Policy and Capabilities Team Lead

Bethesda, Maryland (onsite)

Active Top-Secret Clearance with SCI (TS/SCI) and CI Polygraph Required

@Orchard is actively supporting a proposal expected to be awarded in Fall 2026, with an estimated start date of January 2027, for a Maryland client in the Intelligence Sector. We are seeking individuals with the necessary skills, experience, and clearance to sign a letter of intent to join the team once the program is awarded. This is an exceptional opportunity to join one of our clients, a leader in the IC space with exceptional benefits and opportunities for advancement.

As the Policy and Capabilities Team Lead, you will serve as the lead and administrator for a key IC mission component directorate and lead multi-location contractor teams, serving as the primary interface with Sponsor program authorities on technical and project issues.

Your responsibilities will include.

• Act as the lead administrator for the team effort, directing team efforts across multiple locations and serving as the primary interface and point of contact with Sponsor program authorities and representatives on technical and project issues
• Regularly brief leadership on program status and milestones
• Oversee team and project operations by developing procedures; planning and directing execution of contractual, technical, multi-disciplinary engineering, programming, maintenance, and administrative support efforts; and monitoring and reporting progress
• Maintain a thorough understanding of the Sponsor's mission and remain aware of requirements and programmatic changes to ensure effective support
• Regularly provide feedback to the Program Manager on the status of work being performed in support of the Sponsor

Your experience and qualifications will include.

• Active Top Secret/SCI clearance with Polygraph
• US Citizenship is required
• Bachelor's degree in computer science, data analytics, software engineering, or related technical field with 8 years of experience
• One (1) or more years leading a team or managing staff 
• Minimum of four (4) years of hands-on experience as a Project Manager
• Demonstrated experience developing decision-quality materials (strategic papers, options analyses, executive briefings) and driving executive action tracking
• Experience overseeing or guiding portfolio/program performance, resource planning, and acquisition/procurement strategy (including vendor management and enterprise licensing concepts)

Additional capabilities to make you stand out.

• Experience translating mission priorities into actionable IT roadmaps, investment plans, and measurable outcomes
• Experience with AI architecture patterns (model hosting, vector search/RAG, data pipelines, APIs, orchestration)
• Experience briefing senior leaders and driving cross-team delivery
• Prior experience managing geographically dispersed contractor teams in a classified environment

Compensation: As there are several potential levels for this skillset within the program, compensation can range between $132,900 and $190,000. All employees will receive a generous benefits package: Health, Dental, Vision, 401K with immediate vesting, tuition reimbursement, and generous PTO.

Established in 2010, @Orchard LLC has an exceptional reputation, providing staffing solutions to time-sensitive, talent scarcity issues to deliver better talent management ROI.  Our specialty lies in the critical area of program talent acquisition and resource management, not in one narrow skillset, but across many areas of technical and functional delivery. To learn more about our other exciting opportunities, visit our Jobs Page at www.atOrchard.com.