Senior Modernization Systems Engineering Lead

Scientific Research Corporation; Alexandria (VA); On-site; USD 137,000 - 228,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) with company match

Life insurance

Vacation and sick paid time off

Tuition reimbursement

11 paid holidays

Job summary

Scientific Research Corporation seeks a Senior Modernization Systems Engineering Lead to guide enterprise roadmapping, governance, and test resource investments for national-scale DoD programs. You will establish MBSE-driven governance, digital engineering practices, and cross-portfolio synchronization, partnering with government leadership to craft rigorous roadmaps and investment strategies.

You will drive independent technical evaluations, risk analysis, and business-case assessments,

Qualifications

• Active Secret Security Clearance with immediate eligibility for TS/SCI
• 10+ years of progressively responsible engineering experience in DoD weapon system acquisition, road mapping governance, or test & evaluation infrastructure
• Demonstrated MBSE and digital engineering practices and ability to link digital twins to live/test range environments
• Excellent writing and briefing abilities for SES-level audiences

Responsibilities

• Roadmap governance and enterprise synchronization for 11+ portfolios
• Identify and defend capability gaps aligned to defense priorities
• Evaluate projects with independent technical and business-case analyses
• Formulate annual TRMC modernization strategy and budget exhibits
• Mentor PfMs, coordinate across portfolios, and govern the shared repository

Skills

Security clearance

Digital Engineering

Model-Based Systems Engineering

MBSE

Systems engineering principles

Executive briefing

Education

MS or BS in Systems/Engineering or closely related field

Tools

Cameo Systems Modeler

MagicDraw

Sparx Enterprise Architect

Teamcenter

Power BI

Job description

Salary Statement

Estimated Starting Salary Range: USD $136,850.00/Yr. - USD $228,100.00/Yr. Salary to be determined by the education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities of the applicant, internal equity, and alignment with market data.

Description

The Department of War (DoW) Test Resource Management Center (TRMC) planning, building, and funding the nation's critical test and evaluation (T&E) infrastructure required to validate and field decisive military capabilities. Within TRMC, the Test Resource - Investments (TR-I) Division serving as the enterprise capability development and investment engine, directing capital modernization accounts (CTEIP, T&E/S&T, JMETC) and operational test resources across national ranges, specialized laboratories, and high-tempo joint exercises.

As the Senior Modernization Systems Engineering Lead (SETA Support), you being the principal technical architect driving how the nation anticipates, plans, and resources test capabilities decades into the future. Partnering directly with senior government leadership, you establish the systems engineering rigor, digital engineering ecosystems, and governance frameworks that empowering 11+ strategic portfolio teams to construct domain-tailored modernization roadmaps and high-stakes test event campaigns.

A. Road mapping Governance, Tailoring Guidance & Enterprise Synchronization (30%)

• Serving as the senior systems engineering lead to the Government Modernization Lead, assisting in the development and issuance of authoritative guidance, instructions, milestone schedules, and calling memos directed to the Portfolio Managers (PfMs)
• Ensuring portfolio road mapping teams execute their efforts with enterprise-level consistency, technical depth, and timeliness, while actively coaching PfMs on how to tailor road-mapping frameworks to the distinct physics, technology maturity horizons, and operational nuances of their respective domains (rejecting rigid "one-size-fits-all" templates)
• Establishing standard data structures, review gates, and maturity scales that enable objective cross-portfolio comparisons without undermining domain-specific requirements.
• Guiding PfM teams incorporating dynamic, dual-horizon road-mapping that reconciles visionary 30-year capability goals with high-velocity shifts occurring across the immediate 1-to-4-year horizon
• Advising PfM teams on integrating Digital Engineering (DE) principles and Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) into their road-mapping architectures, establishing digital traceability from warfighter mission threads and weapon system digital models to physical and virtual range capabilities
• Ensuring portfolio roadmaps integrate comprehensive Test Event Planning, verifying that PfM roadmaps plan not only for physical brick-and-mortar facilities, but also for the operational execution, scheduling, and TRMC operational funding (O&M) required for major campaigns (including flight tests, cyber trials, directed energy lethality events, and joint unit exercises)
• Monitoring roadmap development schedules across all 11+ portfolios, identifying delivery risks early, conducting intermediate pulse-checks, and reporting progress directly to the Government Lead

B. Gap Identification Standards, Working Group Governance & Solicitation (20%)

• Advising the Government Lead on establishing criteria for how PfM teams identify, document, and defend capability gaps against National Defense Strategy (NDS) priorities, Joint Warfighting Concepts, and Service modernization roadmaps. Developing training materials
• Reviewing and validating technical gaps identified by portfolio working groups to ensure shortfalls are backed by engineering evidence, weapon system program schedules, digital thread analyses, and operational range metricsVerifying that PfM teams correlate infrastructure shortfalls with time-phased test requirements
• Assisting the Government team in defining the charters, operating procedures, and cross-service engagement rules for enterprise Technical Working Groups (incorporating Service range commands, national laboratories, FFRDCs, UARCs, and defense industry)
• Advising the Government Lead on the structure of enterprise-wide project solicitations and data calls, ensuring calling guidance clearly conveys leadership priorities, technical evaluation rubrics, and submission deadlines to candidate proposal teams
• Identifying cross-cutting opportunities across portfolios to eliminate redundant infrastructure investments and guiding PfMs toward shared, multi-domain range solutions and common digital test architectures

