Systems Engineer/Developer (TS/SCI w/ Poly) - Mission Critical

Leading Path Consulting; McLean (VA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Fully paid medical/dental/vision

Generous PTO

11 Paid Holidays

6% 401K contribution

Tuition reimbursement

SPOT Award bonuses

Regular team events

Opportunities for growth

Job summary

Leading Path Consulting is seeking a hands-on Systems Engineer (SME) who can analyze existing systems, document current state architectures, design future-state solutions, and drive end-to-end implementations across cloud and on-prem environments.

You will collaborate across infrastructure, platform, application, DevSecOps, and data teams to own reliability, performance, and security, while delivering architecture designs and migration plans for complex systems.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a technical field or equivalent experience.
• 10+ years of systems and Linux engineering experience.
• Hands-on expertise across cloud and on‑prem architectures.

Responsibilities

• Hands-on systems engineering across network, compute, storage, OS, middleware, databases, and apps.
• Document as-is architectures and design to-be future-state solutions.
• Lead cloud/on-prem implementations, migrations, upgrades, and hardening.
• Ensure availability, scalability, performance, security, and compliance.

Skills

Enterprise networking

Storage technologies

Container platforms

Linux administration

PKI authentication

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/IT

Tools

Kubernetes

Docker

AWS

Azure

GCP

Job description

JOB DESCRIPTION

We are seeking a hands-on Systems Engineer (SME) with deep expertise across infrastructure, platforms, and application ecosystems spanning cloud and on-premises environments. This role requires a proven practitioner who can analyze existing (as-is) systems and applications, document current state architectures, design future-state solutions, and implement system enhancements or technology transformations end-to- end.

The ideal candidate is a technical leader and doer, not just an advisor - someone who can seamlessly collaborate across infrastructure, platform, application, DevSecOps, information systems security, and data teams while maintaining ownership of system reliability, performance, scalability, and security.Recognized SME with deep, hands-on technical expertise. Strong systems thinker with the ability to see and engineer across the full stack. Comfortable operating at both strategic architecture and tactical implementation levels. Excellent communication and collaboration skills across technical and non-technical teams. Proven ability to own complex systems from design through production

QUALIFICATION

Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or other related technical discipline, or the equivalent combination of education, technical training, or work/military experience

Minimum ten (10) years of related Systems and Linux Engineering experience

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Infrastructure & Platforms

• Enterprise networking (e.g., routing, switching, firewalls, load balancers, DNS)
• Storage technologies (e.g., SAN, NAS, object storage)
• Container platforms (e.g., Kubernetes, Docker)
• Linux (Redhat, CentOS) operating systems (administration, hardening, automation)
• IdAM - Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) hands-on for AuthN and AuthZ

Cloud & On-Prem Technologies

• Cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, and/or GCP)
• Hybrid and on-prem infrastructure design and integration
• Cloud networking, identity, security, and cost optimization

Data & Application Platforms

• Relational and NoSQL databases - relational (e.g., Oracle, PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server) and NoSQL (e.g., MongoDB, Cassandra, DynamoDB, Redis) databases
• Web services, APIs, and middleware
• Software development lifecycle (SDLC) fundamentals
• Event-based messaging systems (e.g., SQS, SNS, RabbitMQ)

Engineering & Automation

• Infrastructure as Code - Scripting & Automation: Python, Bash, PowerShell, Terraform, Ansible, or CloudFormation
• Configuration management and scripting (e.g., PowerShell, Bash, Python, etc.)
• CI/CD integration with infrastructure and platforms (e.g., Jenkins, GitLab CI/CD, GitHub Actions, GitOps, ArgoCD)
• Security best practices and system hardening
• Monitoring & Incident Response: Proficiency with tools like Prometheus, Grafana, Splunk, ELK Stack, CloudWatch

Architecture & Design

Ability to create:

• o As-is architecture documentation
• o To-be architecture and detailed engineering designs
• o Implementation and migration plans

DESIRED KNOWLEDGE/SKILLS

• Observability and monitoring tools (e.g., logging, metrics, tracing)
• Zero Trust and modern security architectures
• Data analytics, AL/ML platform exposure
• Experience supporting production or mission-critical environments
• Relevant certifications (e.g., cloud, systems, security, or architecture)
• Knowledge of machine learning platforms (e.g., TensorFlow, PyTorch, SafeMaker)
• Familiarity with big data ecosystems (e.g., Hadoop, Databricks, Snowflake, Google, BigQuery)
• Strong background in ITIL processes and agile methodologies
• Certifications: AWS Solutions Architect / DevOps Engineer, Azure Administrator, Kubernetes CKA/CKAD, ITIL Foundation

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Perform hands-on systems engineering across network, compute, storage, operating systems, middleware, databases, and applications
• Analyze and document as-is infrastructure, platform, and application architectures
• Work with the System Architect and Cloud Architect to create the detail engineering designs for modernization, optimization, and transformation initiatives
• Lead and execute cloud and on-prem system implementations, migrations, and upgrades
• Ensure systems meet availability, scalability, performance, security, and compliance requirements
• Integrate infrastructure and platforms with DevOps and DevSecOps pipelines
• Troubleshoot complex, cross-stack issues spanning infrastructure, platforms, and applications

Collaborate effectively with:

• Infrastructure & Platform Engineers
• Software Engineers
• DevOps/DevSecOps Engineers
• Data Engineers (ETL)
• Data Modelers, Data Scientists, and Data Analysts

• Produce clear technical documentation, diagrams, standards, and runbooks
• Serve as a technical authority and escalation point for complex system issues

Communication Skills:

• o Ability to brief executives clearly and translate technical issues into business impact
• o Ability to work across organizations (internal and IC) to implement complex solutions

*Eligible TS/SCI w/ FS Poly

QUALIFICATION

Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or other related technical discipline, or the equivalent combination of education, technical training, or work/military experience

Minimum ten (10) years of related Systems and Linux Engineering experience

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Infrastructure & Platforms

• Enterprise networking (e.g., routing, switching, firewalls, load balancers, DNS)
• Storage technologies (e.g., SAN, NAS, object storage)
• Container platforms (e.g., Kubernetes, Docker)
• Linux (Redhat, CentOS) operating systems (administration, hardening, automation)
• IdAM - Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) hands-on for AuthN and AuthZ

Cloud & On-Prem Technologies

• Cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, and/or GCP)
• Hybrid and on-prem infrastructure design and integration
• Cloud networking, identity, security, and cost optimization

Data & Application Platforms

• Relational and NoSQL databases - relational (e.g., Oracle, PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server) and NoSQL (e.g., MongoDB, Cassandra, DynamoDB, Redis) databases
• Web services, APIs, and middleware
• Software development lifecycle (SDLC) fundamentals
• Event-based messaging systems (e.g., SQS, SNS, RabbitMQ)

Engineering & Automation

• Infrastructure as Code - Scripting & Automation: Python, Bash, PowerShell, Terraform, Ansible, or CloudFormation
• Configuration management and scripting (e.g., PowerShell, Bash, Python, etc.)
• CI/CD integration with infrastructure and platforms (e.g., Jenkins, GitLab CI/CD, GitHub Actions, GitOps, ArgoCD)
• Security best practices and system hardening
• Monitoring & Incident Response: Proficiency with tools like Prometheus, Grafana, Splunk, ELK Stack, CloudWatch

Architecture & Design

Ability to create:

• o As-is architecture documentation
• o To-be architecture and detailed engineering designs
• o Implementation and migration plans

Leading Path provides a comprehensive and competitive benefits package including fully paid medical/dental/vision premiums, generous PTO, 11 Paid Holidays, 6% 401K contribution, annual training and tuition reimbursement, SPOT Award bonuses, regular team events, opportunities for professional growth and advancement and much more!