Mid Exercise Planner - Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC)

Via Logic LLC; Arlington (VA); On-site; USD 66,000 - 119,000; Full time

Job summary

Leidos is seeking a Mid Exercise Planner to support JCDC activities within the National Cyber Exercise Program. This role requires TS/SCI clearance and prior experience with HSEEP exercise design and evaluation to coordinate with CISA and JCDC stakeholders.

Responsibilities include planning meetings, scenario development, documentation, and end-to-end exercise execution across the region, working with cross-domain teams to ensure aligned cyber threat guidance and exercise outcomes.

Qualifications

• Active TS/SCI clearance.
• Ability to obtain DHS Suitability / CISA EOD.
• 5+ years experience in cybersecurity operations, threat analysis, incident response, vulnerability management, risk management, or exercise planning.
• Understanding of cyber incident response lifecycle (detection to post-incident improvement).
• Familiarity with threat intelligence, indicators of compromise, malware reporting, and adversary TTPs.
• Experience coordinating with diverse stakeholders across government and private sectors.
• Ability to analyze complex cyber scenarios and identify gaps.
• HSEEP exercise design, development, conduct, and evaluation experience.
• FEMA HSEEP Certification or ability to achieve within 30 days.
• Strong writing skills for polished exercise materials and post-exercise products.
• Time management and milestone achievement capabilities.

Responsibilities

• Support the Senior Exercise Planner - JCDC.
• Coordinate between JCDC members and CISA exercise support teams.
• Participate in JCDC meetings to understand threat analysis and guidance for exercises.
• Guide cyber policy review and development, identifying trends for training and exercises.
• Review and refine exercise materials to align with JCDC work and response principles.
• Report findings from exercises to JCDC and CISA.
• Support incorporation of JCDC elements into CISA exercises.
• Coordinate regularly with exercise support team and stakeholders.
• Participate in planning meetings and develop supporting documentation.
• Develop core exercise artifacts (CONOPS, EXPLAN, SITMAN, MSEL, COSIN, evaluation forms).
• Support end-to-end exercise execution and post-exercise reporting.
• Communicate across teams and participate in regional exercises.

Skills

Cyber operations

Threat analysis

Incident response

Vulnerability management

Cyber risk management

Exercise planning

Stakeholder coordination

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher

FEMA Master Exercise Practitioner (MEP)

Job description

Mid Exercise Planner - Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC) (TS/SCI)

Leidos is seeking a Mid Exercise Planner - Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC) to support aspects of HSEEP exercise design, development, conduct, and evaluation for CISA’s National Cyber Exercise Program (NCEP) and engage with CISA’s Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC). The JCDC unites cyber defenders from worldwide organizations to a team of cross-industry organizations that proactively gather, analyze, and share actionable cyber risk information. The JCDC brings together cyber defense capabilities from government, industry and international organizations in an effort to reduce cyber risks. This role supports the Regional Exercise Lead for their assigned regional exercises and works with exercise planning teams on aspects such as planning meetings, scenario development, exercise documentation, facilitation, exercise conduct, and exercise evaluation, for multiple concurrent exercises across the region. This role specifically incorporates the work of the JCDC into all CISA cyber exercise by knowing and understanding the efforts of the JCDC in threat and vulnerability analysis, creation of cybersecurity guidance, and operational coordination across internal CISA divisions and external groups like the intelligence community. An active TS/SCI security clearance is required for this position due to the nature of the subject matter.

Primary Responsibilities Include:

• Support the Senior Exercise Planner - JCDC.


• Coordinate between JCDC members and the CISA exercise support teams.


• Participate and collaborate with, as requested by CISA, the JCDC meetings to understand threat analysis, vulnerability information, and expert guidance that can be incorporated into CISA cyber exercises.


• Support the customer’s needs for cyber policy review and development, identifying hot button issues and trends in cyber threats, and guiding informed recommendations for cyber training and exercises based on expertise and experience.


