Senior Systems Engineer - Team Lead

Zachary Piper Solutions is seeking a Senior Systems Engineer - Team Lead to support a company providing secure, high‑assurance IT services for Department of Defense missions. This position is onsite in San Diego, CA. This is a contract-to-hire opportunity supporting a classified IL6 cloud modernization effort enabling mission‑critical DoD operations.

The Senior Systems Engineer - Team Lead  will design, secure, and sustain Windows infrastructure operating within IL6 cloud environments while providing day‑to‑day technical leadership to the engineering team. This role supports highly regulated DoD environments requiring strict cybersecurity and automation-first engineering standards.

Responsibilities for the Senior Systems Engineer include:

• Engineer, secure, and sustain Windows Server environments within IL6 cloud architectures (Azure Government Secret, AWS GovCloud Secret).

• Implement automation‑first infrastructure using PowerShell, scripting, and Infrastructure‑as‑Code (e.g., Terraform, ARM, Ansible).

• Harden systems in compliance with DISA STIGs, RMF controls, and DoD cybersecurity policy; support vulnerability and patch automation.

• Integrate Windows systems into DevSecOps, CI/CD pipelines, GitOps workflows, and containerized platform services.

• Troubleshoot and optimize mission infrastructure across compute, storage, identity, networking, and cloud layers.

• Serve as the day‑to‑day technical lead for the government customer—assign tasks, track delivery, coordinate engineering activities, and escalate risks.

• Ensure high availability, backup integrity, and continuity for mission‑critical classified systems.

Required Qualifications for the Senior Systems Engineer include:

• 10+ years of relevant systems engineering experience

• Experience operating in DoD cybersecurity frameworks (RMF, STIG compliance)

• Expertise integrating Windows infrastructure into DevOps/DevSecOps automation workflows

• Strong scripting ability (PowerShell required; Python or Bash a plus)

• Demonstrated ability to lead technical teams in customer‑facing DoD environments

• Certifications (IAT II – one required): Security+, CySA+, CCNA Security, GICSP, GSEC, or SSCP

• Active Secret clearance (ability to support IL6 classified environment)

Preferred Experience for the Senior Systems Engineer include: 

• Kubernetes or OpenShift exposure

• Experience supporting restricted classified environments

• Infrastructure-as-Code tooling (Terraform, ARM, Ansible, etc.)

• Container security and hardened image pipelines

• Microsoft cloud certifications (Azure Government focus)

• Advanced cloud cybersecurity certifications

Compensation for the Senior Systems Engineer:

• Salary Range: $190,000–$200,000

• Full Benefits Package:

PTO, Paid Holidays, Medical, Dental, Vision, 401K, Tuition Reimbursement, Paid Maternity Leave, Military Reserve Pay Offset, Cigna Medical/Dental/Vision, Sick Leave as required by law, Holidays

#LI-SA1 #LI-ONSITE

Keywords:

Windows Server, IL6 Cloud, DevSecOps, Azure Government Secret, AWS GovCloud Secret, DISA STIG, RMF, DoD Cybersecurity, PowerShell, Terraform, Ansible, CI/CD, GitOps, Kubernetes, OpenShift, Classified IT, Vulnerability Management, Cloud Hardening, Secret Clearance, DoD IT, Mission Systems, San Diego CA, Systems Engineering Lead, GovCloud,