Enterprise Architect-Full Performance

National Reconnaissance Office (NRO)•Chantilly, VA

5d•$121,785 - $158,322•Onsite

About The Position

The System Engineering Directorate (SED) Office of Chief Architect (OCA) is in search of a sharp, critically thinking problem solver to serve as an Enterprise Architect in support NRO Architecture development, baselining, and advancement. OCA advances the NRO Enterprise by defining, assessing, and delivering the future NRO Enterprise Architecture, shaping investment decisions, and enabling enterprise decision-making. It does so by formulating strategic architecture imperatives for the NRO, developing end-to-end architecture capability at all layers of the Enterprise (space, ground, application, data, facility, infrastructure, etc.), executing long-term strategic planning, driving NRO architecture investments to advance the mission and address strategic challenges. OCA represents the NRO on Intelligence Community and DoW major architecture initiatives and significant shared programs and advises NRO senior leadership on NRO Enterprise Architecture advancement to ensure NRO maintains strategic advantages in today’s rapidly changing national security environment. As an Enterprise Architect in SED/OCA, you will help develop and manage the enterprise architecture through Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) to support engineering analysis, data-driven decision-making, and developing planning guidance to drive investment priorities and assess the impacts of budgetary decisions. This is your chance to be part of a team tackling some of the most significant challenges faced by our nation's leaders. You'll have the opportunity to apply your skills to meaningful work with far-reaching impact. This position is non-supervisory; however, the individual will lead cross-functional teams of government and contractor personnel. The NRO Cadre is collecting resumes for consideration against current and future opportunities for senior level (GG-13), Enterprise Architects, occupational series 0801. For more information on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) occupational series, click here. Your resume may be considered for other positions which your skills and experience may be a good match. This is a full-time position that is open from August 20, 2026 through September 11, 2026. Resumes must be submitted by 11:59 PM EST on September 11, 2026.

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Physics, Computer Science, or comparable technical discipline.
Experience in systems engineering, model-based systems engineering, and/or digital engineering
Experience defining system-level requirements and interfaces across complex, multi-domain architectures.
Experience developing and documenting CONOPS and system architectures for space missions.
Expertise in space system architectures, including satellite platforms, communications payloads, ground stations, and networked systems.

Nice To Haves

Understanding of government acquisition processes
Demonstrated interpersonal, organizational, and project management skills to conceptualize and effectively lead complex projects
Knowledge of DoW and Intelligence Community (IC) organizations, relationships, missions, relevant policies, and processes
Proven ability to work independently, manage competing priorities, and operate effectively in resource-constrained environments.

Responsibilities

Serves as an engineer and architect for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) Systems Engineering Directorate (SED) formulating and providing technical and professional assessments on capabilities and Intelligence Community mission needs and/or issues affecting the NRO.
Leads end-to-end overhead reconnaissance architecture development (space, ground, data, infrastructure, etc.)
Designs and publishes system-of-systems architectures — Builds, baselines, and continuously updates enterprise architectures and detailed architecture artifacts
Turns authoritative data into actionable architecture — Ingests, reformats, validates, and publishes "As-Is" and “To-Be” architecture products, ensuring the enterprise always has an accurate, trusted picture of its systems.
Conducts architectural trade studies, evaluates technical feasibility, and validates that proposed designs can achieve mission objectives.
Defines and maintains accurate, complete, and accessible architecture documentation, including Concepts of Operations (CONOPS), system diagrams, and interface definitions
Shapes enterprise architecture governance — Help develop, maintain, and execute the architecture governance framework that guides how mission-critical systems evolve across the enterprise.
Serves as the go-to architecture expert —advises senior leaders, delivers data-driven recommendations, and helps translate strategic objectives into sound architectural decisions.
Prepares and briefs senior management through project development cycles