, demos, and industry events
• Building the marketing function's foundational systems (CRM/marketing automation, brand guidelines, content workflows) as the team scales

• 3-6+ years of marketing experience, with a track record of owning a marketing function or major workstream independently
• Strong written and visual eye; able to brief and manage outside creative vendors effectively
• Experience running both inbound (content, SEO, campaigns) and outbound (targeted outreach, event marketing, ABM-style campaigns) motions
• Comfortable operating with minimal structure and building process rather than inheriting it
• Client-facing and comfortable representing the company at industry events and in front of customers/partners

• Prior experience at a venture-backed startup, ideally at or near the founding marketing hire stage
• Prior exposure to defense, aerospace, government, or dual-use tech markets is a strong plus
• Willing to be based in Herndon, VA and travel roughly 20% of the time

$120,000 - $165,000 a year

• Competitive salary commensurate with experience
• Generous health coverage for employee and family, premium fully covered
• 4% 401k match
• PTO and Sick Leave

• Travel up to 25% to customer sites, and field test locations
• Ability to work in austere field conditions and military operational environments
• Flexibility to support urgent operational requirements and schedule changes

• In-person role based in Herndon, VA
• Collaborative environment supporting critical national security missions
• Direct support to warfighter capabilities and mission success

This is a ground-floor opportunity to build a marketing function at a Series A defense-tech company backed by a tier-1 venture syndicate, led by a multi-time defense founding team, with direct access to the founders and a clear growth path into a leadership role as the company and team scale. Aventra Defense Systems, Inc is a venture-backed startup building scalable, precision-guided capabilities for the next generation of combat.

We are assembling a team of engineers and operators who believe in speed, simplicity, and delivering real capability to the field—not just PowerPoint slides.