Advanced Capabilities Engineer - NASA and NOAA Programs Lead

About Peraton

Peraton is a next-generation national security company that drives missions of consequence spanning the globe and extending to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. As the world's leading mission capability integrator and transformative enterprise IT provider, we deliver trusted, highly differentiated solutions and technologies to protect our nation and allies. Peraton operates at the critical nexus between traditional and nontraditional threats across all domains: land, sea, space, air, and cyberspace. The company serves as a valued partner to essential government agencies and supports every branch of the U.S. armed forces. Each day, our employees solve the most daunting challenges that our customers face. Visit peraton.com to learn how we're keeping people around the world safe and secure.

About The Role

Advanced Capabilities Engineer - NASA and NOAA Programs Lead

Within Peraton's Space and Mission Solutions sector, there is an immediate need for a cleared Advanced Capabilities Engineer (ACE) to serve as the primary technical proposal lead for NASA and NOAA opportunities. This is a full-time, on-site position based Reston, VA with regular presence at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, NOAA facilities, and other customer sites as required.

As an ACE, you sit at the intersection of technical strategy and proposal execution. You are not a pure technologist, and you are not a pure proposal writer - you are the person who translates deep mission understanding into winning technical approaches. You bring familiarity with both NASA's science and exploration mission culture and NOAA's operational and environmental monitoring priorities - understanding that these are distinct customers with distinct values, even as they share common technical domains in space systems, ground infrastructure, and data processing.

This role is designed for a mid-career systems engineer or technical architect who has led or significantly contributed to technical volumes on competitive NASA or NOAA proposals - and who is ready to step into a role where that skill is the primary contribution. You will work closely with the NASA Mission Domain Expert, the CTO Office's Next-Gen Technology Engineers, and the Growth Organization to ensure Peraton's NASA and NOAA pursuits are technically differentiated from the first day of capture through final proposal submission.

What you'll do:

• Lead the development of technical volumes and technical approaches for NASA and NOAA proposals, owning the content from outline through final submission
• Engage with NASA and NOAA program offices and technical stakeholders during pre-RFP phases to build understanding of requirements, evaluation criteria, and mission priorities
• Collaborate with the NASA Mission Domain Expert to translate customer relationships and mission insight into technically differentiated proposal strategies
• Work with Next-Gen Technology Engineers in networking, cloud, and AI/data fusion to incorporate emerging capabilities into NASA and NOAA technical solutions
• Maintain awareness of the distinct acquisition cultures, evaluation criteria, and mission priorities of NASA versus NOAA - tailoring technical approaches accordingly
• Conduct competitive analysis and develop differentiation strategies that highlight Peraton's unique technical value for NASA and NOAA pursuits
• Support bid/no-bid assessments by providing technically grounded Pwin analysis and honest evaluation of Peraton's competitive position
• Participate in color team reviews - both as author and as reviewer - providing and receiving substantive technical feedback
• Maintain awareness of NASA and NOAA acquisition pipelines, including major upcoming pursuits such as SENSE, RadarNEXT, and NASA enterprise IT programs

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

• A minimum of 8+ years of experience with a BS/BA in Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related field; OR 6+ years with MS/MA; OR 3+ years with PhD. 4 years of additional work experience may be considered in lieu of a Bachelor's degree
• Direct experience supporting NASA or NOAA programs - you understand at least one of these customers' organizational structures, acquisition processes, and mission priorities from having worked within that environment
• Demonstrated experience leading or significantly contributing to technical volumes on competitive NASA or NOAA proposals - you have owned sections, not just reviewed them
• Strong systems engineering background - ability to architect solutions, develop concepts of operations, and translate requirements into technical approaches
• Experience with one or more of the following mission areas: space communications and networking, ground system operations and modernization, weather systems and remote sensing, or enterprise IT and cloud for civilian space agencies
• Proven ability to work effectively in fast-paced proposal environments with compressed timelines and evolving requirements
• Strong written communication skills - ability to write clear, compelling, evaluator-focused technical content
• This position requires the candidate to possess a minimum of Secret clearance with the ability to obtain TS/SCI for certain program engagements. The candidate must maintain the clearance.

Desired Qualifications:

• An active TS/SCI is highly desired
• Direct experience on NASA programs such as SENSE, Deep Space Network operations, Space Network, or NASA enterprise IT programs
• Experience on NOAA programs involving weather radar systems, satellite ground operations, or environmental data processing
• Familiarity with NASA acquisition processes including SEWP, ITES, and mission directorate-specific contracting approaches
• Understanding of NOAA's RadarNEXT program, next-generation weather radar architecture, and NOAA's IT modernization priorities
• Experience with cloud-native architectures for science data processing and analytics in civilian agency environments
• INCOSE certification (ASEP, CSEP) or PMP certification
• Experience working alongside or in support of a business development or capture team

Benefits:

At Peraton, our benefits are designed to help keep you at your best beyond the work you do with us daily. We're fully committed to the growth of our employees. From fully comprehensive medical plans to tuition reimbursement, tuition assistance, and fertility treatment, we are there to support you all the way.

Details

Target Salary Range: $135,000 - $216,000. This represents the typical salary range for this position. Salary is determined by various factors, including but not limited to, the scope and responsibilities of the position, the individual's experience, education, knowledge, skills, and competencies, as well as geographic location and business and contract considerations. Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay.

Benefits Statement: Peraton offers eligible employees a variety of benefits including medical, dental, vision, life, health savings account, short/long term disability, EAP, parental leave, 401(k), paid time off (PTO) for vacation, and company paid holidays. A full listing of available benefits can be viewed at https://www.careers.peraton.com/benefits.

Application Statements: The application period for the job is estimated to be 30 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates. By applying to this job, you are expressing interest in the role and the Company. During the review of your application, you may be required to participate in an on-camera interview, as well as participate in a process to verify your identity.

EEO:Equal opportunity employer, including disability and protected veterans, or other characteristics protected by law.