TS/SCI w/Poly - ISSE role (A&A/ATO/NIST)

Position is with the VA Intel Customer and requires an active TS/SCI with Full Scope Poly clearance.

The ISSE will lead and execute security engineering activities across complex, enterprise-scale

environments. This role requires deep technical expertise across infrastructure, platforms, and

applications, combined with expert-level, hands-on experience implementing the NIST Risk

Management Framework (RMF) within federal government environments. The ideal candidate is

a technical practitioner, not just an advisor – someone who can design, implement, assess, and

secure systems end-to-end while directly supporting system authorization, continuous

monitoring, and risk-based decision-making. This role also serves as the technical focal point for

all security incidents, leading triage, investigation, and resolution efforts in coordination with

program and enterprise security teams.

QUALIFICATIONS

 Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, IT, or a related technical discipline, or the

equivalent combination of education, technical training, or work/military experience

 Minimum ten (10) years of related cyber security engineering experience

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE/SKILLS

 Proven hands-on Cyber Security Engineer SME, not policy-only or audit-only

 Comfortable working across network, system, platform, and application layers

 Deep understanding of how security controls are actually implemented and validated

 Experience in federal RMF-driven environments

 Able to bridge security, engineering, and compliance effectively

 Experienced in managing security incidents from detection through resolution

 Skilled at balancing immediate incident response needs with long-term security

improvements

 Effective collaborator across organizational boundaries during high-pressure security events

 Operate independently as the technical authority for system security engineering

 Demonstrate the ability to provide technical hands-on configuration, validation, and

assessment of security controls

 Translate RMF and NIST requirements into real-world technical implementations

 Communicate complex technical security issues clearly to both technical and non-technical

stakeholders

 Maintain a strong balance between security compliance and operational practicality

 Lead rapid response to security incidents with minimal guidance

 Demonstrate strong analytical and troubleshooting skills under pressure during active

security events

 Effectively communicate incident status, impact, and remediation progress to technical and

leadership audiences

 Security & Compliance

o Expert-level experience with NIST Risk Management Framework (RMF) in federal

government environments

o Strong knowledge of:

 NIST SP 800-53

 NIST SP 800-37

 NIST SP 800-30

o Direct involvement I ATO packages, control implementation, and assessments

o Hands-on experience with Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)

platforms (e.g., Splunk, ELK Stack, ArcSight, QRadar)

o Demonstrated experience in security incident detection, analysis, and response

o Proven ability to triage security alerts and determine criticality and impact

 Infrastructure & Platforms (Hands-On)

o Networking (e.g., routing, switching, firewalls, load balancers, network security controls)

o Operating Systems:

 Windows Server

 Linux (RHEL, CentOS)

o Virtualization and storage platforms

o Databases (SQL and/or NoSQL)

o Data platforms (e.g., HPCC, Hadoop/Cloudera)

o Web services, APIs, and application architectures

o Software development environments and CI/CD pipelines

o Security tooling (e.g., vulnerability scanners, endpoint protection, SIEM)

 Engineering Experience

o Security engineering and system hardening

o Vulnerability discovery and remediation

o Secure system design and architecture reviews

o Technical documentation supporting RMF compliance

o Experience in cloud environments (AWS, Azure, GCP, CI) within federal RMF contexts

o Experience with DevSecOps practices

DESIRED SKILLS

 Hands-on experience with containerization and orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes)

 Hands-on experience with infrastructure-as-code

 Knowledge of federal overlays (e.g., DoD, FISMA High/Moderate)

 Relevant certifications (preferred, not required):

o CISSP

o CAP

o CISM

o Security+

o Cloud Security

o Certified Ethical Hacker

 Experience with guiding and directing junior engineers and information systems security officer (ISSO)

 Experience with security orchestration, automation, and response (SOAR) platforms

 Background in threat hunting and proactive security monitoring

 Relevant incident response certifications

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES 

 Serve as the Cyber Security Engineer SME, providing hands-on security engineering across

all system layers (infrastructure, platform, and application)

