Test and Evaluation Lead

Leidos Inc; Gaithersburg (MD); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

Career growth opportunities

Job summary

Leidos Inc in Gaithersburg, MD, is seeking a Test and Evaluation (T&E) Lead to define strategy and lead execution for the Leidos Common Automation Platform. This hybrid role focuses on establishing quality engineering strategies and leading multidisciplinary teams through complex testing environments while ensuring compliance with regulations.

The ideal candidate has a Bachelor's degree in Engineering or related field, with 12+ years of T&E experience, particularly in aviation safety-critical environments. Strong communication skills and knowledge of Agile methodologies are essential.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience in test and evaluation for complex systems.
• Demonstrated experience performing T&E on large-scale, safety-critical systems.
• Ability to obtain a Public Trust clearance.

Responsibilities

• Define and implement a modern quality engineering strategy.
• Lead the development of test environments and simulation capabilities.
• Promote early and continuous quality practices across teams.

Skills

Test and evaluation for complex systems

Agile/SAFe methodologies

Test planning and execution methodologies

Strong communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Systems Engineering

Tools

Automated testing frameworks

Test management tools (Jama, DOORS, Jira/Xray, TestRail)

Job description

Description

The Air Traffic Business Area within the Homeland Sector is seeking a Test and Evaluation (T&E) Lead to define strategy and lead execution of the test mission for the Leidos Common Automation Platform (L-CAP). L-CAP is a mission-critical, future‑ready automation platform built on a hybrid cloud data mesh architecture, enabling next‑generation air traffic management capabilities for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). As part of a large‑scale Scaled Agile (SAFe) software development organization, you will lead the establishment of T&E processes, strategy, planning, execution, and reporting across the program.

The successful candidate will be responsible for transforming how testing and mission validation are performed on a large-scale, safety‑critical system. This role will establish the vision, strategy, tools, automation framework, and organizational approach for validating a continuously evolving platform operating within a highly regulated environment.

Location: The position is located in Gaithersburg, MD or Egg Harbor Township, NJ. This is a hybrid position requiring 3 days onsite and 2 days working from home.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and implement a modern quality engineering strategy focused on automation, continuous testing, system monitoring, simulation, and risk‑based test planning.
• Establish AI‑assisted and model‑based testing methods to improve test coverage, accelerate testing, and identify defects earlier.
• Lead the development of test environments, simulation capabilities, synthetic test data, and digital system models to support validation before deployment.
• Develop methods for validating systems in real‑world operations using production data, system monitoring, operational replay, and performance analysis.
• Promote early and continuous quality practices across systems engineering, software development, cybersecurity, and operations teams.
• Establish automated testing pipelines that support continuous integration and continuous software delivery.
• Develop resilience testing approaches that verify system behavior during failures, recovery events, degraded operations, and unexpected conditions.
• Define quality metrics that measure operational performance, mission success, system reliability, and user experience rather than simply counting completed tests.
• Evaluate the use of AI and machine learning to improve test creation, defect prediction, anomaly detection, and system validation.
• Lead the development and execution of the T&E strategy for L-CAP, encompassing developmental testing (DT), operational testing (OT), and integrated testing.
• Develop and maintain the Test and Evaluation Master Plan (TEMP), test procedures, and associated documentation in alignment with FAA and DoD T&E standards.
• Lead a multidisciplinary T&E team, including test engineers, analysts, and lab/field test personnel.
• Establish verification and validation (V&V) frameworks that ensure system safety, performance, and compliance with FAA requirements.
• Plan and execute test events across lab, simulation, and operational environments.
• Interface with FAA stakeholders, providing test status, risk assessments, and readiness recommendations.
• Ensure compliance with safety‑critical system testing standards, including DO-278A and applicable FAA orders.
• Lead test readiness reviews (TRRs), test incident resolution, and lessons‑learned processes.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Systems Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
• 12+ years of experience in test and evaluation for complex systems.
• Demonstrated experience performing T&E on large-scale, safety‑critical systems.
• Strong knowledge of T&E planning and execution methodologies (TEMP, test procedures, test reporting).
• Experience with verification and validation frameworks, requirements traceability, and defect management.
• Familiarity with Agile/SAFe development environments and integrating T&E into iterative delivery cycles.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to brief leadership, customers, and stakeholders on test readiness and risk.
• Experience working with test labs, simulation environments, or operational test infrastructure.
• Ability to obtain a Public Trust clearance.
• U.S. citizenship required.
• Successful completion of background investigations as required by the government customer.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting FAA programs, air traffic management systems, or other aviation safety‑critical environments.
• Knowledge of DO-278A (CNS/ATM) or equivalent safety assurance standards.
• Experience with automated testing frameworks, CI/CD pipeline integration, and DevSecOps practices.
• Familiarity with model‑based systems engineering (MBSE) and model‑based testing.
• ISTQB, CTFL, or equivalent test certification.
• Experience with test management tools (e.g., Jama, DOORS, Jira/Xray, TestRail).
• Prior experience on large-scale federal modernization or transformation programs.
• Active Public Trust or higher clearance.

Why Join Us

• Lead the T&E strategy for a transformational, national‑impact air traffic automation platform.
• Shape testing practices at the intersection of safety‑critical systems and modern Agile delivery.
• Grow your career within a large‑scale enterprise program.
• Work alongside top‑tier engineers, systems architects, and mission experts.
• Competitive compensation, benefits, and career growth opportunities.

Equal Employment Opportunity

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, race, ethnicity, age, national origin, citizenship, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, pregnancy, family structure, marital status, ancestry, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran or military status, or any other basis prohibited by law. Leidos will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with relevant laws.