NGSR Project Leader

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Department Summary:

Theater Command and Control and Homeland Defense (Department N123) leads projects and initiatives directly related to the overall Homeland / Air Defense mission. This includes the technology and operational aspects of several sensor and command and control systems in response to the Theater and Homeland airborne threats (aircraft, cruise missiles, and uncrewed aircraft systems). The N123 activities work across all aspects of the Joint Engagement Sequence to decrease response time and improve mission effectiveness. Across the Department, our goal is to work to rapidly field capabilities that provide continuous surveillance, seamless command and control, and engagement of airborne threats.

Roles & Responsibilities:

MITRE’s Theater Command and Control/Homeland Defense (N123) Department is seeking a dynamic and forward-thinking Project Leader (PL) to take charge and deliver the Next Generation Survivable Radio (NGSR) work program with a significant technical contribution to establish the requirements, acquisition, and systems integration to realize the next generation capability. The legacy system, known as the Combat Survivor Evader Locator (CSEL), is more than 20 years old and relies on outdated communications infrastructure. NGSR seeks to develop and field new capabilities that advance the state of the art along several axes:

• BLOS data communications
• Survivor/evader segment that supports PNT and LOS voice comms
• Operates within the secure cloud environment
• Supports encryption and addresses relevant cyber risks
• Improved Handheld Radio User Interface

The PL position is customer-facing and provides opportunities to collaborate and coordinate with the direct Sponsor and influence the program for the Department of the Air Force. The selected candidate will develop high-valued strategic Systems Engineering work, identify resources to execute the work program, lead and deliver products, and communicate with the MITRE Team and Sponsor. In particular, the PL will work to ensure work performed is of sufficient quality and rigor expected of MITRE products and meets the intent of the originally identified impactful product. The PL will also identify opportunities for recognition and providing inputs for employee End of Year feedback. The PL will lead and workshape the work program.

Project Leader tasks include, but are not limited to:

• Sponsor and Operational User engagement
• Team leadership and management
• Technical risk assessment
• Technical inputs to and quality assessments of program deliverables
• Technical inputs to acquisition processes, and
• Day-to-day execution of project-related details, including staffing, financial planning, and budgeting.

Basic Qualifications:

• Typically requires a minimum of 8 years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or 6 years and a Master’s degree or a PhD with 3 years’ experience; or equivalent combination of related education and work experience.
• A strong background and demonstrated experience in Systems Engineering and Radio Communications.
• Familiarity with communications and radio, including waveforms, SATCOM, and basic radio knowledge.
• Understanding of the Personnel Recovery mission, including how it operates today and where it will go in the future.
• Knowledge of USAF acquisition processes.
• Ability to travel to the Sponsor site (Hill AFB, Utah), Contractor sites, and Operational locations with some regularity to support direct Sponsor interactions (an estimate of 25% travel is expected within CONUS).
• Successful track record defining project outcomes in line with the strategy, linking data driven technical products to sponsor decisions and outcomes (Mission Value Chain).
• Ability to apply team staffing principles to maximize performance while providing growth and development opportunities for team members.
• Proactive self-starter with strong analytical, problem solving, communication and interpersonal skills.
• The ideal candidate will have a strong background in Software Engineering, Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
• Active DoD Secret Security Clearance with the ability to obtain a Top Secret clearance.
• Demonstrated experience working collaboratively across challenging and diverse sponsors and stakeholders to propose, shape, and lead impactful FFRDC work.
• Strong balance of technical and people skills and ability to communicate technical information to people of all levels.
• The candidate must possess excellent communication skills, including preparing briefing material and written informal and formal products.
• This position requires a minimum of 50% hybrid on-site

Preferred Qualifications:

• Working knowledge of the current Personnel Recovery system and plans for modernization.
• Deep technical knowledge in one or more domain areas such as: Digital Engineering, Modeling and Simulation, Mission Engineering.
• Has a growth mindset with emphasis towards innovation and leaning in on new technologies and approaches.
• PL / APL experience including all of MITRE’s Project Leadership tools.

This requisition requires the candidate to have a minimum of the following clearance(s):

This requisition requires the hired candidate to have or obtain, within one year from the date of hire, the following clearance(s):

Work Location Type:

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