Senior Information Systems Security Engineer (ISSE)

AIS (Applied Information Sciences); Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 101,000 - 152,000; Full time

Job summary

Applied Information Sciences in Washington, DC and Huntsville, AL seeks a Senior Information Systems Security Engineer to lead RMF lifecycle implementation and security-control assessments for multiple information systems. The role requires senior-level expertise in risk analysis, security engineering leadership, and ongoing authorization support within a dynamic project environment.

The position supports a proposal and is contingent upon contract award.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in secure design, analysis and testing of information-security systems and products.
• 8+ years applying standards to ensure security safeguards are implemented and documented.
• 8+ years developing and updating security test plans to mitigate information-system risk.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor and supervise security professionals supporting the RMF lifecycle.
• Coordinate RMF Prepare activities and ensure roles and risk-management strategies are in place.
• Guide information-system categorization based on impact and regulatory requirements.
• Advise on selection and documentation of security controls.
• Oversee implementation of technical, operational, and management controls throughout lifecycles.
• Plan, execute and document security-control assessments.
• Prepare risk-management documentation for system authorization and executive decisions.
• Direct continuous monitoring and assessment activities.
• Provide cybersecurity expertise supporting risk analysis, incident response and audit activities.
• Work with technical staff to address security configurations and gaps.
• Track and communicate security engineering status and risks to stakeholders.
• Maintain current knowledge of RMF, NIST guidance and security industry practices.

Skills

RMF lifecycle

Security engineering

Threat analysis

Incident response

Audits

Leadership

Vendor management

Job description

Why AIS?

When you join AIS, you’re joining a mission-driven team that’s passionate about making a difference. You’ll work on projects that matter, alongside industry-leading experts, in an environment that fosters innovation, driving client success, and empowering our team to make a lasting impact. As an employee-owned company, we value collaboration, inclusivity, continuous growth, and shared success.

• Employee Ownership: Your contributions directly impact the company’s success, and you share in its achievements.
• Continuous Learning: Access to resources, training, and mentorship to support your professional growth.
• Inclusive Culture: A workplace where diversity is celebrated, and everyone’s voice is valued.
• Mission-Driven Work: Engage in projects that make a meaningful difference for our clients and communities.

Why AIS?

When you join AIS, you’re joining a mission-driven team that’s passionate about making a difference. You’ll work on projects that matter, alongside industry-leading experts, in an environment that fosters innovation, driving client success, and empowering our team to make a lasting impact. As an employee-owned company, we value collaboration, inclusivity, continuous growth, and shared success.

• Employee Ownership: Your contributions directly impact the company’s success, and you share in its achievements.
• Continuous Learning: Access to resources, training and mentorship to support your professional growth.
• Inclusive Culture: A workplace where diversity is celebrated, and everyone’s voice is valued.
• Mission-Driven Work: Engage in projects that make a meaningful difference for our clients and communities.

What are we looking for?

At AIS, we're looking for more than just skills - we're looking for driven individuals who are passionate about making a difference, eager to grow, and aligned with our core principles.

What you will be doing?

At AIS, we are dedicated to providing our employees with diverse opportunities to grow their careers while supporting a variety of impactful projects. For this position, we are seeking a talented individual to join AIS as a Senior Security Engineer.

• Core Knowledge & Skills: Designs secure architectures, leverages advanced threat detection, leads incident response, and implements security automation.
• Work & Complexity: Manages complex incidents, conducts threat analysis, leads audits, and implements process improvements.
• Quality & Independence: Delivers high-quality reports, aligns practices with industry standards, and operates with high autonomy.
• Teamwork & Communication: Leads team projects, collaborates cross-functionally, mentors juniors, and resolves conflicts.
• Consulting & Engagement: Provides strategic consulting, leads improvement initiatives, recommends advanced technologies, and manages vendor relationships.

As your initial project assignment, you will support the unique needs of our client as a Senior Information Systems Security Engineer (ISSE).

Position Summary

The Senior Information Systems Security Engineer leads implementation of the Security Assessment and Authorization program and supports the end-to-end RMF lifecycle for information systems. The Senior ISSE provides security engineering leadership, technical guidance, security-control expertise, risk analysis, remediation support, continuous monitoring and authorization support.

We have 2 positions in Washington, DC and 1 position in Huntsville, AL.

Please note that these positions are for a proposal and are contingent upon contract award.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor and supervise security professionals supporting the end-to-end RMF lifecycle.
• Coordinate RMF Prepare activities and ensure roles, responsibilities and risk-management strategies are established and maintained.
• Guide information-system categorization based on mission/business impact and regulatory requirements.
• Advise on selection, tailoring and documentation of security controls.
• Oversee implementation of technical, operational and management controls throughout system and application lifecycles.
• Plan, execute and document security-control assessments.
• Prepare risk-management documentation supporting system authorization and executive decision-making.
• Direct continuous monitoring and assessment activities.
• Provide technical cybersecurity expertise supporting risk analysis, incident response, system remediation and audit activities.
• Work closely with technical personnel to address security configurations and technical security gaps.
• Track and communicate security-engineering status, risks and improvement opportunities to stakeholders.
• Maintain current knowledge of RMF, NIST guidance and security industry practices.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum 8 years of experience in the secure design, analysis and testing of information-security systems and products.
• Minimum 8 years of experience applying methods, standards and approaches to ensure baseline security safeguards are appropriately implemented and documented.
• Minimum 8 years of experience developing and updating security test plans used to identify and mitigate information-system risk.
• Must possess at least one of the following certifications:
• CCISO
• CISA
• CISM
• CISSO
• CISSP
• CISSP-ISSEP
• CPTE
• CySA+
• FITSP-A
• GCSA
• GSLC
• GSNA

Clearance

TS/SCI Eligible.

At AIS, we are committed to offering competitive and fair compensation that reflects the skills, experience and contributions of each team member. The targeted base salary range for this role is $101,000-$152,000 per year. Please note that this range is provided as a guideline and the final offer will be based on several factors, including but not limited to, skillset and competencies, level of experience, education, certifications and location. We value transparency in our hiring process and are happy to discuss how your unique qualifications align with our compensation structure during the interview process.

Applied Information Sciences does not discriminate on the basis of race, national origin, religion, color, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, protected veteran status or any other basis. Employment decisions are based solely on qualifications, merit and business needs.