Principal Engineer Senior Manager

Accenture Federal Services • Washington, DC

25d

About The Position

At Accenture Federal Services, nothing matters more than helping the US federal government make the nation stronger and safer and life better for people. Our 13,000+ people are united in a shared purpose to pursue the limitless potential of technology and ingenuity for clients across defense, national security, public safety, civilian, and military health organizations.

Join Accenture Federal Services, a technology company and part of global Accenture, to do work that matters in a collaborative and caring community, where you feel like you belong and are empowered to grow, learn and thrive through hands-on experience, certifications, industry training and more.

Join us to drive positive, lasting change that moves missions and the government forward!
In the context of 2026, a Principal Engineer Senior Manager at Accenture Federal Services (AFS) is a top-tier technical leadership role. This position sits at the intersection of enterprise architecture, mission-critical delivery, and hands-on innovation. You aren't just managing people; you are the "engineer's engineer," responsible for the technical integrity of massive federal systems that impact millions of citizens. As a Principal Engineer, you will serve as the primary technical authority for high-stakes federal engagements. You will bridge the gap between abstract mission goals and concrete, high-performance codebases.

Requirements

• Experience: 15+ years in full-stack software engineering, with at least 5 years in a Chief, Principal, or Lead Architect capacity.
• Technical Mastery: Proven expertise in modern languages (Python, Go, Javascript) and deep experience with Kubernetes (K8s) and distributed systems. MUST BE HANDS ON. You should be able to talk the talk but also walk the walk.
• Communication: Ability to explain complex technical trade-offs to non-technical GS-15 or SES-level federal executives.
• Federal Context: Demonstrated experience delivering solutions within federal security frameworks (FedRAMP, NIST 800-53, or DoD Impact Levels).
• Cloud Fluency: Advanced proficiency in AWS, Azure, or GCP, specifically in architecting for multi-cloud or hybrid-cloud federal environments.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field (4 additional years of experience may be substituted).
• AI/ML: Experience deploying Agentic AI or Large Language Model (LLM) frameworks into production environments using Model Context Protocol (MCP).
• Emerging Tech: Familiarity with Rust for memory-safe systems or experience with Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) implementation.
• U.S. Citizenship
• Active Top Secret/SCI (Preferred) or Ability to Obtain

Nice To Haves

• Advanced Degree
• Motivated and proactive, with a desire to understand and address complex areas
• Curiosity for learning about new technology, industry best practices, and areas of risk, analyzing and turning new insights into concrete action
• Commitment to delivering tangible outcomes for customers and stakeholders
• Strong written and verbal communication/interpersonal skills to effectively collaborate with cross-functional teams and stakeholders.
• Excellent people management and relationship development skills
• In-depth knowledge of Accenture delivery methodologies and practices

Responsibilities

• Architectural Stewardship: Design and oversee the implementation of "Digital Cores" — scalable, cloud-native architectures that leverage GenAI, micro-services, and mesh data patterns. We no longer believe in writing software. We believe everyone should be an orchestrator of multiple agents doing our work for us.
• Technical Vision & Strategy: Define the long-term tech stack for federal agencies, moving them away from legacy technical debt toward modern, resilient frameworks (e.g., Rust, Go, or advanced Python-native ML pipelines). Must be able to work with clients and teams on modernizing and adapting to the new paradigms of software development.
• DevSecOps Leadership: Champion "Security-by-Design," ensuring that CI/CD pipelines automate compliance and security protocols required for IL4/5/6 environments.
• Hands-on Excellence: While a leader, you remain active in the code. You will perform high-level code reviews, solve the most complex "impossible" bugs, and prototype emerging tech like Quantum-resistant encryption or Agentic AI frameworks.
• Mentorship & Culture: Foster an elite engineering culture. You will mentor Lead and Senior Engineers, setting the standard for documentation, testing, and agile excellence across the practice.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level