Director of Data Science and AI

The Aerospace Corporation is the trusted partner to the nation’s space programs, solving the hardest problems and providing unmatched technical expertise. As the operator of a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC), we are broadly engaged across all aspects of space— delivering innovative solutions that span satellite, launch, ground, and cyber systems for defense, civil and commercial customers. When you join our team, you’ll be part of a special collection of problem solvers, thought leaders, and innovators. Join us and take your place in space.

Information Systems and Cyber Division (ISCD) staff couple the latest in information system technologies, such as elastic compute clouds, containerization, microservices, real-time operating systems, and visualization frameworks, with expertise in cyber security, software architecture, software engineering, data science, Artificial Intelligence, process improvement, and software development to deliver responsive, resilient, high-performance software intensive systems to our IC, DoD, and civilian customers.

The Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Department (DSAID) seeks a dynamic, creative, and enthusiastic Director to lead a talented team of engineers & data scientists with a passion for researching, prototyping, understanding, and building AI and data enabled tools across the space enterprise. We are an innovative and collaborative department that makes meaningful contributions across the entirety of National Security Space (USSF, NRO, etc.) and Civil and Commercial customers (NASA, MDA, DHS, commercial space, autonomous vehicles, etc.).

An ideal candidate is a community-focused leader, focused on setting department strategy and priorities, aligning with corporate and customer priorities, developing staff, and furthering efforts spanning internally funded R&D and customer support for mission-critical space systems.

This is a full-time position based in Chantilly, VA, Colorado Springs, CO, or El Segundo, CA which requires 100% work.

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What You’ll Be Doing

• Lead technical teams and contribute to technical tasks in data science, machine learning engineering, and AI research
• Lead DSAID management team to recruit, develop and manage technical staff in data science, machine learning engineering, and AI research aligned with corporate and customer priorities
• Execute R&D and digital transformation strategies pertaining to AI and cross-technology dependencies to position the organization and the company for current and future customer mission support success
• Coordinate between DSAID and Aerospace customer facing organizations to understand mission needs, prioritize resources, determine tasking, report progress, resolve technical issues, and deliver/review results
• Discover opportunities for additional, expanded, or new business. Aid in the evaluation and pursuit of new business opportunities and propose technical efforts aligned with customer needs
• Assess and execute staffing needs, reassignments, transfers, terminations, performance improvements, career development, and promotional actions
• Ensure team compliance with security monitoring, processes, and corporate policies
• Communicate activities, accomplishments, and recommendations to leadership and staff
• Participate in technical exchanges, team building, and education across organizational boundaries
• Duties, responsibilities and activities may change, or new ones may be assigned as needed
  
  

What You Need to be Successful - Director

Minimum Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical or Computer Engineering, Physics, Applied Mathematics, or STEM related technical field(s)

10 years of industry experience in data science, machine learning, or relevant AI research

Demonstrated ability to quickly learn and apply new technologies across multiple domains

Proven experience to efficiently manage teams to deliver analysis and insights from data that is large, unstructured, or unprocessed

Demonstrated written and oral communication skills, with ability to establish and maintain positive working relationships with customers and management/staff across organizations  

Experience with at least two different programming languages (e.g. Java, Python, C/C ), including familiarity with machine learning and deep learning libraries in Python 

Willing to travel occasionally to work location or customer site on a limited as-needed basis (

This position requires the ability to obtain and maintain Top Secret/SCI clearance, which is issued by the U.S. Government. U.S. citizenship is required to obtain a security clearance.

How You Can Stand Out

It would be impressive if you have one or more of these:

Advanced degree from an accredited program in Computer Science, Data Science, Electrical or Computer Engineering, or related field(s) 

History of effective cross-disciplinary leadership and teaming 

Direct mission system experience in one of more of the following: GEOINT, missile warning/missile tracking/missile defeat, satellite communications, command and control, PNT, launch systems, civil space systems (NASA, NOAA)

Enterprise experience spanning varied programs and domains (e.g., Battle Management, Command, Control, and Communications (BMC3))

Experience implementing and guiding teams toward software and machine learning development best practices (e.g. code, model, and data set version control, experiment tracking and reproduction)

Leading edge applications of Generative AI (GAI) and/or Agentic AI

Demonstrated contributions to open source software repositories (github, kaggle, etc.), publication record in machine learning conferences/journals 

Familiarity deploying ML models within applications or on cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, etc.) 

Active Top Secret or TS/SCI security clearance, or current (<4 years old) Sole Source Background Investigation (SSBI)

We offer a competitive compensation package where you’ll be rewarded based on your performance and recognized for the value you bring to our business. The grade-based pay range for this job is listed below. Individual salaries within that range are determined through a wide variety of factors including but not limited to education, experience, knowledge and skills.

(Min - Max)

$185,100 - $277,600

Pay Basis: Annual

Leadership Competencies

Our leadership philosophy is simple: every employee, regardless of level and role, can demonstrate leadership. At Aerospace, our commitment is our people. To cultivate our talent and ensure that we have a strong pipeline of future leaders, we want individuals who:

• Operate Strategically
• Lead Change  
• Engage with Impact  
• Foster Innovation  
• Deliver Results
  
  

Ways We Reward Our Employees

During your interview process, our team will provide details of our industry-leading benefits.

Benefits vary and are applicable based on Job Type. A few highlights include:

• Comprehensive health care and wellness plans
• Paid holidays, sick time, and vacation
• Standard and alternate work schedules, including telework options
• 401(k) Plan — Employees receive a total company-paid benefit of 8%, 10%, or 12% of eligible compensation based on years of service and matching contributions; employees are immediately eligible and vested in the plan upon hire
• Flexible spending accounts
• Variable pay program for exceptional contributions
• Relocation assistance
• Professional growth and development programs to help advance your career
• Education assistance programs
• An inclusive work environment built on teamwork, flexibility, and respect
  
  

We are all unique, from various backgrounds and all walks of life, yet one thing bonds all of us to each other—the belief that we can make a difference. This core belief empowers us to do our best work at The Aerospace Corporation.

Equal Opportunity Commitment

The Aerospace Corporation is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, age, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, color, religion, genetic information, marital status, ancestry, national origin, protected veteran status, physical disability, medical condition, mental disability, or disability status and any other characteristic protected by state or federal law. If you’re an individual with a disability or a disabled veteran who needs assistance using our online job search and application tools or need reasonable accommodation to complete the job application process, please contact us by phone at 310.336.5432 or by email at peoplemangmnt.mailbox@aero.org . You can also review Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal.