Navarro Research and Engineering is recruiting a
Senior Data Scientist / AI Engineer (3878). This is a remote position. Citizenship is required.
We are seeking a Senior Data Scientist / AI Engineer to design, develop, deploy, and maintain machine learning and generative AI solutions within a government environment. This role will support both locally hosted AI systems and cloud-based AI services within Microsoft Azure Government, including Azure AI Foundry and related Azure AI services.
The ideal candidate has hands-on experience building production AI systems, deploying and operating open-source large language models (LLMs), implementing secure MLOps practices, and developing AI applications that meet government security and compliance requirements.
Key ResponsibilitiesAI/ML Solution Development- Design, build, train, evaluate, and deploy machine learning and generative AI solutions.
- Develop and maintain predictive analytics, NLP, computer vision, and LLM-based applications.
- Implement Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), agentic workflows, and knowledge management solutions.
- Evaluate commercial, open-source, and custom AI models for mission-specific use cases.
Local and On-Premises AI Infrastructure- Deploy and operate local/open-source models in secure environments.
- Configure and optimize inference environments using GPUs and containerized deployments.
- Manage model serving platforms and inference frameworks.
- Implement monitoring, performance tuning, and lifecycle management for locally hosted models.
- Support disconnected, restricted, or air-gapped operational environments.
Azure Government AI Platforms- Design and deploy AI solutions within Azure Government.
- Build and manage solutions using Azure AI Foundry, Azure OpenAI, Azure Machine Learning, Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), and related services.
- Implement secure model deployment, monitoring, and governance controls.
- Integrate AI services with enterprise systems and data platforms.
Data Engineering and Analytics- Develop data pipelines supporting AI and analytics workloads.
- Perform data exploration, feature engineering, model evaluation, and performance analysis.
- Work with structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data sources.
- Ensure data quality, lineage, and governance standards are maintained.
MLOps and DevSecOps- Implement CI/CD pipelines for machine learning and AI workloads.
- Develop automated testing, validation, and deployment processes.
- Establish model monitoring, drift detection, and performance reporting.
- Apply security controls and compliance requirements throughout the AI lifecycle.
Stakeholder Support- Collaborate with mission owners, analysts, engineers, cybersecurity personnel, and leadership.
- Translate operational requirements into technical AI solutions.
- Prepare technical documentation, architecture diagrams, and presentations.
RequirementsEducation- Bachelor's degree in Data Science, Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, Statistics, or related field.
- Master's degree preferred.
Professional Experience- 5+ years of experience in data science, machine learning, AI engineering, or related fields.
- 2+ years of experience deploying and operating production AI/ML systems.
- Experience supporting secure government, defense, or regulated environments preferred.
Technical SkillsMachine Learning & Data Science- Strong knowledge of supervised and unsupervised learning techniques.
- Experience with model development, evaluation, and optimization.
- Statistical analysis and experimental design experience.
- Proficiency in Python and common ML frameworks.
Generative AI & LLMs- Experience deploying and operating open-source LLMs.
- Experience with:
- Llama family models
- Mistral models
- Hugging Face models
- Knowledge of:
- RAG architectures
- Agent frameworks
- Prompt engineering
- Model evaluation methodologies
- Fine-tuning approaches
Azure Government and Cloud AI- Experience with:
- Azure AI Foundry
- Azure Machine Learning
- Azure OpenAI
- Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
- Azure Storage and Data Services
- Azure Identity and Access Management
- Experience deploying AI workloads in Azure Government environments preferred.
Local AI Infrastructure- Experience with:
- Docker
- Kubernetes
- GPU-based inference systems
- vLLM, Ollama, TGI, or similar inference platforms
- Linux administration
- Understanding of model quantization and performance optimization techniques.
Data Platforms- SQL and relational databases
- Data warehousing concepts
- ETL/ELT pipeline development
- Vector databases and semantic search platforms
Software Engineering- Git-based development workflows
- REST APIs and microservices
- CI/CD pipelines
- Infrastructure-as-Code concepts
Preferred Qualifications- Active security clearance or ability to obtain one.
- Experience with NIST AI Risk Management Framework.
- Experience with FedRAMP, RMF, or government cybersecurity compliance frameworks.
- Experience supporting classified or controlled environments.
- Azure certifications.
- Experience with distributed GPU environments.
- Experience implementing AI governance and responsible AI controls.
Desired TechnologiesCandidates should have experience with several of the following:
ProgrammingAI/ML Frameworks- PyTorch
- TensorFlow
- Scikit-learn
- Hugging Face Transformers
LLM Ecosystem- LangChain
- LlamaIndex
- Semantic Kernel
- OpenAI APIs
- Azure OpenAI APIs
Infrastructure- Docker
- Kubernetes
- AKS
- Linux
- GitHub Actions
- Azure DevOps
Databases- PostgreSQL
- SQL Server
- Vector databases
- Azure Data Services
Security Requirements- U.S. citizenship required.
- Ability to pass government background investigation.
- Ability to comply with all applicable government security and information assurance requirements.
Success CriteriaWithin the first 12 months, the selected candidate will:
- Deploy and support production AI solutions in Azure Government.
- Establish repeatable MLOps processes for AI model deployment and maintenance.
- Deploy and manage secure local/open-source LLM environments.
- Develop mission-focused AI applications leveraging RAG and agentic workflows.
- Improve operational efficiency through automation and advanced analytics.
Due to the nature of the government contract requirements and/or clearances requirements, US citizenship is required.
Benefits- Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision)
- Retirement Plan (401k,)
- Life Insurance (Basic, Voluntary & AD&D)
- Paid Time Off (Vacation & Public Holidays)
- Short Term & Long Term Disability
