Technical Scrum Master (On-Site)

Nakupuna Consulting is seeking a Technical On-Site Scrum Master to provide hands-on Agile leadership and day-to-day management of a hybrid technical team supporting our Department of Defense (DoD) customer, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA). The Technical Scrum Master will assist our Applications and Operations Managers in leading several evolving customer initiatives with a focus on: AWS Operations & System Administration, Database Administration, and journey to Zero Trust compliance. This role combines empowering leadership, personnel management, Agile delivery execution, and direct coordination with government stakeholders. This role requires strong technical fluency, experience working in classified or regulated environments, and demonstrated ability to manage people-not just process.

The following reflects management's definition of key functions for this job and reserves the right to assign additional duties as necessary to meet operational requirements:

Stakeholder Engagement & Reporting:

Serve as the primary on-site liaison between the Agile team, Program Manager, and Government stakeholders, including the CIO and COR.
• Conduct regular status meetings, sprint reviews, and coordination sessions with government and contractor leadership to align priorities, risks, and expectations.
• Prepare and deliver weekly, bi-weekly, and monthly status reports, metrics, and briefings that accurately reflect progress, issues, and mitigation strategies.
• Support contract execution by ensuring deliverables are submitted on time while meeting quality standards, and requiring minimal rework.
• Build and maintain strong working relationships with government counterparts to support mission success and positive past performance outcomes.

Agile Leadership & Delivery:

• Serve as the on-site Scrum Master for one or more Agile teams supporting a DoD program, providing consistent leadership, direction, and enforcement of Agile discipline in a secure, mission-driven environment.
• Plan, facilitate, and lead all Agile ceremonies including sprint planning, daily stand-ups, backlog refinement, sprint reviews, and retrospectives, ensuring ceremonies are purposeful, time-boxed, and outcome-focused.
• Coach team members on Agile principles, Scrum best practices, and continuous improvement, tailoring Agile execution to fit DoD constraints while preserving core Agile values.
• Identify, track, and actively remove impediments that impact team delivery, including technical, organizational, security, and dependency-related blockers, escalating risks when appropriate.
• Ensure Agile practices are executed in alignment with government governance, compliance requirements, and contractual performance expectations.

Technical & Program Execution:

• Maintain a working understanding of the system architecture, technical stack, and DevSecOps pipeline in order to effectively support technical discussions, planning, and delivery decisions.
• Partner closely with Product Owners and Technical Leads to ensure user stories are well-defined, prioritized, estimated, and technically feasible prior to sprint commitment.
• Track sprint commitments, velocity, risks, and dependencies, providing accurate and transparent reporting of progress, trends, and forecasts to program leadership.
• Ensure Agile artifacts, technical documentation, and deliverables are complete, accurate, and compliant with program standards, audit requirements, and security controls.
• Support release planning, deployment coordination, and transition activities across the full Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC), including coordination with operations and security stakeholders.

Personnel & On-Site Team Management:

• Provide direct day-to-day supervision and leadership for approximately 15 on-site contractor personnel, ensuring clear expectations, accountability, and alignment with program objectives.
• Establish performance objectives for team members, provide ongoing coaching and feedback, and support professional development in coordination with company leadership.
• Ensure staff compliance with company policies, DoD regulations, security procedures, and acceptable use requirements.
• Review and approve timesheets, leave requests, and administrative actions in accordance with corporate and contract requirements.
• Foster a professional, collaborative, and mission-focused team environment that promotes trust, transparency, and high performance.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in a STEM field from an accredited institution, or equivalent years of related work or military experience.
• 5 years of professional leadership experience
• 5 years of experience as a Scrum Master or Agile Delivery Lead
• Demonstrated experience managing or leading teams of 10 personnel, preferably on-site
• Strong understanding of Agile/Scrum frameworks within DoD or Federal environments
• Experience working with tools such as Jira and Confluence
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to operate effectively in a structured, high-accountability government setting

Certifications:

• Certified Scrum Master (CSM), Professional Scrum Master (PSM), or SAFe Scrum Master (SSM) - Required
• Project Management Professional (PMP) - Required
• SAFe Agilist or Release Train Engineer (RTE) - Nice to Have

Clearance & Security Requirements:

• Active Top Secret clearance required (Secret clearance will be considered for the right candidate)
• Ability to comply with DoD security policies, access controls, and on-site operational requirements

Work Location:

• Position is based in Arlington, VA.
• Must be on-site five (5) days per week.
• Occasional travel (2-3 weeks per year) within the Continental U.S. or to Hawaii may be required.
• Core hours: 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM local time, with a minimum 8-hour workday.
• Flexibility is expected to respond to after-hours emergencies and to support coordination across Hawaii and Virginia time zones.

Physical Requirements: The ideal candidate must at a minimum be able to meet the following physical requirements of the job with or without a reasonable accommodation:

• Ability to perform repetitive motions with the hands, wrists, and fingers.
• Ability to engage in and follow audible communications in emergency situations.
• Ability to sit for prolonged periods at a desk and working on a computer.