Senior International Defense Agreements Lead

Sigma Defense; Alexandria (VA); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Dental and Vision Insurance

Medical Insurance with HSA/FSAs

Life and AD&D

Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

401(k) Plan with Company Matching

160 Hours of PTO

12 Holidays

Educational Assistance

Highly Competitive Salary

Job summary

Sigma Defense seeks a Senior International Agreements Specialist in Alexandria, VA to lead the planning, development, and execution of international defense agreements within the SSO/CD&I GSP Division. The role requires coordinating with legal, policy, and technical experts to advance RDT&E, acquisition, and technology cooperation initiatives.

The ideal candidate has 10+ years in international agreements or defense cooperation, with proven ability to draft and negotiate complex documents, and to

Qualifications

• 10+ years of international agreements or defense cooperation experience.
• Proven expertise in developing, negotiating, and managing international agreements.
• Strong knowledge of U.S. and international defense laws and ITAR/EAR compliance.
• Ability to coordinate with legal, policy, and technical teams and international partners.
• U.S. citizen required.

Responsibilities

• Reduce processing timelines for international agreements.
• Develop, negotiate, review, staff, coordinate, implement, and amend international agreements including bilateral/multilateral accords.
• Draft precise language, negotiate provisions, reconcile comments, and prepare final signature packages.
• Maintain milestone tracking, action items, and agreement status reporting.
• Ensure all agreements comply with DoW International Agreements Program requirements (ITAR, EAR, Fiscal Law).

Skills

Negotiation

Strategic advisory

Stakeholder coordination

Policy interpretation

Document drafting

Education

Bachelor's degree (relevant field)

Advanced degree preferred

Job description

Sigma Defense is seeking a Senior International Agreements Specialist to join our team in Alexandria, VA. This position is in the Secretariat for Special Operations (SSO), Office of the Assistant Secretary of War for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict (OASW(SO/LIC)). The ASW(SO/LIC) serves as the principal civilian advisor and assistant to the Secretary of War and has statutory responsibility for overseeing special operations-peculiar administrative matters pertaining to the readiness and organization of special operations forces (SOF), resources and equipment, and civilian personnel.

The International Agreements Specialist will work within the SSO’s Capability Development and Innovation (CD&I) Global Strategic Partnerships (GSP) Division. The candidate will serve as the organization's technical expert responsible for the planning, development, coordination, review, staffing, execution, and administration of international agreements supporting research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E); acquisition; technology cooperation; logistics; Foreign Military Sales (FMS); and security cooperation initiatives.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled: Sigma Defense Systems is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability.

• 10+ years of relevant experience in international agreements, defense cooperation, or related fields.
• Proven expertise in developing, negotiating, and managing international agreements, alongside a proficiency in drafting and reviewing technical and legal documents.
• Strong understanding of U.S. and international laws, regulations, and policies governing defense cooperation, foreign disclosure, and technology transfer.
• Detail-oriented document review, analysis, and strategic problem-solving.
• Demonstrated ability to coordinate with diverse stakeholders, including legal, policy, and technical experts, as well as international partners.
• Proven ability to provide strategic advice to senior leadership on complex international agreement issues.
• Must be a U.S. citizen.

Candidate Differentiators:

• Experience advising and engaging senior executive leadership on international agreements.
• Experience with Special Operations.
• Experience leading, managing, or executing an international agreements or security cooperation program within the Office of Secretary of War.
• Advanced degree in relevant field.
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally, as required.

Personnel Clearance Level:

• Clearance will not be sponsored.
• Candidate must have active TS clearance with ability to obtain SCI.

Education Requirements:

• Bachelors Degree in a relevant field (e.g., International Relations, Law, Political Science).
• Direct operational experience may be substituted for this academic requirement.

Essential Job Duties (not all-inclusive):

• The candidate will be responsible for reducing agreement processing timelines, improving agreement quality, minimizing staffing efficiencies, and enabling rapid execution of international defense cooperation activities.
• Serve as the principal technical expert responsible for developing, negotiating, reviewing, staffing, coordinating, implementing, and amending international agreements including:
• Develop, negotiate, review, and staff key bilateral and multilateral international defense agreements.
• Cooperative RDT&E agreements (Memoranda of Understanding or Agreement)
• Task Plans, Project Arrangements/Agreements, and Technical Arrangements.
• Information/Data Exchange Agreements
• Equipment and Material Transfer Agreements.
• Draft precise agreement language, negotiate technical provisions, reconcile stakeholder comments, resolve staffing issues, and prepare final signature packages.
• Proactively identify and resolve issues to reduce staffing delays and prevent duplicity of work.
• Maintain milestone tracking, action item management, and agreement status reporting.
• Ensure all agreements comply with DoW International Agreements Program requirements (including National Disclosure Policy, Foreign Disclosure guidance, International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), Export Administration Regulations (EAR), Fiscal Law, and other applicable statutory authorities.

Salary Range: $150,000 - $190,000 annually.

• Dental and Vision Insurance
• Medical Insurance to Include HSA, FSA, and DFSA Plans
• Life and AD&D coverage
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• 401(k) Plan with Company Matching Contributions
• 160 Hours of Paid Time Off (PTO)
• 12 (Floating) Holidays
• Educational Assistance
• Highly Competitive Salary