Director / VP of Forward Deployed Engineering- TS/SCI

Director / VP of Forward Deployed Engineering

Xcelerate Solutions is seeking a Director/VP of Forward Deployed Engineering. This leader owns whether our federal book actually delivers. You'll run the Forward Deployed Team — a group of senior tech leads each embedded with a federal customer — and serve as the senior technical face of the company to DoW, DoD, and civilian agency leadership. You'll be personally accountable for moving programs from pilot to production to program of record. The role bridges three things that rarely coexist in one person: deep technical and product judgement, senior-level federal relationships, and the operator's instinct for getting capabilities accredited and adopted.

Clearance:

Active TS/SCI

Location:

Hybrid, Tyson's Corner 

Responsibilities:

• Lead the Forward Deployed Team. Hire, develop, and retain senior team leads. Set the technical bar and run architecture review. Own staffing across accounts.
• Own senior customer relationships. Be the executive point of contact for senior DoD/DoW (PEOs, Service CIOs/CDOs, CDAO leadership, Combatant Command J6/J8) and civilian agency leadership (CIO, CTO, CDO, mission directorate heads).
• Brief senior stakeholders. Brief flag/general officers, SES executives, congressional staff, and PEOs credibly — both on what we do technically and on what we will deliver, when.
• Drive program execution and capture. Partner with growth/BD to shape and capture programs. Convert pilots into programs of record across OTAs, MTAs, the software acquisition pathway, IDIQs, BPAs, and prime/sub structures.
• Own ATO / cATO strategy at the company level. Decide which IL boundaries we invest in (IL5 → IL6 → IC ICD 503), what we accredit ourselves vs. inherit, and how we sequence.
• Sponsor high-side deployments. Ensure the team has the cleared people, hardware, and contracts to operate inside Advana, SIPR, JWICS, and air-gapped enclaves.
• Bring the field back to product. Sit on the product leadership table. Translate field learnings into the roadmap and decide what becomes product vs. solution.

Minimum Requirements: 

• Technical depth, not just management. CS or related background; has personally shipped software earlier in career and can argue architecture trade-offs in real time.
• 10+ years delivering software into DoD/DoW and/or civilian federal agencies. Personally on the hook for ATOs and milestones.
• Existing senior-level rolodex across GO/FO, SES, PEO, and senior staff in DoD/DoW and/or major civilian agencies. "I can get the meeting" is the bar.
• Track record of taking capabilities from pilot to a sustained, funded program in active mission use.
• Personal fluency operating in IL5/IL6, SIPR, and JWICS environments. End-to-end cATO experience. Familiarity with Advana / CDAO required.
• Built and run technical delivery teams of 10+. Hired senior engineers from federal-focused vendors, FFRDCs, software factories, and primes.
• Active TS/SCI required at offer. SCI with current poly is a plus.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Prior senior role at a venture-backed defense or federal software company — Head of Forward Deployed, Head of Mission Engineering, VP of Federal/Public Sector, VP of Growth, or Director of Strategic Programs.
• Operational/uniformed background (J6/J8/acquisition, special operations, cyber, or intel) combined with an industry technical career.
• Time inside the building — DoD CDAO, DDS/DIU, OSD, a service software factory, USDI&S, IC, or as a senior civilian/SES technologist.

About Xcelerate Solutions:
Founded in 2009 and headquartered in McLean, VA, Xcelerate Solutions (www.xceleratesolutions.com) is one of America's fastest-growing companies. Xcelerate’s culture is defined by our diversified workforce of dynamic and versatile professionals, supported with growth and development opportunities that contribute to individual and company growth. This strong commitment to our employees has been recognized by our inclusion on the Washington Business Journal’s “50 Best Places to Work” list as well as being a “Great Place to Work” certified company with a 4.6 star, and a 99% CEO approval Glassdoor rating. Come find out why Xcelerate Solutions is one of the DC Metro top employers!

Xcelerate Solutions is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.  We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, age, equal pay, disability, veteran status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, or expression of another protected characteristic. As part of this commitment to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals, Xcelerate provides reasonable accommodations if needed because of an applicant's or an employee's disability.

Pay Transparency Notice: Xcelerate Solutions will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant.