Systems Engineer SME

The job

LIVE Live feed (private-sector employer) Source: The Muse public API · Data: listed 2026-11-06

Job description

Description

Lead the Technical Vision. Shape the Future

Leidos is seeking an experienced Systems Engineer Subject Matter Expert (SME) to provide technical leadership for the Chinook Program supporting the customer's application. This is a high impact leadership role for an engineering expert who enjoys solving enterprise-scale challenges, influencing technical strategy, and mentoring high-performing engineering teams.

As a Systems Engineering SME, you'll serve as the technical authority for systems engineering activities, helping shape the architecture and future direction of an application while ensuring engineering excellence across the program. As a SME, you will monitor system performance throughout the day and troubleshoot system anomalies as they arise. You will interact with end users and support contractors responsible for security, cloud provisioning, and external system interfaces. You will also provide feedback to system technical development leads and test engineers to improve the effectiveness, reliability, and overall quality of the software and testing processes.

As a Systems Engineer, you will maintain system documentation and deliver presentations to end users and Government managers as required. You'll also be expected to provide feedback to the system technical development leads and test engineers to make the software and testing more effective and reliable and maintain system documentation and make presentations to end users and Government managers.

Position may be performed in the following locations below.

•Gaithersburg, MD

•Alexandria, VA

•Chantilly, VA

•Englewood, CO

•St. Louis, MO

•Tucson, AZ

Clearance Level Required:

Active Top Secret/SCI with the ability to successfully pass a Polygraph examination.

Primary Responsibilities:

•Serve as the technical lead and systems engineering authority for the customer application.

•Define system architecture, engineering standards, technical roadmaps, and modernization strategies.

•Manage and maintain cloud-based application systems to ensure high availability, reliability, and performance.

•Troubleshoot complex technical issues and develop effective solutions to support system functionality and operational needs.

•Evaluate and identify opportunities to apply AI tools to enhance troubleshooting, system monitoring, and operational effectiveness.

•Lead requirements analysis, system design, integration, verification, and validation activities.

•Guide technical decision making across cross-functional engineering teams.

•Evaluate emerging technologies and recommend innovative solutions to improve system capabilities.

•Lead technical risk identification, mitigation planning, and engineering trade studies.

•Mentor systems engineers and promote engineering best practices across the program.

•Partner with program leadership and stakeholders to align technical solutions with mission objectives.

•Drive continuous improvement initiatives that enhance system performance, scalability, security, and maintainability.

Basic Qualifications:

•US citizenship is required per contract.

•Bachelor's degree in Systems Engineering, Computer Science, or related field and 12-15 years of prior relevant experience or Master's with 10-13 years of prior relevant experience. May possess a Doctorate in a technical domain.

12+ years of progressive systems engineering experience supporting software-intensive systems or enterprise systems.

•Demonstrated experience leading technical teams and influencing engineering strategy.

•Deep knowledge of systems architecture, integration, lifecycle engineering, and systems thinking.

•Experience leading engineering efforts within Agile and DevSecOps environments.

•Exceptional leadership, communication, collaboration, and technical mentoring skills.

Preferred Qualifications:

•Experience supporting large-scale government or mission-focused programs.

•Demonstrated experience using AI tools to optimize system performance, or the ability to identify and articulate practical applications of AI to support the responsibilities outlined in the job description.

•Expertise in cloud-native architecture, distributed systems, and enterprise modernization.

•Systems Engineering Professional (SEP), INCOSE, CISSP, Security+ certification, or similar credentials.

•Proficient in Python or C++ software development, automation, and system support.

•Experience working with Linux operating systems in support of application deployment, automation, and systems support.

•Proven success leading multidisciplinary engineering teams across complex technical programs.

#Chinook

#NSBA

If you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo - because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 - and moving faster than anyone else dares.

Original Posting:
October 15, 2026

For 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.

Pay Range:
Pay Range $131,300.00 - $237,350.00

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.

About Leidos

Leidos is an industry and technology leader serving government and commercial customers with smarter, more efficient digital and mission innovations. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, with 47,000 global employees, Leidos reported annual revenues of approximately $16.7 billion for the fiscal year ended January 3, 2025. For more information, visit www.Leidos.com.

Pay and Benefits

Pay and benefits are fundamental to any career decision. That's why we craft compensation packages that reflect the importance of the work we do for our customers. Employment benefits include competitive compensation, Health and Wellness programs, Income Protection, Paid Leave and Retirement. More details are available at www.leidos.com/careers/pay-benefits.

