Principal Solution Architect – National Security Growth & Innovation at Leidos

The National Security Sector at Leidos has an exciting and strategic opening for aPrincipal Solution Architect & Innovation Lead to work in ourReston VA or Gaithersburg MD offices. This is a unique opportunity to use your deep technical expertise and leadership experience to help shape the future of mission-critical systems for the Intelligence Community. We are seeking a visionary technical leader who thrives on complex challenges takes ownership of them and drives their success with innovative solutions that push the this dynamic role you will be a go-to technical leader deployed to solve our customers most pressing problems and to architect their future-state systems. If you are passionate about solving the nations toughest security challenges and inspiring teams to deliver groundbreaking results this role is for you.Primary Responsibilities:Technical Strategy & Innovation:Champion and architect innovative next-generation system solutions. You will lead technical planning trade studies and analyses to evaluate alternatives considering cost risk and supportability for total system life cycle.Proposal & Business Development Leadership:Serve as the technical visionary and lead for high-priority proposal efforts including RFPs and RFIs. You will shape winning strategies and solutions that align with customer needs and differentiate Leidos in the marketplace.Program Execution & Recovery:Act as a technical first responder to diagnose and resolve complex issues on challenged programs. You will provide expert-level diagnostics recovery planning and hands-on leadership to guide teams back to success.Architect Next-Gen Solutions: Design end-to-end solutions that integrate emerging technologies (Generative AI Computer Vision Edge Compute) into mission-critical workflows.Customer Engagement & Inspiration:Engage directly with senior government customers program managers and stakeholders to understand their challenges build trust and inspire confidence. You will translate their mission needs into actionable technical requirements and roadmaps.Team Leadership & Mentorship:Lead and mentor dynamic multi-disciplinary teams often in transient settings. You will foster a culture of innovation ownership and technical excellence coaching other technical staff to elevate their performance.To be considered for this position you must meet the following minimum requirements:Modern Technical Fluency: While you have extensive tenure your recent experience (last 5 years) must demonstrate hands-on leadership in modern architectures:Cloud Native: Architecting solutions on AWS/Azure (Serverless Containers/Kubernetes Microservices)Data & AI: Experience integrating Data Fabrics AI/ML pipelines or automated GEOINT processing.Capture & Proposal Experience: Demonstrated track record of leading technical responses for federal acquisitions. You must be able to deconstruct an RFP L&M (Section L and M) and architect a compliant winning technical solution.Large Development Program Experience: Proven leadership experience in technical planning system design and full life cycle systems engineering (requirements analysis functional analysis integration verification and validation).Education & Tenure: Bachelors degree in Computer Science or related field with 17 years of relevant experience or Masters degree with 15 years of relevant experienceClearance: Must possess an active TS/SCI security clearance with a polygraph.Candidates with these additional skills and experiences will be given stronger consideration: Complex Solution Landscapes: Demonstrated experience resolving highly complex multi-dimensional problems that require consideration of variables impacting multiple aspects of a program.GovCon & Domain Expertise: Deep proven understanding of the Intelligence Community (IC) landscape specifically GEOINT / TCPED missions. You must understand the constraints and requirements of classified environments.Excellent Writing and Communication Skills: Exceptional communication and presentation skills with a proven ability to engage and influence senior executive leadership and customers.GEOINT Domain Experience: Direct hands-on experience supporting GEOINT and/or related programs and a deep understanding of their mission domains.Large Program Solutioning: Demonstrated success leading the solutioning of capture and proposal efforts for major government contracts.Modern Engineering Skills: Experience with modern engineering methodologies such as Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) Agile and DevSecOps.Deep Technical Skills: Familiarity with key technology areas such as cloud architectures (AWS Azure) Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML) data analytics and cybersecurity.Strong Software Development / R&D Experience: Hands-on experience developing innovative solutions in a modern language (e.g. Java C) preferably in both program and R&D settings.At Leidos the Principal Solution Architect is more than a technical roleit is a strategic partnership. You will sit at the intersection of mission strategy and technical execution influencing how our government partners approach their most complex GEOINT challenges. We offer the stability of an industry leader combined with the autonomy to shape technical tradecraft. If you are seeking a role where your architectural vision directly translates into mission success and business growth we invite you to lead the way with us.If youre looking for comfort keep scrolling. At Leidos we outthink outbuild and outpace the status quo because the mission demands it. Were not hiring followers. Were recruiting the ones who disrupt provoke and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. Were already at step 30 and moving faster than anyone else dares.Original Posting:November 24 2025For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.Pay Range:Pay Range $154050.00 - $278475.00The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline onlyand not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job education experience knowledge skills and abilities as well as internal equity alignment with market data applicable bargaining agreement (if any) or other law.Required Experience:Staff IC Key Skills Business Process,VMware,Cloud,HTML5,Windows,Project managements,AWS,Infrastructure,Web Services,JQuery,Java,Computer Engineering,Solutions design,Technical Solutions,Analytics Employment Type : Full-Time Experience: years Vacancy: 1 Monthly Salary Salary: 154050 - 278475