SAFe Product Owner/SCRUM Master

Initial Therapeutics, Inc.; Frederick (MD); On-site; USD 102,000 - 146,000; Full time

Job summary

Leidos Biomedical Research, Inc. at the Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research seeks a SAFe Product Owner/SCRUM Master to drive agile delivery across enterprise IT initiatives in a SAFe environment.

You will own the product backlog, write clear user stories, coordinate with stakeholders, and ensure alignment with business strategy while supporting SCRUM ceremonies and PI planning. This role requires strong communication and SAFe experience.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or four years related experience in lieu of degree.
• Five+ years of experience facilitating Agile teams including Product Owner and SCRUM Master roles.
• SAFe certifications (e.g., Product Owner, SCRUM Master, Agilist) preferred.
• Experience with work management tools (JIRA, Confluence, ADO) and SDLC.
• Proven ability transitioning traditional projects to Agile delivery.

Responsibilities

• Act as SAFe Product Owner, prioritizing and refining the team backlog.
• Write user stories and acceptance criteria; align backlog with stakeholder needs.
• Collaborate with Solutions Team and RTE to prioritize requirements; manage product roadmap.
• Provide SCRUM Master support; facilitate Scrum ceremonies and program events.
• Track progress, dependencies, risks, and impediments across multiple agile teams.

Skills

SAFe

Product Owner

SCRUM Master

Agile methodologies

JIRA

Azure DevOps

Confluence

Education

Bachelor’s degree in related field

Tools

Azure DevOps (ADO)

JIRA

Confluence

Job description

SAFe Product Owner/SCRUM Master

Job ID: req4686
Employee Type: exempt full-time
Division: Enterprise Information Technology
Facility: Frederick: Ft Detrick
Location: PO Box B, Frederick, MD 21702 USA

The Frederick National Laboratory is operated by Leidos Biomedical Research, Inc. The lab addresses some of the most urgent and intractable problems in the biomedical sciences in cancer and AIDS, drug development and first-in-human clinical trials, applications of nanotechnology in medicine, and rapid response to emerging threats of infectious diseases.

Accountability, Compassion, Collaboration, Dedication, Integrity and Versatility; it's the FNL way.

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The Enterprise IT (EIT) Directorate oversees the strategic vision and implementation plan for IT systems and solutions for the enterprise at Leidos Biomedical Research, providing operational information and data systems support to Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research. TheEnterprise IT Product Management Office (PMO)is responsible for enabling the continuous flow of high-value IT products and services across the Frederick enterprise. Responsibilities include maximizing business outcomes throughout the entireproduct lifecycleby utilizing Lean-Agile governance, ensuring alignment with Leidos Biomed and NCI product delivery standards, and cultivating EIT policies, procedures, and operational guardrails. The EIT PMO facilitatesportfolio alignment, promoting pragmatic, flow-based processes forvalue intake, WSJF-based prioritization, and decentralized executionwithin a maturing SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework) ecosystem.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

This primary role for this position will be SAFe Product Owner (PO) on a SAFe Team. This role is pivotal, acting as the voice of the customer, ensuring the team delivers maximum value by aligning the backlog with customer and stakeholder needs. The PO collaborates closely with the Solutions Team, stakeholders, and the development team to translate business strategy into actionable work for the SAFe Team. Additionally, this role will provide SCRUM Master support as needed. This role will include the following responsibilities:

• Product Management:
  • Own, prioritize, and refine the team backlog.
  • Write clear user stories and acceptance criteria.
  • Continuously refine backlog items based on stakeholder feedback and priority changes.
  • Work closely with business owners, architects and Release Train Engineers (RTE) to gather, analyze, and prioritize requirements.
  • Facilitate cross-functional collaboration to maximize value delivery.
  • Monitor product performance, customer satisfaction, and business outcomes.
  • Participate in PI Planning and Program Backlog refinement.
  • Manage the product roadmap and ensure alignment with business strategy.
  • Oversee all stages of product creation, including design and development.
  • Monitor and evaluate product progress at each stage.
  • Participate in Scrum meetings and product sprints.
• Agile Leadership:
  • Act as a (senior) Scrum Master for enterprise-level Agile projects, facilitating Scrum ceremonies, ensuring Agile principles are upheld, and enabling continuous delivery within cross-functional teams.
  • Coach teams and stakeholders on Agile practices and principles, supporting the organization’s transition to SAFe and fostering a collaborative and empowered team culture.
  • Serve within the SAFe organization by driving alignment, transparency, and predictable delivery across multiple Agile teams.
  • Support the RTE in Program Increment (PI) planning events and assist in managing and tracking program-level execution.
  • Track and report on team-level progress, risks, and dependencies while facilitating resolution of impediments and dependencies across teams.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS

To be considered for this position, you must minimally meet the knowledge, skills, and abilities listed below:

• Possession of a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university according to the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) in a related field or four (4) years related experience in lieu of degree. Foreign degrees must be evaluated for U.S. equivalency.
• In addition to the education requirement, a minimum of five (5) years of experience facilitating Agile teams, including experience as a Product Owner, SCRUM Master and experience with software development lifecycle management.
• One or more SAFe certifications, e.g. Product Owner, SCRUM Master, Agilist.
• Proficiency in tools like ADO (Azure DevOps), JIRA, Confluence, or other project management software.Strong facilitation and coaching skills for Agile methodologies, including Scrum and SAFe practices.
• Professional experience managing multiple software products, internal or line-of-business applications.
• Demonstrated experience transitioning traditional project management (e.g., Waterfall) to Agile delivery models.
• Exceptional written and oral communication skills to engage and manage diverse stakeholders.
• Experience with Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), resource management, and scheduling across multiple agile teams.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

Candidates with these desired skills will be given preferential consideration:

• Advanced agile certifications, e.g., SAFe Program Consultant [SPC], SAFe RTE.
• Project Management Professional (PMP) certification.
• Proven track record of leading Agile transformations and coaching teams at an enterprise scale.
• Experience selecting and managing subcontractor relationships.
• Demonstrated experience blending technical development or engineering expertise with product ownership and scrum team management.

Commitment to Non-Discrimination

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, race, ethnicity, color, 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.

Pay and Benefits

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. More details are available here

102,300.00 - 146,483.00 USD

The posted pay range for this job is a general guideline and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include, but are not limited to, responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities as well as internal equity, and alignment with market data.

The salary range posted is a full-time equivalent salary and will vary depending on scheduled hours for part time positions