C. Independent Technical Evaluation, Business Case Analysis (BCA) & Programmatic Risk (20%)

• Developing objective scoring rubrics, multi-criteria decision models, and technical vetting frameworks used by the Government team to evaluate candidate modernization projects submitted by the portfolios
• Identifying high-risk projects for a more rigorous, independent review, evaluating them for technical feasibility, cost realism, schedule credibility, and cross-portfolio interoperability
• Identifying high-risk projects for independent Business Case Analyses (BCAs) and lifecycle cost assessments to confirm that proposed infrastructure developments represent sound returns on investment for the Department
• Critically evaluating project systems engineering documentation submitted by PfMs, including architectural baselines, digital models, interface specifications, and draft requirements documents

D. Annual Investment Strategy Formulation, Operational Resourcing & PPBE Support (20%)

• Developing software, data schema, and database requirements for an integrated, TRMC-wide digital engineering and road-mapping repository to ingest, manage, and visualize test and evaluation roadmaps, interconnected with broader PPBE decision-support systems
• Synthesizing the ranked candidate projects and test event requirements submitted across all 11+ portfolios into a unified, balanced, and defensible annual TRMC Modernization Investment Strategy for Government approval
• Supporting the Government Lead throughout the PPBE cycle by authoring executive-level technical justification narratives, capability impact statements, and budget exhibits
• Formulating Unfunded Requirements (UFR) packages, Issue Papers, and Congressional reclamas, establishing the technical rationale and operational risk assessments for high-merit infrastructure initiatives and test events falling below initial funding cutlines

E. Portfolio Coaching, Mentorship & Quality Assurance (10%)

• Serving as an accessible, senior systems engineering lead and sounding board for PfMs and their road-mapping leads, assisting them in framing complex technical concepts, digital representations, and test architectures to satisfy Front Office standards
• Facilitating horizontal coordination among the 11+ portfolios to resolve interface dependencies (e.g., ensuring Directed Energy tracking requirements aligning with Hypersonic range telemetry infrastructure and common data models)
• Governing the centralized modernization repository across Microsoft SharePoint, Confluence, JIRA and Teams, ensuring that roadmaps, gap registers, digital engineering artifacts, and evaluation scoring archives remain organized, accessible, and configuration-controlled

#LI-HK1

Requirements

• Active Secret Security Clearance with immediate eligibility for Top Secret / Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI)
• Master of Science (MS) or Bachelor of Science (BS) from an accredited institution in Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Operations Research, Physics, or a closely related technical field
• 10+ years of progressively responsible engineering experience spanning DoD weapon system acquisition, technology road mapping governance, military range operations, or advanced test and evaluation infrastructure
• Deep mastery of systems engineering principles (requirements decomposition, trade studies, risk quantification, and Model-Based Systems Engineering / Digital Engineering practices) with extensive experience critically evaluating complex defense technical documentation
• Demonstrated understanding of how to establish digital threads linking weapon system digital twins and models to live, virtual, and constructive (LVC) test range environments
• Proven experience evaluating, scheduling, or resourcing major developmental or operational test campaigns (e.g., open-air flight tests, distributed cyber test events, live-fire trials, joint multi-domain exercises)
• Strong technical knowledge across multiple TRMC domains (Hypersonics, Autonomous Systems, Directed Energy, Electronic Warfare, Cyber T&E, Nuclear Modernization, C2, Space) to credibly advise specialized portfolio leads
• Exceptional consensus-building and advisory skills; proven ability to mentor portfolio teams, resolve competing technical priorities, and foster productive working relationships between headquarters leadership, military services, and national laboratories
• Outstanding technical writing and briefing abilities, capable of distilling diverse, complex portfolio inputs into clear, executive-level investment strategies, white papers, and briefings for general officers and Senior Executive Service (SES) leaders

Desired Skills

• TS SCI Clearance
• Professional Certifications: International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) Certified Systems Engineering Professional (CSEP) or Expert Systems Engineering Professional (ESEP); Project Management Professional (PMP); Defense Acquisition University (DAU) credentials in Engineering or Test & Evaluation
• Hands-on familiarity with DoD Digital Engineering strategies and Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) environments (e.g., Cameo Systems Modeler / MagicDraw, Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect, SysML, UAF, or Teamcenter)
• Direct operational or engineering experience across Major Range and Test Facility Base (MRTFB) locations (e.g., WSMR, AEDC, NAWCWD, NTTR, RTS) and experience with range scheduling, telemetry corridors, and safety review boards
• Experience employing multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA), decision support frameworks, or automated data visualization platforms (Power BI, Tableau) to present ranked portfolio investment strategies

Clearance Information

SRC IS A CONTRACTOR FOR THE U.S. GOVERNMENT, THIS POSITION WILL REQUIRE U.S. CITIZENSHIP AS WELL AS, A U.S. GOVERNMENT SECURITY CLEARANCE AT THE TOP SECRET / SCI LEVEL

Travel Requirements

• Travel requirement is approximately 10 percent annually, typically around five non-consecutive weeks, subject to Government priorities and scheduling

About Us

Scientific Research Corporation is an advanced information technology and engineering company that provides innovative products and services to government and private industry, as well as independent institutions. At the core of our capabilities is a seasoned team of highly skilled engineers and scientists with multidisciplinary backgrounds. This team is challenged daily to provide cutting edge technology solutions to our clients.

SRC offers a generous benefit package, including medical, dental, and vision plans, 401(k) with a company match, life insurance, vacation and sick paid time off accruals with amounts increasing based on role and years of service, 11 paid holidays, tuition reimbursement, and a work environment that encourages excellence and more. For positions requiring a security clearance, selected applicants will be subject to a government security investigation and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information.

EEO

Scientific Research Corporation is an equal opportunity employer that does not discriminate in employment.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to their race, color, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other protected characteristic under federal, state or local law.

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