ROLE AND POSITION OBJECTIVES:
The MUOS System Architect / Senior Advanced Systems Engineer provides program-level architecture leadership for the Space Force MUOS program, a live mission-critical communications system. This role is responsible for translating customer mission objectives, operational constraints, technical risks, and long-term sustainment needs into a coherent system architecture and technical roadmap.
The position works across systems engineering, software, hardware, network management, ground transport, cyber, test, sustainment, program leadership, and customer stakeholders. This role balances near-term capability delivery with long-term flexibility, reliability, cybersecurity, supportability, verification, and mission continuity.
Key Responsibilities
- Provides architecture leadership for MUOS enhancements, sustainment, modernization, and long-term technical planning.
- Translates customer mission objectives and future vision into a coherent technical framework for execution by engineering teams.
- Leads architecture decisions and trade studies involving requirements, interfaces, performance, cyber, verification, supportability, cost, schedule, and risk.
- Owns or supports the 5- to 10-year technical roadmap, including funded work, DMSMS/obsolescence risks, capability evolution, architecture enablers, and investment candidates.
- Guides cross-functional teams through requirements analysis, requirements management, functional analysis, system design, integration, and verification planning.
- Defines and reviews system requirements and allocations to subsystems, elements, and components.
- Performs interface definition and operational thread analysis across MUOS ground system domains.
- Identifies, analyzes, and resolves system design weaknesses and architecture risks.
- Supports system accreditation, certification, cybersecurity, and test activities by ensuring architecture impacts and evidence needs are understood.
- Evaluates impacts of new capabilities, technology refresh, DMSMS, unsupported hardware/software, cyber posture, vendor support, and sustainment constraints.
- Serves as a senior technical interface with customer stakeholders on architecture, strategy, technical risk, and future capability direction.
- Develops technical engineering products using appropriate standards, processes, procedures, and tools.
- Leads technical planning, cost/risk/supportability/effectiveness analysis, and proposal inputs for major program efforts.
- Coaches technical leads and engineers, helping raise architecture judgment across the team.
- Identifies opportunities to apply AI, automation, MBSE, and improved engineering workflows for continuous improvement and innovation.
Knowledge, Skills & Abilities
- Excellent understanding and application of systems engineering and system architecture principles.
- Ability to reason across mission objectives, requirements, interfaces, cyber, test, sustainment, cost, schedule, and stakeholder impacts.
- Strong ability to lead architecture decisions under ambiguity, clearly separating facts, assumptions, options, risks, and recommended paths forward.
- Strong knowledge of requirements management, system modeling, architecture documentation, and technical baseline stewardship.
- Experience with tools such as DOORS/DOORS NG, MagicDraw/Cameo, Visio, Draw.io, and Microsoft Office.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to brief customers and leadership on complex technical issues.
- Ability to build productive relationships with customers, program leadership, technical leads, and cross-functional engineering teams.
- Strong presentation, negotiation, and technical leadership skills.
- Understanding of communication systems, ground systems, network management, core networking, cybersecurity, test, and sustainment considerations.
- Ability to identify architecture-level risks from DMSMS, obsolescence, unsupported software, fragile interfaces, cyber constraints, and incomplete documentation.
- Awareness of business objectives and the role of architecture in achieving cost, schedule, mission, and customer outcomes.
- Ability to apply AI and automation thoughtfully to improve engineering execution, evidence management, and decision support.
What sets you apart:
- Creative thinker with demonstrated success leading the systems development life cycle
- Collaborative team player eager to provide technical leadership and position others for success
- Thorough knowledge of technology trends and willingness to champion new ideas and process improvements
- Strong presentation and communications skills with experience in the art of negotiation and the ability to meet challenging customer requirements with win-win solutions
- Commitment to ongoing professional development for yourself and others
- Identifies opportunities to apply AI for continuous improvement and innovation
Our Commitment to You:
- An exciting career path with opportunities for continuous learning and development.
- Research oriented work, alongside award winning teams developing practical solutions for our nation’s security
- Flexible schedules with every other Friday off work, if desired (9/80 schedule)
- Competitive benefits, including 401k matching, flex time off, paid parental leave, healthcare benefits, health & wellness programs, employee resource and social groups, and more
- See more at gdmissionsystems.com/careers/why-work-for-us/benefits
Workplace Options:
This position is Onsite at our Scottsdale, AZ facility.