Securing Your Data

Beware of fake employment opportunities using Leidos' name. Leidos will never ask you to provide payment-related information during any part of the employment application process (i.e., ask you for money), nor will Leidos ever advance money as part of the hiring process (i.e., send you a check or money order before doing any work). Further, Leidos will only communicate with you through emails that are generated by the Leidos.com automated system - never from free commercial services (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail) or via WhatsApp, Telegram, etc. If you received an email purporting to be from Leidos that asks for payment-related information or any other personal information (e.g., about you or your previous employer), and you are concerned about its legitimacy, please make us aware immediately by emailing us at LeidosCareersFraud@leidos.com.

If you believe you are the victim of a scam, contact your local law enforcement and report the incident to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

Commitment to Non-Discrimination

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, race, ethnicity, age, national origin, citizenship, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, pregnancy, family structure, marital status, ancestry, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran or military status, or any other basis prohibited by law. Leidos will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with relevant laws.

Explore around this job

Field: Engineering, Construction and Energy Sub-niche: Manufacturing and hardware engineering All jobs at Leidos Jobs in Arizona Jobs in Tucson, AZ Tucson city guide Arizona state guide Pima County economy

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About the role

This is a Senior Level role in the Engineering, Construction and Energy field (Manufacturing and hardware engineering) at Leidos. Senior roles usually expect substantial experience, ownership of results and often the ability to guide others.

We could not match this job title to one occupation in the official wage statistics, so no pay estimate is shown. Pay is not in the source listing; ask the employer for the range and compare in the 240 job niches.

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How to prepare and behave

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• Read the whole description and match your examples to its requirements; use the same words the posting uses where they are true for you.
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Know your rights as a candidate and an employee:

• U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: prohibited employment practices
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The city

The job is in Tucson, AZ. Below is what the official statistics say about living and working there.

How Tucson compares. Among the 80 largest places in Arizona, Tucson is #2 by population, #76 for homeownership (#1 = highest), #71 for household income (#1 = highest), #14 for long commutes (#1 = fewest). Its county, Pima County, is #3 of 15 counties for average pay ($61,936).

The place in numbers

Tucson has 547,073 residents (ACS 2020–2024), about 7.4% of the population of Arizona. It covers 242 square miles of land, which works out to roughly 2,259 people per square mile. The median age is 34.6, 11% younger than the state median (34.6 against 39.0).

Housing

The median gross rent is $1,145 a month (rent plus utilities), 26% below the state median ($1,145 against $1,543). Over a year that is 24.1% of the median household income. US housing guidance treats housing as affordable when it takes 30% of income or less, so the typical household is under that line. The median home value is $266,200, which is 4.7 times the median household income ($57,073). 51.9% of households own their home, 23% below the state average (51.9% against 67.4%). A low ownership share points to a rental-heavy market with more apartments and shorter stays.

Work and pay

The Tucson, AZ metropolitan area has 389,630 jobs in the BLS wage survey, and the median pay across all occupations is $47,760 a year, 6% below the national median ($47,760 against $50,980). The biggest occupation groups are office and administrative support (46,550 jobs, median $44,920); food preparation and serving related (36,210 jobs, median $34,990); sales and related (33,700 jobs, median $36,070). The area is most specialised in architecture and engineering (1.5 times) and protective service (1.3 times), where the share of workers is above the national share. The best-paying groups with at least 5,000 jobs are management ($100,780) and computer and mathematical ($97,560). In 2026M09 the unemployment rate of Pima County was 4.8%. 60.7% of residents aged 16 and over are in the labour force. The city lies in Pima County; its jobs, pay by industry and GDP are on the county page.

Getting around

Among workers, 68.0% drive alone, 2.3% use public transit, 2.6% walk, 13.8% work from home. 7.9% of workers commute 45 minutes or more, 45% below the state average (7.9% against 14.2%).

People and education

31.1% of adults aged 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 7% below the state share (31.1% against 33.3%). 13.4% of residents were born outside the United States, 4% above the state share (13.4% against 13.0%). The poverty rate is 18.9%, 51% above the state rate (18.9% against 12.5%).

