Operational Planner and Fires Subject Matter Expert

Kinetic Concepts; Tampa (FL); On-site; USD 120,000 - 165,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) with employer match

Paid time off

Paid federal holidays

Life insurance

Short-term disability

Professional development reimbursement

Flexible Spending Account

Reimbursable business travel

Job summary

Kinetic Concepts, LLC is seeking an experienced Operational Planner and Fires Subject Matter Expert to support the USSCOM J37 at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. This on-site role emphasizes joint fires integration, targeting, and capability modernization across strategic and operational levels.

The candidate will translate theater requirements into staff products, coordinate across services and agencies, and brief senior leaders.

Qualifications

• Active Top Secret clearance with SCI eligibility is required.
• At least 10 years of military/SOF/DoD operational experience.
• At least 5 years in operational planning on joint or combatant command staff.
• Experience at four-star combatant command headquarters is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Support operational planning at a four-star command headquarters.
• Develop concepts of operation and execution orders, annexes, and senior-leader briefings.
• Coordinate across multiple staffs, components, and interagency partners.
• Serve as SME in joint fires integration, targeting, and fire support.
• Prepare white papers and after-action reports, brief leaders.

Skills

Operational planning

Joint planning process

Written/verbal communication

Security clearance

Coordination across staff

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor’s degree in technical/operational/management

Tools

NIPRNET

SIPRNET

JWICS

Job description

Location: MacDill Air Force Base, Tampa, Florida

Work Arrangement: On-site

Employment Type: Full-time, exempt

Travel: CONUS and OCONUS travel may be required

Security Clearance: Active Top Secret clearance with SCI eligibility required

About the Position

Company: Kinetic Concepts, LLC

Location: MacDill Air Force Base, Tampa, Florida

Work Arrangement: On-site

Employment Type: Full-time, exempt

Travel: CONUS and OCONUS travel may be required

Security Clearance: Active Top Secret clearance with SCI eligibility required

Kinetic Concepts, LLC is seeking an experienced Operational Planner and Fires Subject Matter Expert to support the United States Special Operations Command J37 Joint Task Force Modernization organization at MacDill Air Force Base.

The selected candidate will provide operational planning support at the combatant command headquarters level and serve as a subject matter expert in joint fires integration and targeting. This position supports Special Operations Forces concept development, experimentation, modernization, and capability integration.

The successful candidate must be able to plan at the strategic and operational levels, translate Theater Special Operations Command and Service component requirements into staff products and capability recommendations, and work independently across command, component, Joint Staff, program office, interagency, and industry organizations.

Key Responsibilities

• Support operational planning efforts at a four-star combatant command headquarters.
• Apply the Joint Planning Process to modernization, experimentation, and capability-integration initiatives.
• Develop concepts of operation, planning and execution orders, annexes, fragmentary orders, decision papers, and senior-leader briefings.
• Analyze, consolidate, and represent Theater Special Operations Command and Service component requirements.
• Coordinate across command staff directorates, TSOCs, Service components, the Joint Staff, program executive offices, interagency partners, and industry.
• Support operational planning teams, conferences, working groups, wargames, exercises, and technology demonstrations.
• Develop planning timelines, synchronization matrices, running estimates, and capability-gap analyses.
• Serve as a subject matter expert in joint fires integration, fire support, precision strike, long-range fires, targeting, and associated effects.
• Advise on the joint targeting cycle, including target development, target-list management, weaponeering considerations, and combat assessment.
• Support the integration of fires capabilities with command-and-control, communications, and tactical data-link architectures.
• Evaluate emerging fires, targeting, and over-the-horizon capabilities for potential application to validated SOF requirements.
• Review capability and concept documentation, including Capability Development Documents and concepts of operation.
• Prepare white papers, technical assessments, after-action analyses, trip reports, and recurring activity reports.
• Brief findings and recommendations to senior military and civilian leaders.
• Handle classified and sensitive information in accordance with applicable security requirements.

Required Qualifications

• Active Top Secret security clearance with SCI eligibility.
• Ability to maintain the required clearance throughout employment.
• At least 10 years of military, Special Operations Forces, or Department of War operational experience.
• At least five years of operational planning experience on a joint, combatant command, component, or Service-level staff.
• Experience serving at the O-4, senior noncommissioned officer, or equivalent civilian level.
• Demonstrated experience planning at a four-star combatant command headquarters.
• Experience applying the Joint Planning Process and developing orders and staff products for general officer or senior executive decisions.
• Working knowledge of TSOC and Service component organizations, missions, and requirements processes.
• Experience in joint fires, fire support, or targeting, including the joint targeting cycle and integration of fires into operational plans and orders.
• Ability to coordinate across staff directorates, military components, program offices, interagency organizations, and industry.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to produce staff-quality written products and brief senior military and civilian audiences.
• Proficiency with government office productivity and collaboration tools.
• Ability to work across NIPRNET, SIPRNET, and JWICS environments at government facilities.
• Ability to work on-site in Tampa, Florida.
• Ability to travel within and outside the continental United States as required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior service in a Special Operations Forces unit, Theater Special Operations Command, or SOF component command.
• Completion of an advanced military planning program, such as:
• School of Advanced Military Studies
• School of Advanced Warfighting
• Maritime Advanced Warfighting School
• Joint Advanced Warfighting School
• Joint Professional Military Education Phase II
• Experience supporting USSOCOM J37 Joint Task Force Modernization, its predecessor J7 organization, the Joint Staff, or a Service experimentation organization.
• Prior experience as a fires planner, fire support officer, targeting officer, joint fires observer, or joint terminal attack controller at the battalion level or higher.
• Completion of the Joint Firepower Course, Joint Targeting School, or equivalent joint fires or targeting training.
• Experience supporting concept development, wargaming, experimentation campaigns, emerging-technology evaluations, or rapid prototyping.
• Experience with JCIDS documentation and DOTMLPF-P analysis.
• Experience operating in Top Secret, SCI, and ACCM environments.
• Bachelor’s degree in a technical, operational, or management discipline. Equivalent operational experience may be considered in place of a degree.

Work Environment

Work will be performed primarily on-site at government facilities in Tampa, Florida, within classified and unclassified environments. The position requires compliance with applicable security, operational security, cybersecurity, and information-handling requirements.

Continued employment is contingent upon maintaining the required security clearance, satisfactory job performance, continued contract funding, and the applicable contract period of performance.

Compensation and Benefits

Kinetic Concepts offers:

• Competitive salary based on qualifications and experience
• Full-time employment supporting a multi-year contract
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) with employer match, subject to eligibility requirements
• Paid time off
• Paid federal holidays
• Life insurance
• Short-term disability coverage, subject to eligibility requirements
• Professional development and certification reimbursement
• Flexible Spending Account
• Reimbursable business travel in accordance with company policy

Kinetic Concepts is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected status. We actively support VEVRAA-protected veterans.