• Review and refine ideas, exercise materials, and exercise foundation (i.e., scope, objectives, scenario, player actions, discussion questions, evaluation criteria, etc.) to ensure alignment with JCDC work and cyber response principles.


• Report back to the JCDC, as requested by CISA, findings from exercises forming common threads and themes in cyber threats and vulnerabilities.


• Support the incorporation of JCDC elements into the CISA exercises.


• Communicate and coordinate regularly across exercise support team, with Senior Exercise Planners, Exercise Leads, and with exercise stakeholders.


• Support and participate in planning meetings (as appropriate), such as C&O, IP, MPM, MSEL Meeting, and FPM, and in developing all supporting documentation, including agendas, presentations, and notes.


• Support the development of core exercise documentation and artifacts (e.g., CONOPS, EXPLAN, SITMAN, MSEL, COSIN, evaluation forms, invitations/sign-in sheets).


• Support end-to-end exercise execution: concept and scope, execution support, evaluation approach, and post-exercise reporting (AAR and assigned reports).


• Report regularly to Exercise Leads and across exercise support team according to communications plan.


• Attend and participate in each exercise within assigned region, as required.


• Support development of new CISA Tabletop Exercise Packages (CTEPs) and maintenance of the CTEP scenario library.


• Support internal training activities to improve facilitation and planning skills across NCEP staff.

Required Experience, Skills, and Education:

• Active TS/SCI clearance.


• Ability to obtain DHS Suitability / CISA EOD.


• 5+ years experience in supporting cybersecurity operations, cyber threat analysis, incident response, vulnerability management, cyber risk management, or cyber exercise planning.


• Understanding of cyber incident response lifecycle activities, including detection, triage, escalation, containment, coordination, remediation, recovery, and post-incident improvement.


• Familiarity with threat intelligence, indicators of compromise, malware reporting, vulnerability information, and adversary tactics, techniques, and procedures.


• Experience coordinating with multiple stakeholders across technical, operational, government, and private-sector environments.


• Ability to analyze complex cyber scenarios and identify technical, operational, procedural, communications, and information-sharing gaps.


• Experience with HSEEP exercise design, development, conduct, and evaluation.


• FEMA HSEEP Certification or ability to achieve HSEEP certification within 30 days of contract start.


• Strong writing skills to develop polished exercise materials and documents (such as EXPLANs, SITMANs, MSELs, and controller/observer instructions) and post-exercise products (including AAR drafting support).


• Demonstrated ability to manage time, meet deadlines and milestones.

Preferred Experience, Skills, and Education:

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in cybersecurity, information technology, computer science, homeland security, emergency management, intelligence studies, public policy, or a related field; equivalent experience may be considered.


• FEMA Master Exercise Practitioner (MEP)


• Experience supporting cybersecurity-focused scenarios and stakeholder engagement across government and private sector partners.


• Experience contributing to strategic plan maintenance and innovation projects in support of leadership requests.


• Cybersecurity Certifications
  
  
  
  • CISSP
  
  
  • CEH
  
  
  • GIAC
  
  
  
  


• Experience contributing to AAR development and communicating findings to technical and non-technical audiences.

Clearance Required:

• Active TS/SCI clearance.

Pay and Benefits

Pay Range $65,650.00 - $118,675.00

Pay and benefits are fundamental to any career decision. That's why we craft compensation packages that reflect the importance of the work we do for our customers. Employment benefits include competitive compensation, Health and Wellness programs, Income Protection, Paid Leave and Retirement.

About Leidos

Leidos is an industry and technology leader serving government and commercial customers with smarter, more efficient digital and mission innovations. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, with 47,000 global employees, Leidos reported annual revenues of approximately $16.7 billion for the fiscal year ended January 3, 2025. For more information, visit www.Leidos.com.

At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo - because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 - and moving faster than anyone else dares.

Commitment to Non-Discrimination

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, race, ethnicity, age, national origin, citizenship, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, pregnancy, family structure, marital status, ancestry, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran or military status, or any other basis prohibited by law. Leidos will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with relevant laws.