TECHNICAL DIRECTOR FOR NEXT GENERATION INTEGRATED AIR AND MISSILE DEFENSE CAPABILITY DEVELOPMENT Job

Vacancy No. MDA-26-12892128-ST Department Missile Defense Agency
Salary $151,661.00 to $228,000.00 Grade 00 to 00
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 2/20/2026 Close Date 3/6/2026
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Redstone Arsenal, ALFort Belvoir, VA


Summary

This is the senior leader responsible for driving enterprise-wide technical alignment, delivery, and governance of integrated weapon system capabilities across the Department of War (DoW). The incumbent leads a portfolio of efforts that connect development, testing, and fielding of advanced capabilities across the Services, Program Incumbent Offices (PEOs), and supporting agencies, ensuring warfighter requirements are met with timely, affordable, and operationally relevant solutions.

This job is open to

The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Federal employees - Competitive service

Current federal employees whose agencies follow the U.S. Office of Personnel Management's hiring rules and pay scales.

Federal employees - Excepted service

Current federal employees whose agencies have their own hiring rules, pay scales and evaluation criteria.

Senior executives

Individuals looking for an executive-level job and who meet the five Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs).

Clarification from the agency

This announcement is open to all qualified candidates.

Duties

- Manages enterprise technical integration of multi-domain weapon system development and delivery, ensuring seamless synchronization across Services, acquisition pathways, and functional organizations. Leads the enterprise to integrate diverse technical solutions, including radar systems, interceptors, command and control networks, and space-based assets, with
a focus on minimizing integration risks and maximizing system-level performance.

- Directs technical development and integration activities that support coordinated testing and fielding of critical capabilities under compressed timelines and emerging threat conditions. Drives technical risk management, system-of-systems engineering principles, and the ability to make informed system-level trade-off decisions under pressure.

- Develops and implements robust department level technical integration processes and performance metrics that provide visibility across all technical and operational dimensions to ensure sound engineering principles, reflect the actual integrated system performance, and be
designed to identify potential integration issues early in the development cycle.

- Establishes and manages formal governance structures, including Integrated Product Teams (IPTs), technical reviews and assessments, and cross-service technical working groups. Ensures this governance structure includes appropriate technical expertise, particularly in system-of-systems engineering and integration and to provide a forum for rigorous technical review and system-level trade-off analysis.

- Defines roles, responsibilities, and decision authorities to ensure effective technical integration and resolution of technical challenges across organizational boundaries including establishing clear lines of technical authority and accountability for integration efforts and ensuring that
integration issues are resolved at the appropriate level.

- Develops and maintains reporting frameworks and dashboards that provide real-time insight into execution status, capability alignment, kill web performance, and risk posture. Guides the development of dashboards to present technical data in a clear and concise manner, focusing on key system-of-systems performance metrics, and enabling informed decision making regarding integration strategies and resource allocation.

- Delivers routine reports, performance assessments, and strategic updates to agency leadership, OSW, and external oversight bodies. Produces products that articulate complex technical issues, including system-of-systems tradeoffs, to non-technical audiences.

- Leads the design, refinement, and analysis of system-of-systems kill webs across all domains (air, land, sea, space, cyber, and electromagnetic spectrum) requiring a deep understanding of kill chain analysis, sensor shooter pairing, command and control architectures, and the ability to optimize kill web performance through system-level trade-off studies.

- Guides architecture development efforts that integrate sensors, shooters, command-and-control, and effectors into resilient and adaptive kill chains. Leads the technical community to ensure that these architectures are robust, scalable, adaptable to evolving threats, and designed to facilitate
seamless integration of diverse components.

- Oversees mission-level modeling and simulation to assess kill web performance against peer and near-peer threats, enabling threat-informed acquisition and capability trade-offs. Produces assessments and interprets results of these simulations, understands their limitations, and makes
informed recommendations regarding system design, deployment, and system-level trade-offs to improve kill web effectiveness.

- Guides enterprise-level risk management processes across programs, mission areas, and kill webs, with a particular focus on integration risks and system-of-systems vulnerabilities.

- Leads enterprise trade space assessments, recommending risk-adjusted strategies for schedule recovery, capability off-ramps, or reallocation of investment to maximize mission outcomes. These recommendations must be based on rigorous system-level trade studies that consider cost,
schedule, performance, and risk across the entire enterprise.

- Serves as the technical authority for risk review boards and collaborates with independent technical authorities to validate risk mitigation plans and system-level trade-off decisions. The Incumbent must be able to challenge technical assumptions, ensure that risk mitigation plans are
realistic and effective, and that system-level trade-offs are justified by quantifiable improvements in overall system performance.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

  • Work Schedule: Full Time
  • Must be a U.S. citizen
  • Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service
  • Resume and supporting documents (See How To Apply)
  • Suitable for Federal employment, determined by a background investigation. Must be able to obtain/maintain Special Sensitive/Top Secret SCI clearance.
  • Designated and/or random drug testing is required
  • Financial Disclosure: Senior Leaders are required to comply with the provisions of the Ethics in Government Act, PL 95-521, which requires the submission of a financial disclosure statement (OGE-278), upon assuming an ST position.
  • Senior Leader are required to complete a "Declaration of Federal Employment," (OF 306), prior to being appointed to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background check.
  • Overtime: None
  • Recruitment Incentives: May be Authorized
  • Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): Exempt
  • Tour of Duty: Set Schedule
  • Telework: Not telework eligible

Qualifications

Applicants must meet the minimum qualification requirements for this position; you must show that you possess the Mandatory Technical Qualifications (MTQ) within your resume - NOT TO EXCEED 2 PAGES. Resumes exceeding two pages will be disqualified.

