Engineering Manager, Data and Knowledge Management

Vantor is forging the new frontier of spatial intelligence, helping decision makers and operators navigate what's happening now and shape what's coming next. Vantor is a place for problem solvers, changemakers, and go-getters-where people are working together to help our customers see the world differently, and in doing so, be seen differently. Come be part of a mission, not just a job, where you can: Shape your own future, build the next big thing, and change the world.

To be eligible for this position, you must be a U.S. Citizen. This position requires an active U.S. Government security clearance, applicants who do not currently hold the required clearance will not be eligible for consideration. Employment for cleared roles is contingent upon verification of clearance status.
Export Control/ITAR: Certain roles may be subject to U.S. export control laws, requiring U.S. person status as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3).

Please review the job details below.

This position requires an active U.S. Government Security Clearance at the TS/SCI level with CI Polygraph.

Vantor is seeking a data-focused technical leader to own the Data Management team within a multi-layered Knowledge Management (KM) modernization program, while also serving as a corporate people manager.

This role sits at the intersection of architecture, data governance, and technical implementation. On the contract side, the individual will lead the Data Management team , collaborating closely with ontology, data pipeline, data platform, and AI enablement leads to design and build infrastructure and applications so that data can move relia bly, be ma intained over time, and support downstream analytics and AI use cases.

Separately, on the corporate side, this role carries people management responsibilities , reporting to a Lead Technical Manager.

Responsibilities

Data Management Lead

• Lead the Data Management team , spearheading the design and implementation of data lifecycle management, governance, quality, metadata, lineage, and stewardship efforts for an IC customer .

• Define and enforce data management standards and practices that enable seamless data movement across ontology, pipelines, platforms, and AI systems.

• Collaborate closely with solutions architecture leadership and other team leads to ensure data flows properly across the organiza t ion, is consistently structured, governed, and accessible.

• Translate architectural intent into actionable implementation guidance for engineering teams.

• Lead the day-to-day operations and tasking of your team . Manage workload, breakdown high level technical direction to smaller tasks and assign those tasks to engineers.

• Identify data risks, gaps, and technical debt and drive mitigation strategies.

Cross - Team and Cross-F unctional Collaboration

• Partner with ontology, pipeline, platform, and AI leads to ensure end-to-end data continuity.

• Support architectural reviews to validate that data can be ingested, maintained , governed, and reused effectively.

• Act as a bridge between architecture, engineering, and operations to prevent siloed implementations.

• Ensure data management considerations are embedded early in design decisions.

Technical Authority & Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as the senior technical authority for data management for customer and exclusive stakeholders.

• Provide expert guidance on data management decisions, tradeoffs, and best practices.

• Communicate complex technical concepts clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.

Corporate People Management Responsibilities

• Serve as a people manager for corporate staff, separate from day-to-day contract technical delivery.

• Support hiring, onboarding, performance management, career development, and employee engagement.

• Foster a culture of accountability, growth, and collaboration within a hybrid work environment.

• Partner with the Lead Technical Manager to ensure alignment between corporate workforce planning and contract needs.

Minimum Requirements

• Must be willing to work full time onsite in Reston, VA.

• TS/SCI with current CI polygraph .

• 10 years of technical experience with relevant experience within the last 2 years

• Bachelor's degree in computer science , mathematics, physics, statistics, operations research, engineering, or equivalent technical field.

• Degree may be substituted with an additional 6 years of experience.

• 2 + years of experience in a technical leadership or management role (e.g., manager, senior manager, or equivalent).

• Demonstrated leadership of data management functions in complex systems.

• Strong understanding of data governance, metadata, lineage, and data quality.

• Experience collaborating across multiple technical teams or architectural domains.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with both technical and non-technical stakeholders .

P referred Qualifications

• Master's degree in computer science , mathematics, physics, statistics, operations research, engineering, or equivalent technical field.

• Experience with semantic technologies , including:

• RDF

• OWL

• SPARQL

• Experience with graph databases such as Neo4j, AWS Neptune, or similar technologies.

• Hands-on experience with:

• Vector databases

• AI model fine-tuning

• Prompt engineering

• Background in data governance, information management, or knowledge engineering .

• Experience supporting knowledge management, analytics, or AI-enabled systems .

• Familiarity with cloud-based data platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP) and modern data architectures.

Pay Transparency: In support of pay transparency at Vantor, we disclose salary ranges on all U.S. job postings. The successful candidate's starting pay will fall within the salary range provided below and is determined based on job-related factors, including, but not limited to, the experience, qualifications, knowledge, skills, geographic work location, and market conditions. Candidates with the minimum necessary experience, qualifications, knowledge, and skillsets for the position should not expect to receive the upper end of the pay range.

• The base pay for this position within the Washington, DC metropolitan area is: $156,000.00 - $260,000.00 annually.

For all other states, we use geographic cost of labor as an input to develop market-driven ranges for our roles, and as such, each location where we hire may have a different range.

Benefits: Vantor offers a competitive total rewards package that goes beyond the standard, including a robust 401(k) with company match, mental health resources, and unique perks like student loan repayment assistance, adoption reimbursement and pet insurance to support all aspects of your life. You can find more information on our benefits at: https://www.Vantor.com/careers
Additionally, this position is incentive eligible with a target based on contribution, company performance, and/or individual results achieved; the specific incentive plan and target amount will be determined based on the role and breadth of contributions.

The application window is three days from the date the job is posted and will remain posted until a qualified candidate has been identified for hire. If the job is reposted regardless of reason, it will remain posted three days from the date the job is reposted and will remain reposted until a qualified candidate has been identified for hire.

The date of posting can be found on Vantor's Career page at the top of each job posting.

To apply, submit your application via Vantor's Career page.

EEO Policy: Vantor is an equal opportunity employer committed to an inclusive workplace. We believe in fostering an environment where all team members feel respected, valued, and encouraged to share their ideas. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, protected veteran status, age, or any other characteristic protected by law.