The Homeland & Force Protection Business Area is seeking a Sr. Director (SD) to manage and lead a mission-critical program whose purpose is to deliver development, maintenance, modernization, enhancement, operations and maintenance services for a portfolio of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) critical systems. This enterprise portfolio includes more than 50 systems inclusive of low-code/no-code, Commercial solutions, ERP, and custom systems operating in cloud environments. Newer systems may include AI-assistance. Development and Operations Support is increasing using AI-Assist tools.
The SD will liaise with CBP OIT Senior Leadership, executive directors, branch chiefs and senior project managers to provide strategic advice, planning, and guidance on maintaining, modernizing, and optimizing performance of a portfolio of applications and systems. The SD will provide the internal voice of the customer and will work with the customer to understand, prioritize, and communicate their mission support needs to application/system product owners, and manage a team of portfolio and product managers who will prioritize capabilities and features added to new and existing systems. The SD will help set the technical vision and roadmap for the applications/systems in the portfolio and will be responsible for converting CBP strategic objectives into portfolio capabilities.
The SD will build and direct a world-class team to support this national-scale program. The SD will be responsible for the cost, schedule, and technical performance and will serve as the Leidos single point-of-contact with the government’s executive director and his/her team for management and technical matters and contract-level issues. The SD will also provide the planning, direction, coordination, and control necessary to accomplish all work requirements and task orders; and manage and oversee all activities performed by contractor personnel, including subcontractors, to satisfy the contract requirements.
Primary Responsibilities- the Senior Director will:
Lead, manage, coach, and mentor a leadership team overseeing more than 400 engineer/developers.
Manage hiring, professional development, and issue resolution for the program.
Develop and implement long-term IT roadmaps and strategy, and monitors alignment of tactical activities to the long-term roadmap and strategy.
Utilize expert communication skills needed to direct the skilled technical resources and report on the technical progress, issues, and problem areas, as well as write and review technical documents.
Identify, mitigate, and control risks. Drive process improvement and innovation.
Supervise all portfolio leaders and product managers. Provide feedback and resolve complex problems to ensure successful execution of programs.
Engage employees, executives, and customer leaders on a routine basis to fully understand customer requirements and employee capabilities.
Represent Division leadership as a senior representative/interface for customer engagement.
Collaborate with the Deputy Program Manager and other Key Positions on the program in supervising all program activities and ensuring that all activities are aligned with the PWS objectives.
Directly contributes to program efforts in several areas, including cost management/avoidance, schedule estimation and tracking, contract performance management, risk management, requirements analysis, and quality assurance activities.
Oversee daily operations, ensuring on time deliverables, managing recruitment, hiring, and training processes for employees, supervising staff, and maintaining up-to-date comprehensive quality control programs for a large-scale development program.
Plan/lead program reviews and briefings; identify and report on issues or related problems and potential risks.
Maintain currency on relevant tools and technologies and provide inputs for white papers and proposals.
Required Skills, Education, and Skills:
Bachelor’s degree of higher, preferably in Engineering, Information Technology, Computer Science, Information Systems, or related Engineering field
15+ years of experience in leading technical solutioning and managing the development of software systems for public sector IT projects, policy, and strategy developments.
Experience serving as a Program/Project Manager leading and supervising a multi-disciplinary staff (200 persons or more; more than $50M per year) of various labor categories and skills.
Active Project Management Institute (PMI) Program Management Professional PgMP certification or DAWIA FAC-P/PM Level III Program Manager Certification REQUIRED.
Experience managing projects using modern SELC models such as SAFe, Agile, and/or SecDevOps, and Operations/Production Support models such as ITIL.
Experience with cloud enabled solutions, architecture development, and “as a Service” offerings.
Solid understanding of software development life cycle models as well as expert knowledge of both Agile and traditional project management principles and practices and the ability to blend them together in the right proportions to fit a project and business environment.
Clearance: Top Secret clearance or higher is preferred and candidates with a TS or above will be given preference. At a minimum a Public Trust and US Citizenship is required.
Preferred Qualifications
Master's Degree in Engineering, Information Technology, Computer Science, Information Systems, or related field.
Customs and Border Protection background investigation (current or prior).
Department of Homeland Security experience with the TSA, CBP, FEMA and/or ICE.
Demonstrated experience delivering IT solutions for government organizations like DHS or CBP
Demonstrated experience managing applications in cloud environments, including hybrid and/or multi-cloud deployments.
Location
Onsite in Ashburn VA
Available for in-person customer meetings in Washington DC
Episodic Remote/Telework available
At Leidos, we don’t want someone who "fits the mold"—we want someone who melts it down and builds something better. This is a role for the restless, the over-caffeinated, the ones who ask, “what’s next?” before the dust settles on “what’s now.”
If you’re already scheming step 20 while everyone else is still debating step 2… good. You’ll fit right in.
Original Posting:September 12, 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.
The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and 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.
Top Skills
What We Do
We Are Leidos
For 50 years we have been tackling some of the biggest problems that face our nation and our world.
OUR MISSION
Through our culture of innovation and history of performance, we develop deep customer trust built on integrity and create enduring solutions that improve our world. Leidos is a science and technology solutions leader working to address some of the world’s toughest challenges in the defense, intelligence, homeland security, civil, and healthcare markets. The company’s 43,000 employees support vital missions for government and commercial customers. Headquartered in Reston, Va., Leidos reported annual revenues of approximately $11.09 billion for the fiscal year ended January 3, 2020.
Leidos was cited for the meaningful work employees perform that is challenging, impactful, and aligned with our customers’ missions as reasons professionals want to work and stay at our company. Leidos has also been named to lists including Forbes’ Best Employers for Diversity, Forbes’ America’s Best Employers for Women, Military Times Best for Vets Employers, and Ethisphere Institute’s World's Most Ethical Companies®.
Employees enjoy career enrichment opportunities available through mobility and development and experience rewarding relationships with supportive supervisors and talented colleagues and customers. Employees appreciate our flexible work environment, allowing for and encouraging a true work-life balance. Our professionals are also excited about our Employee Resource Groups, like the newly launched Collaborative Outreach with Remote and Embedded Employees (CORE), which strives to create an environment where every employee, regardless of location, feels fully engaged as a valued employee of Leidos.
Your most important work is ahead.
