Strategic Planner

ECS; Alexandria (VA); On-site; USD 134,000 - 224,000; Full time

Job summary

Everforth ECS Federal seeks a Strategic Planner to support a DoD customer in the National Capital Region. The role leads deliberate planning, converts guidance into executable plans, and produces staff products for the J3 Operations Directorate in a fast-moving headquarters environment.

You will build cross-functional teams, coordinate across directorates and mission partners, and drive planning from initiation to completion with minimal supervision and an all-hands approach.

Qualifications

• Must be a US citizen.
• Active DoD TS/SCI clearance.
• Bachelor's degree required.
• 10+ years of relevant operational/planning experience.

Responsibilities

• Convert guidance and mission requirements into deliberate plans, orders, and staff products.
• Lead operational planning teams and working groups across the task force.
• Build and sustain cross-functional teams to address planning across boundaries.
• Coordinate planning assumptions, decision points and dependencies.
• Conduct deliberate planning for future mission requirements across domains.
• Drive ownership and timely completion of planning tasks.
• Ensure planning products respect authorities and jurisdictional boundaries.
• Synchronize planning with staff sections, services, and partner organizations.
• Transition approved plans into future operations and execution.
• Represent the directorate at planning boards and coordination forums.
• Support development of planning workflows and dashboards, including AI-enabled tools.
• Prepare and deliver briefings to leadership and operational customers.

Skills

US Citizenship

TS/SCI clearance

10+ years planning experience

Staff leadership

Strategic thinking

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Tools

MS Office

Collaboration tools

Staff coordination tools

Job description

Job Description

Everforth ECS Federal has an immediate opening for a Strategic Planner supporting a Department of Defense (DoD) customer in the National Capital Region. The Strategic Planner supports the deliberate planning perspectives for the J3 Operations Directorate by leading deliberate planning efforts and translating command guidance, emerging requirements, and evolving mission demands into executable plans and staff products. The planner develops concepts, branches, sequels, orders, and planning products, coordinates planning assumptions and decision points across the organization, and transitions approved plans into future operations. This is a fast-moving headquarters environment in a growing organization where processes are still forming. The role requires an experienced action officer who operates with minimal supervision, takes initiative, and contributes wherever the mission requires.

Primary Duties

• Convert command guidance and emerging mission requirements into deliberate plans, concepts, branches, sequels, orders, and staff products.
• Lead and facilitate operational planning teams, working groups, and integrated planning efforts across the task force.
• Build, lead, and sustain cross-functional teams drawn from across the task force, the Services, and mission partners to address planning requirements spanning organizational boundaries.
• Coordinate planning assumptions, decision points, and dependencies across directorates and mission partners.
• Conduct deliberate planning for future mission requirements, including mission expansion across unmanned system domains.
• Take assigned planning requirements, establish ownership, coordinate stakeholders, and drive them from initiation through completion.
• Ensure planning products account for applicable authorities, jurisdictional boundaries, and operational constraints across domestic and overseas mission sets.
• Synchronize planning efforts with other staff sections, the Services, combatant commands, interagency partners, and external mission partners.
• Coordinate the transition of approved plans into future operations and execution.
• Represent the directorate at planning boards, working groups, and coordination forums.
• Support development of planning workflows and dashboard capability, including AI-enabled workflow tools.
• Prepare and deliver briefings to leadership, operational customers, and partner organizations as required.

Salary Range

Salary Range: $134,000-224,000

Required Skills

• Must be a US Citizen
• Active DoD TS/SCI clearance
• Must have a Bachelor's Degree
• 10+ years of relevant operational, planning, or headquarters staff experience, including demonstrated experience as an action officer, planner, or effort lead. Additional relevant experience may be considered in lieu of degree requirements.
• Demonstrated experience leading operational planning teams, working groups, or equivalent cross-functional planning efforts to completion.
• Demonstrated experience building and leading cross-functional teams composed of personnel from multiple organizations, directorates, or agencies without direct supervisory authority over team members.
• Experience producing deliberate planning products, orders, or concepts of operation at a headquarters staff.
• Experience executing taskings with minimal guidance, establishing ownership, coordinating across organizational boundaries, and delivering a finished product.
• Demonstrated initiative and the ability to identify, organize, and execute work without continuous direction.
• Team-first approach with a willingness to contribute wherever the mission requires in an all-hands environment.
• Comfortable standing up an initial process, testing it, identifying where it fails, and improving it quickly.
• Familiarity with the legal and jurisdictional frameworks governing unmanned systems operations and counter-unmanned systems employment across domestic and overseas mission sets, and the judgment to identify when legal or policy expertise must be brought into planning.
• Working knowledge of the joint planning process and the development of staff products including orders, point papers, staff summary sheets, and concepts of operation.
• Strong writing, briefing, and communication skills, including the ability to produce staff products and briefings for senior and operational audiences.
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, mission-focused environment with shifting priorities and time-sensitive requirements.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, collaboration platforms, and standard staff coordination tools.

Desired Skills

• Pentagon or senior headquarters staff experience. The organization operates inside established departmental processes and values working knowledge of them.
• Working knowledge of the counter-unmanned systems ecosystem, including terminology, authority to operate, authority to connect, and related authorities.
• Familiarity with the statutory authorities governing counter-unmanned systems operations, including 10 U.S.C. 130i, 6 U.S.C. 124n, applicable Federal Aviation Administration regulations, and the constraints imposed by the Posse Comitatus Act on domestic operations.
• Experience planning operations that span both domestic and overseas mission sets under differing legal authorities.
• Graduate of an advanced Service planner school such as the School of Advanced Military Studies, the Joint Advanced Warfighting School, the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, or a Service equivalent.
• Joint Professional Military Education.
• Experience developing or improving planning processes in a newly formed or rapidly changing organization.
• Experience with workflow automation, dashboard development, or AI-enabled staff tools.
• Experience coordinating with interagency partners.
• Master's degree in a relevant field.

ECS Federal LLC is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate or allow discrimination on the basis any characteristic protected by law. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to disability, status as a protected veteran or any other status protected by applicable federal, state, or local jurisdiction law.

Everforth ECS is the federal segment of Everforth, a $4B global organization with over 10,000 employees. Our nearly 3,500 professionals deliver advanced technology solutions in data and AI, cybersecurity, and enterprise transformation, serving defense, intelligence, and federal civilian agencies. Our work powers mission-critical outcomes, strengthens technology partnerships, and creates meaningful opportunities for our people. We are defined by a commitment to excellence in delivery, a culture of innovation, and an environment where talent can thrive and grow.

We Value

• Attracting and developing top talent and high-performing teams
• Fostering a culture that is engaging, accountable, and mission-driven.

Meet the challenge. Make a difference with Everforth ECS!