Cleared Senior Forward Deployed Engineer

Fortreum; Fort Meade (MD); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401K with 4% match

Training stipends

Disability & Life insurance

Job summary

Fortreum, a trusted leader in cloud and cybersecurity services, seeks a Forward Deployed Engineer to embed with federal customers and deploy the Kovr AI Platform across cloud, hybrid, and on-prem environments, including IL2-IL6 workloads.

The role focuses on integrating with DevSecOps toolchains, automating evidence collection, RMF/ATO workflows, and translating customer needs into product requirements, while collaborating with Kovr's engineering teams.

Qualifications

• Active Top Secret/SCI clearance with Full Scope Polygraph.
• 5+ years in software engineering, systems engineering, or DevOps in enterprise or federal IT.
• Hands-on experience deploying and integrating software across cloud platforms (AWS GovCloud, Azure Government, GCP) and hybrid/on-prem environments.
• Strong proficiency with DevSecOps pipelines, CI/CD workflows, and containerized deployments (Kubernetes, Helm, Terraform, ArgoCD).
• Programming/scripting in Python, Go, or Bash for integrations/automation.
• Experience with API development and integration patterns across enterprise systems.
• Experience deploying or operating software in classified/air-gapped environments supporting DoD IL2-IL6.
• Familiarity with NIST 800-53, FedRAMP, RMF, FISMA, CMMC, ATO processes, SSPs, and continuous monitoring.
• Strong troubleshooting and ability to work with customer engineering teams.
• Excellent communication, bridging customers with product/engineering teams.
• Preferred: LLM integration, RAG architectures, and enterprise AI/ML deployment.

Responsibilities

• Deploy, configure, and operationalize the Kovr AI Platform within customer environments (cloud, hybrid, on-premises) supporting IL2-IL6.
• Build and maintain integrations between the platform and customers’ DevSecOps toolchains, CI/CD pipelines, and compliance workflows.
• Develop automation for evidence collection, continuous monitoring, and RMF/ATO workflows, including SSP generation and control mapping.
• Write and maintain code, scripts, and infrastructure-as-code (Terraform, Helm) to provision platform components and integrations.
• Customize and extend platform workflows and data pipelines to meet customer compliance (NIST 800-53, FedRAMP, RMF, CMMC).
• Troubleshoot and resolve complex technical issues across deployment, integration, data ingestion, and performance; often on-site or in classified environments.
• Serve as a bridge between customers and Kovr’s engineering team, translating deployment needs into product requirements.
• Partner with DevOps to ensure secure, reliable operations of deployments, including monitoring and incident response.
• Lead technical onboarding for customer engineering teams to drive adoption and self-sufficiency.
• Produce technical docs, runbooks, and deployment guides for repeatable, scalable implementations.

Skills

Security clearance (Top Secret/SCI)

Software engineering

DevOps

Cloud platforms

Kubernetes

Terraform

Python/Go scripting

APIs/integration

RMF/NIST/FedRAMP knowledge

Communication

Tools

Kubernetes

Helm

Terraform

ArgoCD

CI/CD pipelines

Job description

Fortreum is a trusted leader in cloud and cybersecurity services, ranked among the Top 5 FedRAMP Third Party Assessment Organizations (3PAO). With the addition of Kovr.AI, we have expanded our capabilities to include advanced cyber risk quantification and analytics, enabling organizations to better understand, measure, and communicate risk. Together, we deliver independent, third-party, vendor-agnostic regulatory assessment and advisory services, alongside advanced cybersecurity offensive and compliance technical solutions. Our comprehensive service portfolio spans regulatory compliance frameworks including FedRAMP, CMMC, FISMA, SOC, PCI, ISO, and HIPAA.

Working with Fortune 500 companies and leading cloud service providers, we’ve built our reputation on service-delivery excellence and an unwavering commitment to client success. Our continued rapid growth creates exceptional opportunities for driven professionals to make their mark in the cybersecurity industry—guided by our core values: quality above all, a customer-driven mindset, autonomy, and personal accountability.

