Senior Systems Engineer / Product Owner - 176628

Zachary Piper Solutions; Gaithersburg (MD); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical Dental Vision

401(k) PTO Holidays

Job summary

Zachary Piper Solutions in Gaithersburg, MD seeks a Senior Systems Engineer / Product Owner to lead Agile product ownership for cloud-based systems. Hybrid role requiring three onsite days weekly and ability to obtain a Public Trust clearance.

You will translate complex requirements into actionable features, manage backlogs, and collaborate with cross-functional teams to deliver secure software. The role emphasizes SAFe PI planning, requirements traceability, and modernization of

Qualifications

• Experience as Agile Product Owner managing backlogs and acceptance criteria.
• Proven ability translating complex requirements into actionable Agile features.
• Experience in SAFe environments and PI planning is required.

Responsibilities

• Serve as Product Owner for one or more Agile teams and prioritize backlog.
• Translate requirements into user stories and acceptance criteria.
• Collaborate with stakeholders and DevSecOps for solution delivery.
• Lead backlog refinement, sprint planning, and PI planning in SAFe.
• Develop technical documentation and maintain traceability across artifacts.
• Support cloud-based systems and real-time software modernization.

Skills

Agile Product Owner

Backlog Management

User Stories

PI Planning

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/Software Engineering

Tools

Java

Python

React

Job description

Zachary Piper Solutions is seeking a Senior Systems Engineer / Product Owner to support the development and modernization of mission-critical, cloud-based software systems in Gaithersburg, MD. The Senior Systems Engineer / Product Owner will lead Agile product ownership activities, translate complex technical and operational requirements into actionable development priorities, and collaborate with engineering teams to deliver secure, scalable, and reliable software solutions. This position is hybrid, requiring three days onsite per week, and requires the ability to obtain and maintain a Public Trust clearance!

Responsibilities of the Senior Systems Engineer / Product Owner:

• Serve as the Product Owner for one or more Agile development teams, managing and prioritizing the product backlog to align with technical requirements, stakeholder priorities, and delivery objectives
• Translate complex business, operational, and systems engineering requirements into actionable Agile features, user stories, and acceptance criteria
• Review technical requirements, system specifications, and applicable engineering standards to identify functional needs, constraints, and verification requirements
• Decompose high-level system capabilities into detailed, testable requirements that development teams can implement
• Maintain requirements traceability across source documentation, Agile features, user stories, testing activities, and verification evidence
• Collaborate with customer stakeholders, Product Management, systems engineers, software developers, and DevSecOps teams to define and refine solution requirements
• Lead backlog refinement, sprint planning, and Program Increment (PI) planning activities within a Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) environment
• Define team PI objectives, establish development priorities, resolve scope questions, and accept completed work
• Develop and review technical documentation including use cases, user interface specifications, system requirements, and interface definitions
• Support system architecture discussions, technical design decisions, and implementation planning for cloud-based applications
• Coordinate with Release Train Engineers, Product Management, engineering teams, and testing organizations to manage dependencies and integration milestones
• Document design decisions, performance trade-offs, technical risks, and compliance considerations throughout the software development lifecycle
• Participate in structured technical reviews, requirements inspections, and system verification activities
• Support the development and modernization of real-time, safety-critical software systems
• Leverage AI-assisted development tools and modern engineering practices to improve software delivery, requirements analysis, and system reliability
• Ensure delivered solutions align with stakeholder expectations, operational workflows, technical requirements, and applicable compliance standards

Qualifications for the Senior Systems Engineer / Product Owner:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Systems Engineering, or a related technical discipline with 8+ years of relevant experience; Master's degree with 6+ years of experience; equivalent professional experience may be considered
• Hands-on experience serving as an Agile Product Owner, including managing product backlogs, prioritizing user stories, defining acceptance criteria, and accepting completed work
• Strong experience translating complex technical and operational requirements into actionable, testable Agile features and user stories
• Experience working within Agile and Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) software development environments
• Experience participating in Program Increment (PI) planning, backlog refinement, and cross-team coordination
• Strong understanding of systems engineering principles, requirements management, verification, validation, and requirements traceability
• Experience designing or supporting cloud-based systems and enterprise software architectures
• Practical experience writing, testing, debugging, or maintaining software applications or scripts
• Experience collaborating with software development, systems engineering, DevSecOps, and testing teams
• Experience engaging stakeholders to gather requirements, manage expectations, and deliver technical solutions
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and technical documentation skills
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to communicate complex technical concepts to business and engineering stakeholders
• Ability to obtain and maintain a Public Trust clearance

Preferred Qualifications:

• SAFe Product Owner / Product Manager (POPM) certification
• Experience with AI-assisted development tools such as Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, or similar technologies
• Experience with Java, Python, React, or other modern programming and scripting languages
• Experience with DevSecOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, and automated software delivery
• Experience with hybrid cloud architectures, data mesh technologies, and microservices-based platforms
• Familiarity with Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) concepts and systems engineering integration
• Experience developing or supporting real-time, safety-critical, or highly regulated software systems
• Experience supporting system verification, validation, integration testing, and technical compliance activities
• Familiarity with FedRAMP, FISMA, or similar security compliance frameworks
• Experience supporting large-scale enterprise software modernization initiatives
• Experience with requirements management, Agile delivery, and systems engineering tools

Compensation for the Senior Systems Engineer / Product Owner includes:

• Salary: $140,000 - $170,000
• Comprehensive Benefits Package including Medical, Dental, Vision, 401(k), PTO, and Paid Holidays

#LI-MM1 #LI-HYBRID

Keywords:

Senior Systems Engineer, Systems Engineer, Product Owner, Technical Product Owner, Agile Product Owner, Systems Engineering Product Owner, Senior Product Owner, Software Product Owner, Agile, Scrum, SAFe, Scaled Agile Framework, SAFe POPM, Product Owner Product Manager, Product Backlog, Backlog Management, Backlog Refinement, User Stories, Acceptance Criteria, Requirements Engineering, Requirements Management, Requirements Traceability, Systems Engineering, System Architecture, Cloud Architecture, Cloud-Based Systems, Microservices, Data Mesh, Hybrid Cloud, Model-Based Systems Engineering, MBSE, Verification and Validation, V&V, System Integration, Program Increment Planning, PI Planning, Agile Release Train, ART, Release Train Engineer, RTE, DevSecOps, CI/CD, Java, Python, React, AI-Assisted Development, Claude Code, Codex, Technical Documentation, Software Modernization, Safety-Critical Systems, FedRAMP, FISMA, Public Trust, Gaithersburg MD, Eagan MN, Egg Harbor Township NJ, Hybrid Jobs