Data Driven Operations Manager

Leidos; Belleville (IL); Remote; USD 100,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company is seeking a Data Driven Operations Manager to lead a high-performing team in delivering scalable data capabilities. This role requires strong leadership and technical skills in data platforms, with a focus on automation and AI-driven solutions. Candidates should be willing to travel for on-site support as needed. The ideal candidate has experience in streaming data architectures and cloud-native technologies, and will guide teams through technical delivery while promoting a strong engineering culture.

Qualifications

• Experience managing technical teams in data engineering or platform operations.
• Hands-on knowledge of Confluent Kafka and stream processing.
• Ability to obtain interim Secret DoD Security clearance.

Responsibilities

• Manage team capacity, hiring, and workload prioritization.
• Design and implement secure, scalable data solutions.
• Lead technical design and implementation for AI and ML solutions.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Data Governance

DevSecOps

AI/ML

Education

Security+ certification

Tools

Confluent Kafka

Elastic Stack

AWS

OpenShift

Kubernetes

Job description

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Description

The Digital Modernization sector at Leidos has an opening for an experienced Data-Driven Operations Functional Manager to lead a high-performing team focused on delivering scalable, real-time, and resilient data capabilities across the DISN enterprise. This is a dual-role position that requires both strong people leadership and technical acumen in building and maintaining modern data platforms.

This contract includes the Operations, Sustainment, Maintenance, Repair and Defense of the Defense Information System Network (DISN) within the DOD Information Network (DODIN) in support of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA). The role is primarily remote, but candidates should be willing to travel to Scott AFB, IL or Ft. Meade, MD for on-site support or leadership as needed. A Secret clearance is required upon employment start, and within 14 days, the employee must obtain their Security+ certification.

The ideal candidate has deep knowledge in streaming data architectures, cloud-native technologies, and platform engineering. They will guide teams through technical delivery, develop talent, and promote a strong engineering culture. Responsibilities include designing, developing, and implementing secure, scalable data solutions, with experience in DISN environments preferred, especially in Systems Engineering, Solution Architecture, Network Engineering, or Software Development. Emphasis is on automation, AI, ML-driven data processing, and data governance to support the GMS Team for the GSM-O II contract.

The candidate will work across multiple GMS projects, leading technical design and implementation for AI and ML solutions, integrating data sources into Confluent (Kafka) and Elastic platforms, and enforcing CI/CD and data governance practices. As a key team member in a fast-paced Agile environment, they will architect and develop data integration solutions, influence technology strategy, and work with cutting-edge tools in a collaborative environment. Our culture values technical excellence, ownership, and continuous improvement.

Primary Responsibilities

• Manage team capacity, hiring, and workload prioritization.
• Lead, mentor, and develop engineers and analysts focused on data operations, platform reliability, and observability.
• Serve as the primary functional manager for team performance, growth, and technical direction.
• Oversee scalable data platform development using Confluent Kafka, Elastic Stack, AWS, and OpenShift.
• Drive best practices in DevSecOps, CI/CD, monitoring, and incident management.
• Collaborate with product owners, architects, and leaders to ensure strategic alignment.
• Ensure operational excellence through proactive monitoring, alerting, and automation.
• Support enterprise initiatives in data integration, analytics, and observability.
• Lead the design and implementation of data integration architectures supporting secure data exchange within DISN and DoD environments.
• Develop middleware, APIs, and data pipelines for interoperability.
• Apply expertise in network security, protocols, and DISN architectures to ensure compliance with cybersecurity policies.
• Work with cross-functional teams to deliver high-performance integration solutions.
• Leverage AI/ML techniques for data processing, anomaly detection, and automation.
• Enforce data governance, ensuring data accuracy, security, and compliance.
• Troubleshoot and optimize data flows, network configurations, and system performance.
• Stay updated on DISN, DoD, and industry best practices for data and AI/ML applications.

Basic Qualifications

• Leadership experience managing technical teams, preferably in data engineering, DevOps, or platform operations.
• Hands-on knowledge of Confluent Kafka, schema management, and stream processing.
• Experience with Elastic Stack for logging and observability.
• Experience in enterprise data lakes, ETL pipelines, and distributed architectures.
• Proficiency with relevant AWS services (EC2, S3, Kinesis, Lambda, IAM, CloudWatch).
• Experience with OpenShift or Kubernetes environments.
• Knowledge of infrastructure as code, CI/CD pipelines, and container orchestration.
• Excellent communication skills for aligning solutions with business goals.
• Experience managing remote, dispersed teams.
• Understanding of DoD compliance frameworks like DISA STIGs and RMF.
• Background in data governance, metadata, and data quality frameworks.
• Ability to develop DoD requirements, traceability, and detailed plans.
• Experience in software systems engineering documentation.
• Understanding of DoD network infrastructure, security, and data exchange protocols.
• Proficiency in data integration technologies, APIs, message brokers, middleware.
• Experience with network security, encryption, and access controls in classified environments.
• Background in big data analytics or cybersecurity solutions within DISN.
• Experience with observability platforms, incident response, or real-time analytics.
• Experience implementing AI/ML-driven data processing, including NLP, anomaly detection, or predictive modeling.
• Ability to obtain interim Secret DoD Security clearance before start.
• Ability to obtain Security+ certification within 14 days of start.

Preferred Qualifications

• Deep understanding of DISN networks with a background in Systems Engineering, Solution Architecture, Network Engineering, or Software Development.
• Experience developing and deploying software in a DoD environment, meeting security standards (e.g., STIGs).
• Experience with Kafka, Elastic, Spark, NiFi.
• Familiarity with AWS GovCloud and cloud security policies.
• Experience in software detailed designs, especially in ksql or kstreams.
• Experience with Agile methodologies and tools like JIRA, Confluence.
• Proficiency in Python, Java, SQL.
• Experience with version control like Git and Bitbucket.
• Knowledge of Software Engineering principles, theories, and concepts.