Systems Engineer, DoD - FSI

VAST Data; Sterling (VA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading data platform firm is seeking a Senior Systems Engineer for the Intelligence Community to act as a technical lead supporting Defense Intelligence accounts. The role requires over 8 years in Pre-Sales or Systems Engineering with a strong foundation in SQL and expertise in AI and hybrid environments. Responsibilities include designing high-performance solutions and engaging with mission engineers. This position is critical for enhancing national security through innovative data solutions.

Qualifications

• 8+ years in Pre-Sales / Systems Engineering supporting DoD or Intelligence Community customers.
• Strong foundation in SQL-based systems and database architectures.
• Deep expertise in enterprise storage and AI/HPC infrastructure.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary technical advisor across IC and Defense Intelligence accounts.
• Translate mission requirements into scalable VAST architectures.
• Design secure, high-performance solutions leveraging VAST’s architecture.

Skills

Pre-Sales / Systems Engineering

SQL-based systems and database architectures

OLTP environments

OLAP / analytics platforms

stream processing and data transformation technologies

ETL pipelines

enterprise storage

scale-out architectures

AI/HPC infrastructure

GPU environments

Job description

Overview

VAST Data is looking to hire a Federal Sr Systems Engineer focused on the DoD/Intelligence Community! VAST Data is redefining the data platform for the AI era. As one of the fastest-growing infrastructure software companies in history, VAST sits at the center of AI, HPC, and data modernization driving national security and defense missions.

With nearly an exabyte deployed across the public sector, VAST delivers secure, scalable, high-performance infrastructure across classified, hybrid, cloud, and edge environments. We are seeking a Senior Systems Engineer – Intelligence Community (DoD/IC) to serve as the technical lead supporting Defense Intelligence accounts. This role partners closely with Sales to architect, position, and validate VAST’s Data Platform in secure, high-performance environments.

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary technical advisor across IC and Defense Intelligence accounts.
• Translate mission requirements (AI/ML, ISR, cyber, analytics, HPC, edge collection) into scalable VAST architectures.
• Design secure, high-performance solutions leveraging VAST’s scale-out, disaggregated architecture, NVMe-oF/RDMA fabrics, all-flash storage, and multi-protocol access (S3, NFS, SMB, block).
• Architect AI-ready data platforms supporting GPU clusters, large-scale ingestion, and hybrid or air-gapped deployments.
• Lead discovery sessions, whiteboarding, POVs, benchmarks, and classified briefings.
• Partner with defense SIs and cleared cloud providers within complex DoD/IC procurement environments.

Requirements

• 8+ years in Pre-Sales / Systems Engineering supporting DoD or Intelligence Community customers.
• Strong foundation in SQL-based systems and database architectures.
• Familiarity with:
• OLTP environments (low-latency transactional systems: Oracle, SQL Server, Postgres)
• OLAP / analytics platforms supporting large-scale BI, statistical analysis, and decision support
• Experience with unstructured data ecosystems, including Hadoop-based platforms and AI-driven analytics environments.
• Understanding of stream processing and data transformation technologies (e.g., Kafka, event streaming, enterprise service bus architectures).
• Knowledge of ETL pipelines and data lifecycle movement across silos and formats.
• Deep expertise in enterprise storage, scale-out architectures, AI/HPC infrastructure, NVMe, RDMA, and GPU environments.
• Experience designing solutions for classified and hybrid environments.
• Ability to engage mission engineers, CTO/CIO leadership, and program offices.
• Active TS/SCI (Poly preferred) required.