Climate

The warmest month is Jun, averaging 82°F (27.5°C), and the coolest is Dec at 45°F (7.4°C). About 323 mm (13 inches) of precipitation falls in a year; Jul is the wettest month (82 mm) and May the driest (4 mm). These values come from NASA satellite-based climatology on a grid of about 50 km, so they describe the wider area, not a weather station in the city.

Nearby cities to compare

Closest cities in this guide: Catalina Foothills (10 miles, rent 23% higher); Drexel Heights (10 miles, rent 17% higher); Tanque Verde (11 miles, rent 18% higher); Flowing Wells (13 miles, rent 10% lower). Rent differences are against Tucson; use the Compare tab to put any two cities side by side.

Full guide to Tucson →Arizona guideAll jobs in Tucson

Official links for Tucson

• Official website of Tucson: tucsonaz.gov
• Census Bureau data profile for Tucson
• Official state website: az.gov
• BLS Economy at a Glance: Arizona

These links go to official sources and open in a new window. The first one is the government's or company's own site as listed in Wikidata (property "official website"); check it before relying on it.

Where to live

The job city has no coordinates we can place on the map, so no housing comparison is shown. Use the 250 largest cities table to compare rent and income.

Career paths

We could not match this title to one occupation, so here are the other sub-niches in Engineering, Construction and Energy, where your skills may carry over:

Construction and field engineering (189) Energy and utilities (394)

Distances

This job has no single city we can place on the map (remote, flexible or unmatched location), so no distance table is shown. Browse all Engineering, Construction and Energy jobs with distances from any of the 20 largest cities.

The employer

Leidos is the employer in this listing. See all its open jobs here →

Company description (from The Muse): Leidos is a Fortune 500® innovation company rapidly addressing the world’s most vexing challenges in national security and health.

size: Large Size; industries: Information Technology; locations on The Muse: Reston, VA.

It is among the 200 largest US-headquartered employers in our list, with about 47,000 employees worldwide (year not stated). Company page with headquarters, state economy and official links →

Official links for Leidos

• Official website of Leidos: leidos.com
• SEC EDGAR: company filings search
• Official state website: virginia.gov

These links go to official sources and open in a new window. The first one is the government's or company's own site as listed in Wikidata (property "official website"); check it before relying on it.

The employer's profile on The Muse →

What it is like to work at a company (culture, schedules, benefits) is not in the source data, so we do not describe it. Read the description and ask the questions under "How to prepare".

Other open jobs at Leidos

Similar jobs

Same sub-niche: Manufacturing and hardware engineering

More jobs in Tucson, AZ

All Manufacturing and hardware engineering jobs → · All Engineering, Construction and Energy sub-niches →

FAQ

What is the Systems Engineer SME job at Leidos?

A senior level role in engineering, construction and energy (manufacturing and hardware engineering) listed 2 days ago. The full description is on this page and on The Muse.

Where is this job?

Tucson, AZ.

How do I apply?

Use the "View this job and apply on The Muse" button. AtiveSite does not receive applications.

How much does it pay?

The listing does not publish pay, and we could not match the title to one official occupation.

What is the cost of living there?

Median rent in Tucson is $1,145 a month and median household income $57,073 (ACS 2020–2024).

How old is this listing?

It was posted on 2026-11-06 (2 days ago). Jobs older than 90 days are not shown.

Are there similar jobs?

Yes: browse manufacturing and hardware engineering jobs in Arizona.

Sources and terms

• Job data: The Muse public API (listing dated 2026-11-06). The job disappears from this site when it disappears from the source.
• Wages and projections: BLS OEWS (May 2025) and Employment Projections 2025–35.
• City and county figures: Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024, BEA, BLS QCEW and LAUS, NASA POWER climatology; distances from Census Gazetteer coordinates.

AtiveSite is not affiliated with or endorsed by The Muse, the employer or any government agency, and does not process applications. Verify every detail with the employer before acting.

Sources

• BLS OEWS (wages and employment by occupation, May 2025)
• BLS Employment Projections 2025–35
• BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics
• BLS JOLTS
• BLS State and Metro Area Employment
• Census Bureau American Community Survey (via Census Reporter)
• BEA GDP by state and Regional Price Parities
• IRS 2026 tax adjustments
• U.S. Department of Labor, minimum wage by state
• Tax Foundation state income tax rates 2026
• USAJOBS
• USCIS
• U.S. Department of State, visas
• NASA POWER climatology
• GeoNames / Census Gazetteer (coordinates)