Associate Director, Cybersecurity Engineer

Two Six Technologies; Laurel (MD); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

Life and disability insurance

Retirement benefits

Paid leave and professional education

Job summary

Two Six Technologies is seeking an Associate Director, Cybersecurity Engineer to provide hands-on technical leadership for a team researching and evaluating cybersecurity hardware and software solutions in support of defensive cyber operations. You will guide prototype assessments, validate operational utility, and translate customer needs into actionable technical plans.

You will lead technical teams, engage in analysis, testing, and customer collaboration, and oversee vulnerability research

Qualifications

• Ten+ years of professional experience in incident response, vulnerability research, network engineering, or software development or equivalent education.
• Ability to manage technical staff or leads, set priorities, and mentor engineers.
• Experience supporting military or government defensive cyber missions.
• Experience researching, evaluating, or validating cybersecurity hardware or software solutions.
• Experience planning and conducting technical testing of systems, devices, or engineering prototypes.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills for diverse stakeholders.
• Active Top Secret clearance with SCI eligibility or access (TS/SCI).

Responsibilities

• Manage and mentor technical leads, each supervising one to two staff or senior personnel.
• Participate in hiring, performance management, and career development as the team grows.
• Set technical priorities and plans for research, evaluation, and validation of hardware and software solutions.
• Apply defensive cyber operations experience to assess mission needs and constraints.
• Plan and oversee testing of engineering prototypes, including test procedures and analysis.
• Conduct hands-on analysis and testing when needed, guiding teams through complex problems.
• Communicate findings, risks, and recommendations to customers, leadership, and engineering teams.
• Coordinate with customers and internal stakeholders to shape requirements and align work to mission needs.
• Support vulnerability research when customer requirements call for it.
• Establish repeatable technical processes and documentation for evaluations and test activities.

Skills

Team leadership

Defensive cyber operations

Threat analysis

Technical mentorship

Stakeholder communication

TS/SCI clearance

Education

10+ years related experience or equivalent education

Tools

Zeek

Snort/Suricata

Splunk

Job description

Associate Director, Cybersecurity Engineer

Laurel, Maryland

At Two Six Technologies, we build, deploy, and implement innovative products that solve the world’s most complex challenges today. Through unrivaled collaboration and unwavering trust, we push the boundaries of what’s possible to empower our team and support our customers in building a safer global future.

As an Associate Director, Cybersecurity Engineer, you will provide hands‑on technical leadership for a team researching and evaluating hardware and software solutions in support of defensive cyber operations. Drawing from military or government cyber mission experience, you will lead the assessment of engineering prototypes, validate their operational utility, and translate customer needs into practical technical plans. Solutions may include specialized network sensors, hardware networking devices such as FPGA-based firewalls, and software written in languages such as Rust or Python. You will direct technical teams while remaining engaged in technical analysis, testing, and customer collaboration. Vulnerability research may be part of the work when customer requirements call for it.

This is an onsite role based in the Two Six Technologies Laurel, Maryland office, with approximately 20% travel, including customer meetings in Arlington and Herndon as‑needed.

Responsibilities:

• Manage and mentor technical leads, each managing one to two staff or senior personnel
• As the team grows, participate in hiring, performance management, and career development for team members
• Set technical priorities and plans for research, evaluation, and validation of hardware and software solutions
• Apply defensive cyber operations experience to assess mission needs, operational constraints, and candidate solutions
• Plan and oversee testing of engineering prototypes, including test procedures, measures of effectiveness, and analysis of results
• Conduct hands‑on technical analysis and testing when needed, and guide teams through complex technical problems
• Communicate technical findings, risks, and recommendations to customers, leadership, and engineering teams
• Coordinate with customers and internal stakeholders to shape requirements and align work to mission needs
• Support vulnerability research when customer requirements call for it
• Establish repeatable technical processes and documentation for evaluations and test activities

Qualifications:

• 10+ years of relevant professional experience in one or more related areas, such as incident response, vulnerability research, network engineering, or software development OR comparable experience and education will be considered.
• Demonstrated ability to manage technical staff or leads, set priorities, and mentor senior engineers
• Experience supporting military or government defensive cyber missions
• Experience researching, evaluating, or validating cybersecurity hardware or software solutions
• Experience planning and conducting technical testing of systems, devices, or engineering prototypes
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present findings and recommendations to technical and non‑technical stakeholders
• Active Top Secret clearance with SCI eligibility or access (TS/SCI)

Preferred Skills:

• Experience with cyber operations platforms, defensive tools, network technologies, or security monitoring systems such as Zeek, Snort/Suricata, Splunk, etc
• Experience evaluating specialized network sensors, hardware networking devices such as FPGA-based firewalls, or software written in Rust or Python
• Experience supporting engineering research and development or prototype transition into operational use
• Familiarity with vulnerability assessment or research methods
• Experience leading the delivery of successful contracts to military or government customers

Security Clearance Requirements:

• Active Top Secret clearance with SCI eligibility or access (TS/SCI)

#LI-MS1

Two Six Technologies is committed to providing competitive and comprehensive compensation packages that reflect the value we place on our employees and their contributions. We believe in rewarding skills, experience, and performance. Our offerings include but are not limited to, medical, dental, and vision insurance, life and disability insurance, retirement benefits, paid leave, tuition assistance and professional development.

The projected salary range listed for this position is annualized. This is a general guideline and not a guarantee of salary. Salary is one component of our total compensation package and the specific salary offered is determined by various factors, including, but not limited to education, experience, knowledge, skills, geographic location, as well as contract specific affordability and organizational requirements.

Two Six Technologies is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices based on race (including traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture, hair type and protective hair styles (e.g., braids, twists, locs and twists)), color, religion, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions and lactation), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age (40 and over), marital status, disability, genetic information, and protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. For more information review the Two Six Technologies Equal Employment Opportunity and Affidavit ... and the EEO Poster.

If you are an individual with a disability and would like to request reasonable workplace accommodation for any part of our employment process, please send an email to [e-mail] . Information provided will be kept confidential and used only to the extent required to provide needed reasonable accommodations.

Additionally, please be advised that this business uses E-Verify in its hiring practices.

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey.Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiringprocess or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in aconfidential file.

As set forth in Two Six Technologies’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection.As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measurethe effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categoriesis as follows:

A \"disabled veteran\" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A \"recently separated veteran\" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An \"active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran\" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An \"Armed forces service medal veteran\" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.