Exploitation Specialist / Data Manager

Riverside Overview

Riverside Research is an independent National Security Nonprofit dedicated to research and development in the national interest. We provide high-end technical services, research and development, and prototype solutions to some of the country’s most challenging technical problems.
 
 All Riverside Research opportunities require U.S. Citizenship.

Position Overview

Riverside Research is seeking an experienced Exploitation Specialist / Data Manager to provide advanced exploitation support, lead data management workflows, and drive mission-critical GEOINT production. This senior role combines deep tradecraft expertise with technical leadership, ensuring analytic teams have fast, reliable access to high-quality datasets and exploitation-ready imagery. The ideal candidate excels at structuring large data ecosystems, enhancing exploitation pipelines, mentoring junior staff, and partnering directly with DoD and Intelligence Community stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead the management, organization, and curation of large, multi‐sensor GEOINT datasets, including SAR, EO, IR, multispectral, and specialized collections
• Oversee structured data workflows, enforce metadata standards, and ensure consistent lineage and traceability across analytic products
• Perform advanced exploitation tasks, generating high-quality products such as change detection, feature extraction, environmental assessments, and multi-sensor fusion outputs
• Supervise and optimize mission data workflows, identifying inefficiencies and implementing improved processing, cataloging, and automation techniques
• Conduct data-quality validation, anomaly resolution, and compliance checks against DoD and IC standards
• Guide developers and engineering partners on data requirements, exploitation impacts, and collection strategy optimization
• Lead the development, documentation, and refinement of SOPs for exploitation, cataloging, ingestion, and multi-mission data management
• Mentor junior analysts and data managers, providing technical direction and tradecraft instruction
• Prepare mission briefings, status reports, and technical documentation for senior leadership and external stakeholders
• Ensure timely delivery of high-value datasets and exploitation support to ongoing operations and long-term analytic missions
• Other duties as assigned

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Data Management, Remote Sensing, Geography, Image Science, a related field or equivalent experience
• 7+ years of GEOINT data management, imagery exploitation, or related analytical experience
• Demonstrated expertise in cataloging, metadata standards, and structured GEOINT data ecosystems
• Hands-on experience with exploitation tools (ENVI/IDL, ArcGIS, QGIS, ERDAS, or similar)
• Proficiency in workflow automation or scripting (Python preferred)
• Proven ability to lead technical tasks, mentor junior personnel, and engage with senior stakeholders
• Strong understanding of IC/DoD production standards, data policies, and mission priorities
• Active TS/SCI clearance

Desired Qualifications

• Experience managing large-scale data environments within DoD or IC operations
• Familiarity with SAR and EO exploitation workflows
• Experience with database systems, cloud-based data environments, or data-governance frameworks
• Knowledge of ML/AI-assisted data categorization or exploitation tools
• Excellent communication skills and ability to lead cross-functional teams