Senior Zero Trust Analytics & Decision Consultant

For more than a decade, Karthik Consulting has been a reliable and trusted advisor to our Government customers, providing independent and unbiased recommendations and solutions to mitigate risk and help solve IT issues. We bring the innovation, passion, and agility of the commercial sector to meet the unique challenges of this competitive space.

Karthik Consulting is seeking a Senior Zero Trust Analytics & Decision Consultant with the below skillset.

Senior Zero Trust Analytics & Decision Consultant
Fulltime with Karthik Consulting
Location: National Capital Region
Clearance: Active TS/SCI Clearance


Program Description
Program Scope:

This senior advisory position addresses the CIO's mandate for quantifiable progress tracking and objective risk visibility. The primary focus of this role is to design, implement, and run the advanced data metrics frameworks, performance indicators, and statistical risk models needed to quantitatively evaluate, sustain, and mature enterprise-wide Zero Trust capabilities.

Key Responsibilities

Zero Trust Metrics Framework & Maturity Modeling
• Maturity Framework Design: Design, implement, and maintain quantitative metrics tracking frameworks and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) required to quantitatively measure progress toward defined enterprise Zero Trust capability targets and milestones.
• Data Maturity Modeling: Establish live tracking methodologies and data models that evaluate the structural digital maturity of individual programs and the extended enterprise using industry and federal compliance frameworks.
• Compliance Alignment Evaluation: Systematically collect, validate, and evaluate alignment metrics for the IC Information Environment Cybersecurity Performance Evaluation Model (CPEM) and Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) reporting.
• Post-Implementation Auditing: Conduct performance and conformance audits on deployed capabilities to ensure that integrated system architectures deliver the promised level of risk and systemic security reduction.

Executive Decision-Space Engineering & Risk Visualization
• Analytical Dashboard Engineering: Build custom statistical algorithms, data flow processes, and visual layout models to consolidate enterprise-scale data sets into clear, live leadership tracking dashboards.
• Risk-Informed Decision Modeling: Translate raw cybersecurity telemetry, technical configuration states, and capability gaps into objective, risk-informed options that provide the CIO with clear, defensible operational decision space.
• Executive Decision Support: Create executive-ready presentations, issue papers, and strategic summaries that make complex and disparate cyber risk data immediately understandable to non-technical senior leaders.
• Governance Council Facilitation: Facilitate data-driven risk discussions across high-level governance councils and executive boards to directly inform Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution (PPBE) resource allocations.

Portfolio and Governance Analytics
• Support Cybersecurity Investment and Portfolio Assessment by providing spend-plan analytics, execution trend analysis, portfolio visualizations, and risk indicators.
• Support governance boards and whiteboard sessions with dashboard inputs, meeting analytics, decision records, action tracking, and decision memo inputs.
• Track governance action closure, risk mitigation status, portfolio execution progress, and implementation milestone performance.
• Connect recurring dashboard updates to governance decisions, action items, and performance reporting requirements.

Enterprise Collaboration and Agile Execution Tracking
• Coordinate with architecture, cybersecurity, data, AI, mission, portfolio, and operational stakeholders to identify data sources and validate performance measures.
• Translate stakeholder feedback and operational observations into measurable findings, trend analysis, reporting updates, and decision-support products.
• Track Agile execution indicators, dependencies, blockers, and recurring progress measures to connect implementation activity to enterprise Zero Trust objectives.
• Maintain role separation by owning analytics, reporting, and decision-support outputs while the Key Personnel ZT SME owns architecture direction and senior technical recommendations.

Qualifications
Education
• Minimum Requirement: Bachelor’s degree in Data Analytics, Operations Research, Statistics, Computer Science, Cybersecurity, or a STEM related quantitative/analytical discipline.

Professional Certifications
• Required Baseline: Active CompTIA Security+ CE (or equivalent GAI/DoD 8140/8570 foundational certification).
• Preferred Advanced: Project Management Professional (PMP), Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC), Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), Certified in the Governance of Enterprise IT (CGEIT), specialized data visualization platform credentials, or CISSP-ISSAP (Information Systems Security Architecture Professional) or equivalent DoD 8140 Advanced-level certifications

Minimum Qualifications
• 10–15+ years of relevant IT risk management, data science, performance metrics development, or cybersecurity advisory experience within the DoD or IC.
• Active TS/SCI clearance.
• Ability to work on-site in the National Capital Region five days per week and travel on TDY as requested by the Government.
• Proven track record of designing, implementing, and defending enterprise-level performance metrics frameworks or organizational maturity tracking models for senior executives.
• Expert knowledge of how to harvest, synthesize, and model disparate data from multiple security sources (such as SIEM logs, continuous monitoring outputs, and asset inventories).
• Demonstrated ability to build statistical models or algorithms that translate technical configuration realities into objective risk-informed metrics.
• Exceptional capability with executive presentation tools, data visualization platforms, and dashboard design frameworks to deliver clear decision metrics to 3-letter agency leadership.


Preferred Qualifications
• Master’s degree in Data Analytics, Operations Research, Cybersecurity, or a STEM-related field.
• Familiarity with Headquarters Air Force (HAF), the Air Force Intelligence Community, OSD, Joint Staff, and Chief Data Officer (CDO) operating environments.
• Expert-level knowledge of enterprise compliance workflows, CPEM/FISMA assessment parameters, and cybersecurity maturity frameworks.
• Experience aligning technical data tracking and capability reporting metrics with PPBE budget development and program performance assessments.
• Prior experience directly advising senior executives or leading working groups focused on enterprise-scale data strategy or performance monitoring.