Systems Engineer, Principal

Peraton; Reston (VA); On-site; USD 176,000 - 282,000; Full time

Job summary

Peraton is seeking a Principal Systems Engineer to serve as the primary technical authority for a national intelligence program in Northern Virginia, overseeing IT enterprise infrastructure strategy, modernization, and operations with strict security and uptime requirements.

The role emphasizes cloud migrations, data center modernization, and governance across complex environments, requiring TS/SCI clearance, deep virtualization and containerization expertise, and strong communication with

Qualifications

• Active TS/SCI clearance with ability to obtain Poly.
• 16+ years of relevant experience with a Bachelor's degree (or 14+ with Master's/PhD).
• 10+ years IT infrastructure experience, 4+ years in lead/principal role.
• Proven track record managing large-scale distributed environments.
• Deep expertise in virtualization, containers, and cloud orchestration.
• Strong understanding of Zero-Trust and high-availability load balancing.
• Excellent communication across all organizational levels.
• CISSP or Security+ certification required.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary technical authority for strategic design and 24/7 operational excellence.
• Define multi-year infrastructure roadmaps and modernization plans.
• Lead program engineering strategy for data centers, cloud, and networks.
• Bridge architecture and implementation with zero downtime and security.
• Govern engineering standards and perform rigorous reviews.
• Oversee cloud migrations, data center modernization, and cybersecurity integration.
• Drive incident, problem, and change management to mitigate risk.
• Lead training on new technologies and automation initiatives.
• Lead infrastructure transition to automated provisioning and scaling.

Skills

TS/SCI clearance

Zero-Trust Architecture

High-availability load balancing

Strong communication

CISSP or Security+

Virtualization (VMware/KVM)

Containerization (Kubernetes)

Cloud orchestration

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree

PhD

Tools

VMware

KVM

Kubernetes

Cloud orchestration tools

Job description

Job Locations

US-VA-Reston | US-DC-Washington

Requisition ID

2026-164241

Position Category

Engineering

Clearance

Top Secret/SCI w/Poly

Title

Systems Engineer, Principal

Responsibilities

Peraton is seeking a Systems Engineer, Principal to join our national intelligence program in Northern Virginia as the primary technical authority responsible for the strategic design, implementation, and 24/7 operational excellence of the IT Enterprise Infrastructure client's technology stack.

• Serve as the primary technical authority responsible for strategic design, implementation, and 24/7 operational excellence.
• Define and maintain the multi-year infrastructure roadmaps for leading edge IT Enterprise modernization, to include decommissioning/ replacement for Technical Refresh and insertion of new technologies.
• Lead the program engineering strategy for data centers, cloud environments, and network services, that include a focus on Technical Refresh.
• Bridge the gap between high-level architecture and hands-on implementation, ensuring that system upgrades are executed with zero downtime and maximum security.
• Lead Program Technical Governance: Establish engineering standards, perform rigorous engineering/ peer reviews, and ensure all infrastructure adheres to modern cybersecurity frameworks.
• Oversee cloud migrations, data center modernization, global networking, and cybersecurity integration with the mission is to transform "legacy" into "leading-edge" while maintaining the 99.99% uptime our global operations demand.
• Drive operational excellence in Incident, Problem, and Change Management to include root cause analysis and action plans to mitigate risk and eliminate recurrence.
• Lead Technical Training iteratives for new technologies introduced into the environment impacting stakeholders and clients.
• Lead the Infrastructure transition to automate provisioning and scaling.
• Lead Quality

Travel may be required within the National Capital Region (NCR) on an as needed basis for customer or corporate requirements.

Please Note this is for a Proposal Effort

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications

• Active Top Secret/ Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) clearance with ability to obtain a Poly level Clearance.
• Minimum of 16 years relevant experience with a Bachelor's degree (Master's degree and 14 years of relevant experience or PhD with 10 years of relevant work experience. 4 years experience may be used in Lieu of a degree.
• 10+ years of progressive experience in IT Infrastructure, with at least 4 years in a lead or principal engineering capacity.
• Proven track record of managing large-scale, distributed enterprise environments and technical refresh.
• Deep expertise in virtualization (VMware/KVM), containerization (Kubernetes), and cloud orchestration.
• Strong understanding of Zero-Trust Architecture and high-availability load balancing.
• Ability to effectively communicate complex technical issues and solutions to all organizational levels, from individual contributors to executives.
• CISSP or Security+ Certification required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Active TS/SCI with Poly clearances.
• Certifications: AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional, Microsoft Azure Solutions Architect, CISSP, ITIL v 4.0 Foundations.
• Experience with current IC customer.

Peraton Overview

Peraton is a next-generation national security company that drives missions of consequence spanning the globe and extending to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. As the world's leading mission capability integrator and transformative enterprise IT provider, we deliver trusted, highly differentiated solutions and technologies to protect our nation and allies. Peraton operates at the critical nexus between traditional and nontraditional threats across all domains: land, sea, space, air, and cyberspace. The company serves as a valued partner to essential government agencies and supports every branch of the U.S. armed forces. Each day, our employees do the can't be done by solving the most daunting challenges facing our customers. Visit peraton.com to learn how we're keeping people around the world safe and secure.

Target Salary Range

$176,000 - $282,000. This represents the typical salary range for this position. Salary is determined by various factors, including but not limited to, the scope and responsibilities of the position, the individual's experience, education, knowledge, skills, and competencies, as well as geographic location and business and contract considerations. Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay.

EEO

EEO: Equal opportunity employer, including disability and protected veterans, or other characteristics protected by law.