Senior Test Director

Bright Star; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Bright Star is seeking an experienced Senior Test Director to lead Test & Evaluation for a federal border security program. This senior role oversees planning, executing, and reporting on operational and developmental test events for fielded technology systems, with an emphasis on rigorous testing and clear communication to stakeholders.

This is not software testing; the role requires hands-on leadership in field environments, coordinating with government staff, engineers, and contractors to

Qualifications

• 10+ years of professional experience in Test & Evaluation for federal government systems or programs.
• Experience authoring TEMPs, Test Plans, and formal Test Reports.
• Ability to operate in active operational/field environments.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including briefing senior leadership.

Responsibilities

• Lead and execute Test & Evaluation activities for operational technology systems supporting federal mission needs.
• Develop and maintain TEMP, Test Plans, Procedures, and Reports.
• Serve as Test Director for field and operational test events with planning, data collection, and post-test analysis.
• Chair Test Planning Working Groups across government, contractors, and operators.

Skills

Test & Evaluation leadership

TEMP & Test Plans development

Brief senior leadership

Travel readiness

Stakeholder coordination

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Physical Sciences, or Systems Engineering

Job description

Bright Star is a forward-thinking technology consultancy that specializes in harnessing the power of data and AI to solve complex business challenges. Our team of experts combines deep technical expertise with strategic insight to deliver innovative solutions that drive meaningful impact for our clients.

Role Description

Bright Star is recruiting an experienced Senior Test Director to support a federal border security program. This is a senior, hands-on Test & Evaluation (T&E) leadership role responsible for planning, executing, and reporting on operational and developmental test events for fielded technology systems.

This is not a software testing role. Candidates with purely software QA or application testing backgrounds should not apply.

The Senior Test Director will work closely with federal program staff, operational users, engineers, and contractors to ensure systems are tested rigorously, safely, and effectively in operational environments, with results clearly communicated to technical and non-technical stakeholders.

This role offers a unique opportunity to lead high-impact test events that directly inform deployment decisions, operational readiness, and system performance for mission-critical federal programs.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and execute Test & Evaluation activities for operational technology systems supporting federal mission needs.
• Develop and maintain Test and Evaluation Master Plans (TEMP), detailed Test Plans, Test Procedures, and Test Reports.
• Serve as the Test Director for field and operational test events, including planning, execution, data collection, and post-test analysis.
• Chair and facilitate Test Planning Working Groups (TPWG), coordinating across government, contractor, and operational stakeholders.
• Plan, schedule, and manage test events, identifying risks, dependencies, and impacts to scope, cost, and schedule.
• Lead test teams during live operational test events in field environments.
• Work directly with operational users to ensure test objectives align with real-world mission requirements.
• Brief test strategies, execution status, and results to program managers and senior government leadership.
• Translate complex technical test results into clear, actionable insights for non-technical stakeholders.
• Advise portfolio and program leadership on T&E strategy, test readiness, and risk mitigation across multiple efforts.
• Travel domestically up to 30% to support test planning and execution.

Required Qualifications

• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Background Investigation (BI).
• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Physical Sciences, Systems Engineering, or a related technical field.
• 10+ years of professional experience in Test & Evaluation for federal government systems or programs.
• Demonstrated experience executing tests on behalf of the federal government, including operational or field testing.
• Proven experience authoring TEMPs, Test Plans, and formal Test Reports.
• Experience leading and coordinating multidisciplinary test teams.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including briefing senior leadership.
• Ability to operate effectively in active operational or field environments.
• Willingness to travel domestically as required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience supporting large-scale sensing, detection, or infrastructure systems.
• Experience testing distributed or networked physical systems deployed in outdoor or remote environments.
• Background in signal processing, sensing technologies, or data-driven system performance evaluation.
• Familiarity with acoustic, seismic, fiber-based, or other ground-based detection technologies.
• Active or prior CBP BI, DHS suitability, or other DHS clearance.
• Experience working directly with law enforcement or operational end users during test events.