The Opportunity

On our team, you will have the opportunity to work with industry-leading experts who’ve supported the world’s most security-conscious organizations. As a Forward Deployed Engineer, you will embed with enterprise and federal customers to deploy, integrate, and operationalize the Kovr AI Platform within their environments—building integrations with their DevSecOps toolchains, automating evidence collection and continuous monitoring, and configuring compliance workflows that accelerate Authority to Operate (ATO). You will serve as the hands‑on technical bridge between our customers and Kovr’s engineering team, solving complex deployment challenges across cloud, hybrid, and classified National Security and Intelligence Community (IC) environments.

Key Responsibilities

• Deploy, configure, and operationalize the Kovr AI Platform within customer environments, including cloud, hybrid, and on‑premises deployments supporting IL2-IL6 requirements

• Build and maintain integrations between the platform and customers’ existing DevSecOps toolchains, CI/CD pipelines, and compliance workflows

• Develop automation for evidence collection, continuous monitoring, and RMF authorization processes, including SSP generation, control mapping, and POA&M workflows

• Write and maintain code, scripts, and infrastructure‑as‑code (e.g., Terraform, Helm) to provision and configure platform components and customer integrations

• Customize and extend platform workflows and data pipelines to meet each customer’s compliance framework requirements (NIST 800‑53, FedRAMP, CMMC, RMF)

• Troubleshoot and resolve complex technical issues across deployment, integration, data ingestion, and performance, often on‑site or within classified environments

• Serve as the hands‑on technical bridge between customers and Kovr’s engineering team, translating real‑world deployment needs into product requirements and feature requests

• Partner with the DevOps team to ensure secure, reliable, and compliant operation of customer deployments, including monitoring, logging, and incident response

• Lead technical onboarding and enablement for customer engineering teams to drive successful adoption and self‑sufficiency

• Produce technical documentation, runbooks, and deployment guides that support repeatable, scalable implementations

Basic Qualifications

• Active Top Secret/SCI security clearance with Full Scope Polygraph

• 5+ years of software engineering, systems engineering, or DevOps experience in enterprise or federal IT environments

• Hands‑on experience deploying and integrating software across cloud platforms (AWS GovCloud, Azure Government, GCP) and hybrid or on‑premises environments

• Strong proficiency with DevSecOps pipelines, CI/CD workflows, and containerized deployments (Kubernetes, Helm, Terraform, ArgoCD)

• Proficiency in one or more programming or scripting languages (e.g., Python, Go, Bash) for building integrations and automation

• Experience with API development and integration patterns across enterprise systems

• Experience deploying or operating software in classified or air‑gapped environments supporting DoD Impact Levels (IL2-IL6)

• Working knowledge of compliance frameworks such as NIST 800‑53, FedRAMP, RMF, FISMA, and CMMC, including ATO processes, SSP development, and continuous monitoring

• Strong troubleshooting and problem‑solving skills, with the ability to work directly with customer engineering teams

• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to serve as a technical bridge between customers and product and engineering teams

• Familiarity with LLM integration, prompt engineering, and RAG architectures, or other enterprise AI/ML implementation (preferred)

• Cloud certification such as AWS Solutions Architect, AWS DevOps Engineer, or Azure/GCP equivalents (preferred)

• Security certification such as CISSP, CISM, CISA, or Security+ (preferred)

Posted Salary Range

$180,000 - $260,000 annual salary

What Fortreum Offers

We offer a competitive compensation package, where you will be rewarded based on your performance/outcomes and recognized for the value you bring to our business. Our benefits package includes medical insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, 401K plan with a 4% match, company paid short‑term disability, company paid long‑term disability, company paid AD&D and life insurance, flex time off, annual bonuses, training stipends, certification reimbursements, access to over 30,000 free online training courses, personal cell phone allowance, new hire and annual home office stipend, spot awards and eleven paid holidays.

An Affi­rmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer

Fortreum is an affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability. If you’d like to view a copy of the company’s affirmative action plan or policy statement, please email [e-mail]. If you have a disability and you believe you need a reasonable accommodation in order to search for a job opening or to submit an online application, please e‑mail [e-mail] or call 703-594-1460. This email and phone number is created exclusively to assist disabled job seekers whose disability prevents them from being able to apply online. Only messages left for this purpose will be returned. Messages left for other purposes, such as following up on an application or technical issues not related to a disability, will not receive a response.

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire.