Senior Systems Engineer

In this role, you will be directly supporting an Army sponsor and are expected to perform work across a variety of MITRE, contractor, and government locations in Huntsville, AL. As a Senior Systems Engineer with expertise in agile, AI, and data systems, you will support the Army sponsor by guiding technical planning, assessing contractor solutions, evaluating mission needs, and delivering data-driven recommendations that advance Army modernization and effect operational outcomes. As a technical leader, you will work with government stakeholders, contractors, and operational users to evaluate architectures, requirements, performance, integration, deployment constraints, and technical risks., * Assess contractor architectures and technical documentation to identify risks, gaps, and opportunities for improvement, including interoperability, technical maturity, and readiness for operational use.

• Evaluate and recommend artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities based on mission needs, performance, limitations, and deployment constraints.
• Translate government priorities into requirements and measurable technical milestones.
• Develop technical roadmaps that account for operational user needs, deployment dependencies, and security considerations.
• Define and improve execution battle rhythms and user feedback processes across government and contractor teams to support coordination, prioritization, and continuous improvement.
• Communicate technical findings and actionable recommendations to senior government and contractor stakeholders.
• Develop reusable assessment methods and technical guidance that strengthen the government’s ability to support multiple programs.

• Minimum of 5 years of related experience with a bachelor’s degree; 3 years with a master’s degree; or a PhD with relevant experience.
• Must be based in Huntsville, AL or able to relocate to Huntsville.
• Experience developing, integrating, testing, or assessing software or data systems.
• Systems engineering experience assessing requirements, designs, interfaces, technical tradeoffs, and risks.
• Understanding of AI architectures, including large language models, retrieval-augmented generation, and knowledge bases, and deployment considerations for classified or air-gapped environments.
• Ability to communicate complex technical findings and recommendations clearly to senior leadership and technical and non-technical audiences.
• Experience conducting objective technical evaluations and working with stakeholders to resolve identified gaps.
• Ability to apply agile practices to technical planning, prioritization, and iterative delivery.
• Must have an active Secret U.S Government issued Security Clearance. Per the U.S. Government’s eligibility requirements, you must be a U.S Citizen to be considered for a security clearance.
• This position requires a minimum of 3 days per week on-site

Preferred Qualifications:

• Cybersecurity experience, including familiarity with the Army’s implementation of the Risk Management Framework.
• Experience evaluating AI and large language model performance, limitations, and risks.
• Experience with document ingestion, knowledge bases, and data pipelines.
• Experience deploying or assessing systems in on-premises, cloud, classified, or air-gapped environments.
• Experience supporting security assessments and system authorization activities.
• Experience reviewing and refining agile backlogs and using common agile tools.
• Familiarity with software and data configuration management, including version control, change review, traceability, and release management.
• Experience assessing the technical maturity of software and data-centric systems, including familiarity with technology readiness levels.

At MITRE, your passion fuels work that impacts our nation and improves lives. This is where your skills strengthen national security, cybersecurity, health, transportation, and citizen services. We’re a nonprofit engineering, applied research, and advanced technology organization working in the public interest. With objectivity and integrity at our core, we lead federally funded research and development centers for U.S. government agencies - collaborating with industry and academia to deliver integrated, high-impact solutions that advance our nation’s health, security, and prosperity. Our people tackle the toughest technical challenges, supported by competitive benefits, meaningful career development, and a culture of innovation, collaboration, and technical excellence. Choose MITRE for a career with purpose - and help shape the future.

The Systems Performance and Evaluation Department provides expertise to design, assess and evolve complex solutions across the system engineering life cycle. Applying technical rigor, systems thinking, performance measurement and emerging AI-enabled engineering practices, the department helps ensure solutions meet sponsor needs, achieve mission outcomes and remain effective in changing operational environments.

Core Skills and Capabilities include:

• Systems Performance
• Test and Evaluation
• System Data Analytics
• Systems Engineering of AI