Head of Platform Engineering

Jobtailor; Maryland; On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

STScI is seeking a senior leader to oversee Platform Engineering, driving the division's strategy, maturity, and execution. You will champion cloud-first and Kubernetes-first standards, foster collaboration with capability teams, and evolve an internal developer portal with IaC and CI/CD tooling across the Institute.

You will lead roadmaps, budgets, and staffing, establish operating models, and partner with senior leadership to deliver measurable automated infrastructure and DevSecOps

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, software engineering, systems engineering, or a related technical field.

Responsibilities

• Lead the strategy, maturity, and execution of the Platform Engineering Division.

Skills

Leadership

Agile Methodologies

Cloud Native Architectures on AWS

Kubernetes

DevSecOps

CI/CD Automation

Infrastructure as Code (IaC)

Engineering Lifecycle Traceability

Stakeholder Management

Communication Skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree in computer science / software engineering / systems engineering

Tools

AWS

Kubernetes

Terraform

CI/CD Tools

SysML v2

Job description

• Provide capabilities and support for modern, efficient software development, Engineering, and Operations across STScI
• Lead the strategy, maturity, and execution of the Platform Engineering Division
• Foster embedded collaboration and knowledge sharing with capability development teams in other divisions
• Establish developer discovery and self-service resources, including an internal developer portal with common libraries, IaC, and CI/CD pipelines
• Lead Cloud-first and Kubernetes-first strategy adoption across the Institute
• Partner with the Cloud Center of Excellence and IT on frameworks, governance, and containerizing existing on-premises workloads
• Drive consistent DevSecOps practices and shared infrastructure across the Institute
• Lead modernization, automation, and Agile integration into Systems Engineering and Integration and Test disciplines
• Evolve infrastructure supporting AI integration into business processes, information systems, and operational workloads
• Balance strategic transformation with practical execution and measurable operational outcomes
• Champion organizational change management for engineering methods, toolchains, and ways of working
• Partner with Institute leadership, program and project teams, science and mission stakeholders, and engineering organizations
• Develop and manage divisional goals, roadmaps, priorities, budgets, staffing plans, and operating metrics
• Represent Platform Engineering as a senior leader across the Institute and shape policies, investment decisions, and long-range engineering strategy

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, software engineering, systems engineering, or a related technical field
• 7+ years leadership experience in software engineering, platform engineering, or a related technical discipline, including responsibility for managers and multi-team organizations
• Demonstrated experience leading large-scale organizational, engineering, or digital transformation initiatives across multiple teams or departments
• Experience establishing or scaling engineering platforms, toolchains, standards, and operating models that serve a broad internal engineering community
• Strong understanding of Agile development methodologies, modern engineering collaboration models and internal developer platforms
• Familiarity with Digital Engineering and Model-Based Systems Engineering concepts, practices, and standards such as SysML v2
• Experience with engineering lifecycle traceability, testing and verification frameworks, and integration of Agile delivery practices with structured engineering controls
• 5+ years experience with cloud-native architectures on AWS, Kubernetes-based platforms, CI/CD automation, and DevSecOps software delivery practices
• Strong people leadership skills, including coaching leaders, developing organizations, setting direction, and aligning teams through change
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to work effectively with senior leadership, technical staff, and cross-functional partners
• U.S. Citizenship or Permanent Residency is required due to ITAR constraints
• Candidates must reside in or be willing to relocate to MD, VA, DC, PA, DE, or WV
• Preferred: Experience in scientific, aerospace, research, government, or mission-driven technical environments

Core Competencies

Demonstrates expertise in leading software and platform engineering initiatives, with a strong focus on Agile methodologies, cloud-native architectures, and DevSecOps practices. Capable of driving organizational change and fostering collaboration across technical teams to achieve strategic goals.

Highest-signal resume keywords

• Leadership Experience in Software Engineering
• Agile Development Methodologies
• Cloud-Native Architectures on AWS
• DevSecOps Software Delivery Practices
• Digital Engineering and Model-Based Systems Engineering

Hard Skills

• Software Engineering
• Platform Engineering
• Agile Methodologies
• CI/CD Automation
• Kubernetes
• DevSecOps
• Engineering Lifecycle Traceability
• Testing and Verification Frameworks
• Infrastructure as Code (IaC)
• Organizational Change Management

Soft Skills

• People Leadership
• Communication Skills
• Stakeholder Management
• Collaboration
• Coaching

Industry Keywords

• Scientific Environments
• Aerospace
• Research
• Government
• Mission-Driven Technical Environments

Tools & Technologies

• Internal Developer Portal
• Cloud Center of Excellence
• Containerization Tools
• Operating Models
• Engineering Toolchains