 Engineer, implement, and validate security controls in accordance with NIST SP 800-53 and

RMF requirements

 Lead and support RMF lifecycle activities (Categorize, Select, Implement, Assess,

Authorize, Monitor)

 Perform security engineering for:

o Network architectures and boundary protections

o Windows and Linux operating systems

o Storage and virtualization platforms

o Databases and data platforms

o Web services, APIs, and application stacks

o Custom and COTS/GOTS software solutions

 Provide technical input to RMF artifacts, including:

o System Security Plans (SSP)

o Security Control Assessments (SCA) support

o POA&Ms

o Risk assessments and security impact analyses

 Collaborate with system owners, architects, developers, ad operations teams to embed

security into system design and implementation

 Support ATO, re-authorization, and continuous monitoring activities

 Identify security risks and provide practical, technically sound mitigation strategies

 Participate in security reviews, technical design reviews, and vulnerability remediation efforts

 Serve as technical l point of contact for all security incidents affecting the program

 Lead triage and analysis of new security alerts from SIEM, IDS/IPS, and other security

monitoring tools

 Drive remediation efforts for recurring security alerts, identifying root causes and

implementing systemic fixes

 Coordinate incident response activities between program stakeholders and enterprise

security operations

 Act as primary liaison between program teams and enterprise security for incident

escalation, resolution, and reporting

 Perform forensic analysis and technical investigations of security events

 Document security incidents, response actions, and lessons learned

 Develop and maintain runbooks and playbooks for common security incident types

Requirements

Required Skills and Demonstrated Experience

The Contractor shall have the following required skills, certifications, and demonstrated experience:

   Demonstrated experience with designing and implementing secure communication solutions and networks.

   Demonstrated experience with implementing infrastructure in public cloud domains.

   Demonstrated experience with the Intelligence Community Directive (ICD) 503 Assessment and Accreditation (A&A) process and acquiring necessary approvals to develop, implement and operate systems.

   Demonstrated experience with the A&A processes and cyber security requirements as well as experience with coordinating with multiple entities or organizations to obtain necessary approvals to achieve and maintain Authority to Operate (ATO) status.

   Demonstrated experience addressing and implementing system security controls.

   Demonstrated experience triaging and troubleshooting system issues.

   Demonstrated experience producing technical system documentation.

   Demonstrated experience with designing and implementing cloud-hosted infrastructure for use with mobile and commercial applications.

   Demonstrated experience in information security.

   Demonstrated experience transferring, handling, and securing sensitive data.

   Demonstrated experience developing system design diagrams.

   Demonstrated experience developing and briefing system designs to both technical and non-technical audiences to obtain operational and security approvals.

   Certifications: CompTIA Network+, CompTIA Security+, and ISC2 Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)

Highly Desired Skills and Demonstrated Experience

Skills and demonstrated experiences that are highly desired but not required to perform the work include:

   Demonstrated experience with Sponsor systems, architecture, and data.

   Demonstrated experience providing coordination across Sponsor’s organization and business partners to expedite technology approval.

   Demonstrated experience with the Sponsor’s A&A process and cyber security requirements as well as experience with coordinating across the Sponsor organization to obtain necessary approvals to achieve and maintain Authority to Operate (ATO) status

   Demonstrated experience working independently and collaboratively within a team environment.

   Demonstrated experience developing system design diagrams using Sponsor provided tools.

Certification: EC-Council Ethical Hacker (CEH)

Benefits

Leading Path is an award-winning Information Technology and Management Consulting firm focused on providing solutions in process, technology, and operations to our government and Fortune 500 clients. We offer a professional and family friendly work environment with a strong work-life balance. Leading Path provides a comprehensive and competitive benefits package including fully paid medical/dental/vision premiums, generous PTO, 11 Paid Holidays, 6% 401K contribution, annual training and tuition reimbursement, SPOT Award bonuses, regular team events, opportunities for professional growth and advancement and much more!