Systems Architect

General Dynamics - IT; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

General Dynamics - IT's NASA-focused portfolio seeks an experienced Systems Architect to design and oversee enterprise-level architectures across mission-critical programs. The role requires leadership in integration, cloud and security, and alignment with NASA standards.

The successful candidate will guide architecture reviews, collaborate with NASA stakeholders, and ensure scalable, resilient solutions while navigating fast-paced federal environments. Pasadena, CA onsite.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required.
• Minimum five years of experience in systems or enterprise architecture or technical leadership.
• Experience in NASA JPL environment or similar federal mission systems preferred.
• Strong communication skills with ability to lead technical discussions.
• Experience leading technical teams and mentoring staff.

Responsibilities

• Engage with NASA customers, mission partners, and internal teams to understand requirements and objectives.
• Clearly communicate architectural decisions, tradeoffs, and solution approaches to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Lead development and implementation of enterprise architectures aligned with NASA policies and long-term goals.
• Develop, integrate and maintain end-to-end enterprise architectures, including data flows and infrastructure models.
• Ensure architectures comply with NASA, NIST, federal IT and cybersecurity standards.

Skills

Systems architecture

Technical leadership

Communication skills

Mentoring staff

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

ServiceNow

Job description

GDIT is seeking an experienced Systems Architect to support our NASA Business Area in designing, developing, and overseeing enterprise‑level architecture solutions across our expanding NASA portfolio.

GDIT is your place to make meaningful contributions to mission‑critical federal programs and build a rewarding technical career. The Systems Architect will play a central role in creating integrated, scalable, and secure solutions that support NASA’s JPL enterprise IT services. This includes 24x7 operations environments, advanced AI‑enabled tools, end‑user services, cloud technologies, cybersecurity capabilities, and coordinated engineering and IT Service Management (ITSM) resources.

As a Systems Architect supporting this opportunity, you will deliver technical leadership, architectural guidance, and strategic vision to ensure that system architectures are robust, scalable, interoperable, and aligned with program objectives, program constraints and applicable to NASA standards. You will help shape GDIT’s NASA account by aligning customer priorities, driving innovation, and ensuring technical solutions meet NASA’s mission, enterprise, and security requirements. This position will ensure that system designs follow industry best practices, federal standards, and NASA’s evolving digital transformation objectives.

The successful candidate will be a seasoned Systems Architect with prior experience supporting NASA JPL or similar federal environments. The candidate must demonstrate expertise in systems integration, enterprise architecture, cloud and infrastructure design, technical leadership, and delivering complex solutions in fast‑paced, multi‑stakeholder environments. Exceptional communication skills are essential to convey technical concepts to both engineers and non‑technical stakeholders.

In this Systems Architect role, you will be responsible for designing and guiding GDIT’s solution architectures while ensuring compliance with Federal, NIST, and NASA requirements. You must be able to navigate complex challenges, create clear architectural strategies, provide technical leadership for architecture reviews, design reviews, technical interchange meetings and major engineering decision processes. You must be able to build trusted relationships with internal and customer stakeholders.

Responsibilities Include:

Stakeholder Engagement and Collaboration

• Engage with NASA customers, mission partners, and internal teams to understand requirements, constraints, and mission objectives.
• Clearly communicate architectural decisions, tradeoffs, and solution approaches to technical and non‑technical audiences.
• Build trust by consistently delivering thoughtful, scalable, and high‑quality architectural recommendations.

Strategic Architectural Leadership

• Lead the development and implementation of enterprise architectures aligned with NASA policies, standards, and long‑term strategic goals.
• Apply a consultative approach to analyze complex technical challenges and recommend future‑ready solutions.
• Drive innovation by evaluating emerging technologies, modernizing legacy environments, and aligning capabilities to NASA’s digital transformation initiatives.

System Design and Integration

• Develop, integrate and maintain end‑to‑end enterprise system architectures, including system designs, integration patterns, data flows, and infrastructure models.
• Oversee and validate system design and implementation across development, operations, and engineering teams.
• Identify and address system risks, gaps, and dependencies; ensure architectures support resilience, scalability, and performance.

Technical Quality, Compliance, and Oversight

• Ensure all architectures comply with NASA, NIST, federal IT, and cybersecurity standards.
• Develop architectural documentation including diagrams, roadmaps, specifications, and interface definitions.
• Track performance, technical metrics, and architectural alignment across projects, delivering data‑driven insights and recommendations.
• Evaluate emerging technologies and determine their applicability to future program and system architectures.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree and a minimum of five (5) years of experience in systems architecture, enterprise architecture, or technical leadership roles.
• Extensive experience in the NASA JPL environment, or comparable federal mission systems, including solution design tailored to NASA JPL requirements.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to explain complex technical concepts to diverse audiences and lead technical discussions.
• Proven experience leading technical teams, guiding development and engineering teams, and mentoring staff in architectural practices.
• Experience designing and managing system architectures, creating diagrams and technical documentation, and tracking architecture performance.
• Demonstrated experience implementing modern technologies, integrating legacy systems, and driving innovation in enterprise environments.
• Ability to obtain a Public Trust clearance.

Desired Qualifications:

• Experience with ServiceNow

Please Note:

• Work visa sponsorship will not be provided for this position.
• Work will be on‑site in Pasadena, CA and candidates must reside in the area. No relocation assistance will be provided.