MANDATORY TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS (TQ):
All applicants must be able to address accomplishments that would satisfy the technical qualifications in a structured interview assessment:

  1. Extensive knowledge and experience with providing strategic planning and technical management of major acquisition development programs, including the ability to review, analyze and resolve complex technological issues for major defense weapon system programs, with a particular focus on system-of-systems integration.
  2. Experienced in leading technical teams to integrate diverse sensor systems (ground, sea, space), applying systems engineering, risk management, interface control, and system-level trade studies to optimize performance within system-of-systems architectures.

Education

Substitution of education may not be used in lieu of specialized experience for this position.


Individual Occupational Requirements
Basic Requirements:


A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics.

OR

B. Combination of education and experience -- college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following:
1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT)1, or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions.
2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE)2 examination or any other written test required for professional. 1 registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico.
3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A.
4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all inclusive.)

Additional information

REEMPLOYED ANNUITANTS: The DoD criteria for hiring Reemployed Annuitants can be found at: DoDI 1400.25-V300.

ACQUISITION POSITION: This position requires a Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) Engineering and Technical Management, Advanced acquisition certification. Certification prior to hiring is not essential but must be accomplished within 48 months after entry into this position. For information regarding the DAWIA Back to Basics please visit: Home (dau.edu) or Back to Basics - Helpful Resources (dau.edu)

  • DAWIA (Back to Basics) Certification: CAP: Position is a DoD Critical Acquisition Position & requires DoD Acquisition Engineering and Technical Management, Advanced acquisition certification. The incumbent has 48 months to achieve this certification. Selectee must also achieve 80 hours of Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) every 2-years and sign a written agreement to remain in Federal service in the position for at least three years. Click here for more details and Resources.

The Incumbent must complete 80 continuous learning points every two years. Travel to national and international locations may be required.

Travel to national and international locations may be required.

Veterans preference is not applicable to the Senior Executive Service.

Applications MUST be submitted through USAJobs.

Education: An undergraduate degree in Engineering from an accredited University and at least ten years' experience in the development and test of complex weapon systems is mandatory. A Masters or PhD in an Engineering or technical management discipline is desired.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

We will review your resume and supporting documents, for the quality and extent of your total accomplishments, experience and education as it relates to the fundamental competencies, identified below. Your application will be evaluated by an Executive Evaluation Panel rating and ranking panel, and highly qualified candidates may be contacted for an interview and to provide reference checks. The Office of the Secretary of Defense Executive Resources Board will review results and make recommendations on final selections to the appointing authority.

Required Documents

1. Your resume:

  • IMPORTANT UPDATE: Your resume must not exceed two (2) pages. If your resume exceeds the two-page limit, you will be removed from consideration for this announcement. The resume and required supporting documentation should provide the minimum qualifications and relevant experience for the announced position. Must include the work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment, and duties performed. If multiple resumes are submitted by an applicant, only the last resume submitted will be reviewed for qualifications and referred for selection consideration, if eligible. The resume must not be more than 5MB and should be saved and uploaded as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. Page margins should be 0.5 inches, and font styles must be legible. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text. We recommend using a font like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans.
  • Additional guidance on writing a federal resume can be found at: USAJOBS Help Center - How do I write a resume for a federal job? The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started.
2. Transcripts:
  • This position has a degree or education requirement so you are required to submit a copy of your transcript
3. SF50
  • All current and former civilian Federal employees must submit a copy of your MOST RECENT SF50 (Notification of Personnel Action) showing your tenure, grade and step, salary, and type of position occupied (i.e., Excepted or Competitive); or similar Notification of Personnel Action documentation, i.e., Transcript of Service, Form 1150, etc. This is also a requirement to verify your Time in Grade (TIG).
4. Veteran's Documents:
  • If applying using veteran's preference you must submit the following documents: DD214 showing character of service, SF-15 Form and VA letter showing final percentage, or certification of expected discharge or release from active duty.
DO NOT submit additional information (i.e. awards, appraisals, pages in excess of the limit for the resume).

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below.

The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date to receive consideration.

  • To begin, click Apply Online to access an online application. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account or you may need to create a new account.
  • You will be taken to an online application. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation, and submit the application. NOTE: Resumes up to a total of two pages will be accepted. Resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration.
  • You will receive an email notification when your application has been received for the announcement.
  • To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account, https://www.usajobs.gov, select the Application Status link and then select the More Information link for this position. The Application Status page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and your responses submitted to the online application. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
To preview the questionnaire, please go to https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12892128

Please review the General Application Information and Definitions at:
https://www.dla.mil/Portals/104/Documents/Careers/downloads/DoDGenAppInfo%2012-1-2020.pdf?ver=ECNbdsHtGilTd3OENN4A0Q%3d%3d

Agency contact information

DE Applicant Inquires
Phone
614-692-0420
Email
DEApplicantInquiries@dla.mil
Address
Missile Defense Agency
Bldg 5222 Martin Rd
Redstone Arsenal, AL 35898
US

Next steps

Once you successfully complete the application process, you will receive a notification of receipt. Your application package will be reviewed to ensure you meet the basic eligibility and qualifications requirements, and you will receive a notification. A review will be made of your online questionnaire and the documentation you submitted to support your responses. A list of qualified applicants will be created and sent to the selecting official. All applicants reviewed and/or referred will receive a notification letter.

A list of qualified applicants will be created and sent to the selecting official. All applicants reviewed and/or referred will receive a notification letter. The selecting official may choose to conduct interviews, and once the selection is made, you will receive a notification of the decision.