layiq

/la·yiq/adjective

worthy; deserving; fitting; suitable.

A role, opportunity, or path that merits attention, time, and pursuit.

Technical Mission Director at Defense Unicorns | LAYIQ

Own day-to-day execution for a multidisciplinary government/industry team and establish the Agile operating rhythm, including Scrum ceremonies, backlog management, sprint planning, reviews, retrospectives, and release planning.
Coordinate government stakeholders and multiple technology vendors, keeping priorities, dependencies, milestones, and technical risks visible and driving blockers to resolution.
Lead daily cross-vendor synchronization without allowing meetings to become a substitute for execution; create clear owners, decisions, and next actions.
Maintain an integrated delivery plan and communicate concise updates on mission outcomes, technical risk, resource needs, decisions, and schedule.
Work closely with the Technical Solutions Architect and engineering leads across platform, DevSecOps, data, and AI/agentic disciplines to keep execution aligned with the evolving architecture.
Maintain enough technical depth to recognize integration, security, data, deployment, or architecture issues early and engage the right experts quickly.
Coordinate the transition from prototype environments into classified operational environments, including readiness, dependencies, and increasing onsite/SCIF collaboration.
Act as a trusted technical thought partner to government customers: surface risks, frame options, challenge assumptions constructively, and help translate mission needs into executable technical priorities.
Identify follow-on mission needs, expansion opportunities, and adjacent use cases; understand the customer's acquisition and buying motion and partner with DU growth leadership to shape actionable opportunities.
Capture lessons learned and repeatable delivery patterns, continuously reducing coordination overhead and improving engineering velocity.
Build durable customer relationships and represent Defense Unicorns as a technical thought leader rather than simply a delivery resource.
Minimum Experience and Qualifications
Active TS/SCI clearance.
Local to the National Capital Region (NCR) and able to support regular onsite work at a government facility in Springfield, Virginia; available for increasing onsite/SCIF interaction as the effort matures.
7+ years leading Agile software, technology, or mission programs, preferably in government or other mission-critical environments.
Demonstrated hands-on experience with Scrum and Agile delivery, including backlog management, sprint planning, dependency management, retrospectives, and release planning.
Experience leading cross-functional teams and coordinating multiple concurrent technical workstreams, government stakeholders, and technology vendors.
Strong technical fluency in modern software delivery, DevSecOps, cloud, Kubernetes, CI/CD, AI/ML, and data platforms.
Ability to understand technical architecture, dependencies, integration risks, and engineering tradeoffs well enough to drive informed program decisions.
Exceptional communication, organization, facilitation, and problem-solving skills with the ability to operate effectively in high-tempo, ambiguous environments.
Preferred Experience and Qualifications
Experience leading programs involving generative AI, AI agents, data platforms, or enterprise AI ecosystems.
Experience working across technologies such as OpenShift/OpenShift AI, GitLab, NVIDIA AI, enterprise data platforms, or comparable commercial technologies.
Familiarity with NIST 800-53, RMF, ATO processes, continuous authorization, and security engineering.
Experience supporting systems across multiple security classifications or transitioning capabilities into Secret or TS/SCI environments.
Experience with complex multi-vendor integration efforts where no single provider owns the complete solution.
Experience advising senior government customers on technology strategy, mission modernization, or platform adoption.
Experience identifying and shaping follow-on opportunities, expansion paths, or new mission applications within an existing customer.
CSM, PSM, SAFe, PMI-ACP, PMP, or comparable Agile/program certification.
Travel / Onsite Expectations
This position is NCR-local and requires regular onsite support at the government team's Springfield campus. Some hybrid flexibility, but regular onsite/SCIF engagement is expected.
Who We Are
Defense Unicorns delivers mission value by streamlining software delivery so our customers can focus on the most important challenges. We share a vision of freedom and security for the advancement of progress and innovation. Our commitment to this vision, and to our mission-driven customers, means a commitment to speed, user experience and optionality, without compromising security. Our team is composed of innovators, software engineers, and veterans with decades of experience delivering technology programs across the federal market.

Technical Mission Director

Employer job description

Responsibilities

What We Do

What We Work On

Benefits Our Unicorns Enjoy

About this listing