Chief Systems Architect

Leidos National Security Sector combines technology-enabled services and mission software capabilities in the areas of cyber, logistics, security operations, and decision analytics to support our defense and intel customers’ mission to defend against evolving threats around the world. Our team’s focus is to ensure our customers have the right tools, technologies, and tactics to keep pace with an ever-evolving security landscape and succeed in their pursuit to protect people and critical assets.

The Intelligence Production Solutions Division (IPSD), part of the Decision Advantage Solutions Business Area, is currently seeking a highly motivated Chief Systems Architect for the Chinook Program. The successful candidate will serve as the lead technical authority guiding architectural design, systems integration, and enterprise strategy across a high-visibility geospatial intelligence initiative.

The Chief Systems Architect will work closely with our customer leadership, mission stakeholders, and other contractors to develop and implement a scalable, secure, and resilient enterprise architecture supporting both current and future geospatial intelligence (GEOINT) missions.

Position may be performed in the following locations below.  Please note Gaithersburg, MD is the program’s primary work location.

• Gaithersburg, MD

• Alexandria, VA

• Chantilly, VA 

• St Louis, MO

• Denver, CO

• Tucson, AZ

Top Secret with the ability to obtain SCI, as well as a Polygraph.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Serve as the lead architect for a primary task order, while providing architectural guidance and alignment across the broader program as needed to ensure consistency, interoperability, and compliance across multiple task orders.

• Serve as the principal systems architect and strategic technical advisor on all matters related to enterprise systems design, cloud integration, and architecture modernization.

• Lead the development and evolution of architectural frameworks and system-of-systems designs aligned with the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) long-term GEOINT strategies.

• Function as a people manager, with responsibility for performance management, professional development, mentorship, and career path development.

• Conduct regular 1:1s, biannual performance check-ins, and professional development planning with direct reports, proactively address employee relations and morale.

• Provide authoritative recommendations on technology integration, standards adoption, and data flow optimization.

• Collaborate with Product Managers, Release Train Engineers (RTEs), and cross-functional scrum teams to translate business needs into technical solutions that meet performance, scalability, security, and compliance requirements.

• Guide technical decision-making across geographically dispersed teams to ensure consistent design patterns, coding standards, and DevSecOps practices.

• Conduct architecture reviews and provide governance to ensure solutions are compliant with federal enterprise architecture frameworks, cybersecurity mandates (e.g., NIST), and cloud adoption strategies.

• Define, update, and validate architectural patterns and interface specifications for enterprise-level systems.

• Drive cloud-native solution strategies including containerization, and continuous integration/continuous delivery/deployment (CI/CD) pipelines in secure environments.

• Analyze and evaluate emerging technologies to inform future-state architecture and capability roadmaps.

• Represent Leidos and the Chinook Program in high-level technical exchanges, reviews, and governance boards with NGA and Intelligence Community (IC) stakeholders.

• Drive user-facing front-end development and back-end infrastructure that integrates with existing customer systems and end user mission requirements.

• Expertise in at least one high-level programing language like Python, C, C++ or Java in addition to front end JavaScript API usage like Svelte or React.

Basic Qualifications:

• US citizenship is required per contract.

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or related discipline and 12-15 years of prior relevant experience or Master’s with 10-13 years of prior relevant experience. May possess a Doctorate in technical domain.

• Top Secret with the ability to obtain SCI, as well as a Polygraph.

• 10+ years of progressive experience in systems architecture, software development, solution engineering, or enterprise information technology (IT).

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to present complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

• Proven experience designing, implementing, and managing complex, mission-critical enterprise architectures with the IC.

• Deep expertise in cloud architecture (AWS/C2S/IC GovCloud), data integration, and secure multi-domain systems.

• Experience working with geographically dispersed Agile teams and participating in SAFe ceremonies (e.g., PI Planning Events, System Demos).

• Familiarity with GEOINT data, NGA tools, infrastructure, and tradecraft.

• Exceptional communication and stakeholder engagement skills, with a demonstrated ability to lead cross-organizational collaboration.

• Knowledge of cybersecurity frameworks (e.g., NIST 800-53), zero-trust architectures, and cloud security principles.

• Certifications such as The Open Group Architecture Framework (TOGAF), AWS Certified Solutions Architect, Google Professional Cloud Architect, Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert, Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP), Project Management Professional (PMP), or Red Hat Certified Architect (RHCA).

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience supporting NGA mission operations, and programs.

• SAFe certification, such as SAFe Architect, SAFe Agilist (SA), or SAFe Program Consultant (SPC).

• Experience with cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP), hybrid cloud, and cloud migration strategies.

• Experience mentoring junior architects or leading architecture communities of practice.

Come break things (in a good way). Then build them smarter.

We're the tech company everyone calls when things get weird. We don’t wear capes (they’re a safety hazard), but we do solve high-stakes problems with code, caffeine, and a healthy disregard for “how it’s always been done.”

For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs, Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.

The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.