SummaryLead proactive counterintelligence and security activities across the United States government, integrating the instruments of national power to detect, report, deter, disrupt, investigate, exploit, and defeat foreign intelligence threats.
DutiesThe Mission Capabilities Directorate (MCD) drives enterprise technical and information sharing solutions, prioritizes and manages requirements in support of whole-of-government counterintelligence and security mission partners. MCD identifies mission gaps, builds capabilities through full lifecycle program development, drives data analytics and technical innovation, delivers threat RFIs/assessments, coordinates interagency partners, and ensures legal/policy/civil liberties compliance. The Technical Lead manages mission-critical systems enabling counterintelligence professionals across the Intelligence Community, Department of Defense, and federal government to identify, assess, and mitigate national security threats. The Technical Lead oversees supply chain risk analysis, counterintelligence analysis tools, threat geospatial analysis, foreign access management, and identity intelligence. MCD seeks an exceptional technical leader to serve as Technical Lead. This high-visibility supervisory position provides technical leadership across the portfolio while sharing responsibilities for personnel management, budget execution, and strategic planning. The position supervises four IT Program Managers and able to serve as Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) or Government Task Lead (GTM).
Primary Responsibilities:
Provide leadership and/or oversight to complex IT projects or programs that may include ill-defined requirements, ambiguity, parallel tasks, multiple dependencies, high risks, and multiple interfaces; ensure alignment with strategic or corporate objectives; lead the definition and review of customer and stakeholder requirements; ensure plans and schedules are developed and followed throughout the life of the project.
Technical Leadership & Architecture: Develop and maintain the technical roadmap, establishing strategic direction for technology evolution, capability enhancements, and modernization aligned with NCSC and IC priorities. Provide technical leadership across all system lifecycle phases. Make final architecture decisions including technology selections, integration approaches, cloud migration strategies, and modernization plans. Oversee technical integration to ensure interoperability and unified capabilities. Coordinate with MCD's Chief of Innovation to leverage enterprise DevSecOps pipelines, Cross Domain Solutions, and shared services. Share strategic planning responsibilities and program prioritization. Represent the effort in technical working groups, governance bodies, and coordination forums across ODNI, the IC, and interagency partners.
Budget Formulation & Execution: Lead budget formulation and execution, developing comprehensive requirements for system development, operations, security accreditation, and contractor support. Develop multi-year projections accounting for lifecycle costs and emerging needs. Monitor execution and lead planning to meet mission priorities within available funding.
Contract Oversight: Serve as COTR or Government Task Manager (GTM) for contracts supporting systems, providing technical oversight of contractor performance, deliverables, and compliance. Evaluate technical approaches, assess deliverable quality, and ensure alignment with government direction. Monitor performance against specifications, review and approve invoices, and participate in contract modifications and acquisition planning.
Supervisory & Personnel Management: Directly supervise IT Program Managers. Conduct performance evaluations, establish objectives, provide feedback and coaching, and address performance issues. Foster a high-performance, collaborative environment encouraging innovation and continuous improvement. Build team capacity through strategic hiring, onboarding, and talent development.
Other Duties: As assigned, to support NCSC and ODNI mission objectives.
RequirementsConditions of employment- Must be a U.S. Citizen residing in the United States
- Appointment is subject to a suitability or fitness determination, as determined by a completed background investigation.
- Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret security clearance based on an SBI with eligibility for sensitive compartmented information (SCI)
- Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must complete a Pre-Employment Certification Statement for Selective Service Registration.
- A two-year trial period is required for all new permanent appointments to the ODNI.
QualificationsThis is an excepted service GS-15 position open to the public and all current federal employees at the GS-15 and one level below. Current federal employees at the GS-15 and one level below may apply to this position, and if selected will maintain pay set at their current grade and step. Current federal employees at grade levels GS-13 and below
are not eligible for this position and their application will not be forwarded to the hiring manager. All current federal employees that apply for this position must submit their most recent SF-50, Notification of Personal Action (i.e., dated within the last 52 weeks from the closing date of this vacancy announcement) to verify their status of eligibility.
Program & Project Management: Extensive knowledge of IT program management principles, project lifecycle methodologies, and governance frameworks. Experience overseeing complex IT programs with multiple dependencies, risks, and stakeholders. Ability to manage programs at varying maturity levels from development through sustainment.
Expert level program management, analytic, and critical thinking skills, including the ability to conduct program and management assessments, identify needs and requirements, and develop non-linear process improvement recommendations for implementation across the Intelligence Community.
Expert leadership and/or oversight in managing complex IT projects or programs that may include ill-defined requirements, ambiguity, parallel tasks, multiple dependencies, high risks, and multiple interfaces; ensure alignment with strategic or corporate objectives; lead the definition and review of customer and stakeholder requirements; ensure plans and schedules are developed and followed throughout the life of the project.
Technical Expertise: Deep technical knowledge of enterprise IT systems, software development lifecycle, cloud computing, and modern application architectures. Expert understanding of DevSecOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, containerization, microservices, and infrastructure automation. Strong familiarity with system integration, APIs, data architectures, and cross-domain solutions.
IC & National Security Knowledge: Expert understanding of how technology is used within the Intelligence Community and in support of national security missions. Extensive knowledge of IC organizations, their roles, responsibilities, and technical environments. Strong familiarity with counterintelligence and security mission requirements.
Supervisory & Leadership: Superior ability to supervise and lead professional-level staff, including IT Program Managers and technical specialists. Experience building high-performance teams, conducting performance management, and fostering professional development. Proven ability to lead through influence and operate effectively in matrixed organizations.
Budget & Resource Management: Expert experience with budget formulation and execution for IT programs. Ability to develop multi-year budget projections, justify resource requirements, monitor expenditures, and reallocate resources to meet mission priorities.
Contracting & Acquisition: Strong understanding of federal contracting processes and COTR responsibilities. Ability to provide technical oversight of contractor performance, evaluate deliverables, and ensure contract compliance. Willingness to obtain COTR certification within 90 days of entry on duty.
Communication Skills: Superior ability to communicate complex technical information clearly and concisely, both verbally and in writing, to diverse audiences including senior leadership, technical experts, and mission stakeholders. Exceptional briefing skills with ability to tailor technical content to audience needs.
Stakeholder Management: Substantial superior ability to build and maintain productive relationships with senior-level internal and external stakeholders across ODNI, IC agencies, DoD, and federal partners. Expert ability to coordinate effectively across organizational boundaries and influence without direct authority.
Problem-Solving & Decision-Making: Superior analytical and critical thinking skills with ability to solve complex technical problems, assess risks, and make sound decisions under uncertainty. Ability to balance competing priorities and make trade-offs between technical ideals, security requirements, and mission needs.
Desired Qualifications:
Security & Accreditation: Extensive knowledge of Risk Management Framework (RMF), NIST 800-53 security controls, ICD 503, and security accreditation processes for classified systems. Experience with continuous Authorization to Operate (cATO), security assessment and authorization, and information security management. Understanding of insider threat detection, access controls, and security monitoring.
Counterintelligence & Security Systems: Experience with counterintelligence systems, security collaboration platforms, supply chain risk management tools, personnel security systems, or geospatial intelligence applications.
Technical Certifications: Relevant technical certifications such as CISSP, CISM, CISA, PMP, AWS/Azure cloud certifications, or ITIL.
Advanced Degree: Master's degree in computer science, information systems, cybersecurity, engineering, or related technical field.
Cloud & Modern Architectures: Deep experience with cloud-native architectures, containerization (Kubernetes/Docker), serverless computing, and cloud migration strategies in classified or highly regulated environments.
Data & Analytics: Experience with data architectures, data engineering, analytics platforms, or AI/ML systems supporting intelligence or security missions.
Additional informationJOB INTERVIEW TRAVELCandidates from outside the Washington Metropolitan Area (WMA) may be selected for a telephone, teleconference, or in-person interview.
SALARY DETERMINATIONThe ODNI uses a rank-in-person system in which rank is attached to GS employees on the basis of individual qualifications, experience, and performance. Individuals whose current GS grade is equivalent to the grade of the advertised position will retain their current grade and step. Individuals who transfer to the ODNI from a non-GS pay scale will have base pay converted to the appropriate GS grade and step as determined by the Chief of Human Resource Management.
In some cases when a current federal civilian employee applies for an ODNI position that is a lower grade than his or her personal grade, the candidate's personal grade will be downgraded to the grade of the advertised ODNI position and pay will be set at the step that is closest to, and not less than, the employee's current annual base rate of pay, not to exceed the maximum step rate of the GS grade to which assigned.
RELOCATION EXPENSESFor new ODNI employees, reimbursement for relocation is discretionary based on availability of funds.
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