Job Title: Senior Systems Engineer
Job Type: Salary/Exempt
Department: Systems Engineering
Summary:
The Senior Systems Engineer will lead efforts in defining and managing system-level requirements, supporting product integration and configuration, and enabling early-stage customer adoption through hands-on technical contributions. This role drives alignment between technical design and user needs, supports pre-sales technical engagements, identifies and develops proposals for funded R&D opportunities, and collaborates closely with Engineering, Marketing, and Sales.
The Senior Systems Engineer will serve as a technical navigator and integrator, fostering transparency, shared understanding, and cross-functional cohesion through strong communication skills and system-level thinking.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Other duties may be assigned.
· Lead the definition, analysis, and management of system-level requirements for complex wireless communication systems, ensuring traceability and clarity throughout the development lifecycle.
· Collaborate across functional teams including hardware, embedded systems, application software, test, systems, product management, and program management to capture customer needs, identify technical dependencies, and drive solution alignment.
· Facilitate clear communication and shared understanding between stakeholders to balance technical feasibility, business value, and customer priorities.
· Contribute to system design and architecture discussions, ensuring that solutions reflect both internal capabilities and customer-centric design principles.
· Provide ongoing support and guidance during development and integration phases, helping to resolve technical ambiguities and cross-team misalignments.
· Mentor and guide team members, fostering a culture of open collaboration, knowledge sharing, and continuous improvement.
· Support the Sales and Product teams in proposal reviews, technical responses, and planning based on specific customer needs and technical objectives.
· Conduct rapid technical feasibility studies to evaluate emerging product concepts and customer opportunities for next-generation wireless mesh solutions, reducing risk and accelerating time-to-market.
· Champion a lean, iterative approach to systems engineering that emphasizes fast decision-making, minimally viable solutions, and continuous validation.
· Identify and prioritize the highest technical and integration risks early, resolving them through targeted experiments or feasibility efforts to reduce uncertainty at each development stage.
· Promote a culture of technical agility, experimentation, and innovation in early-phase product development.
· Identify and evaluate funded R&D opportunities (e.g., SBIR, BAA, or other government solicitations) that align with IWT’s technical strengths and product directions.
· Work closely with Engineering, Marketing, and Business Development to assess feasibility, risk, and strategic fit for new opportunities.
· Lead the development of proposal content including technical narratives, system architecture concepts, and technical execution plans, ensuring alignment with IWT’s long-term vision, technology reuse, and commercialization potential.
· Represent the technical team in customer meetings and reviews, communicating complex concepts clearly to technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Systems engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical field
- Minimum of 10 years of experience in systems engineering or multidisciplinary product development, with increasing levels of responsibility
- Proven experience leading system-level requirements definition, architecture development, and cross-functional integration
- Strong understanding of systems engineering principles, including requirements traceability, interface management, risk management, and verification/validation planning
- Experience working on systems involving embedded software, advanced wireless communication protocols and ruggedized hardware.
- Demonstrated ability to lead technical discussions and coordinate across hardware, software, test, and program management teams
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate complex technical concepts for diverse audiences
- Must be U.S. citizen, holding no dual citizenships.
Physical Requirements: Must be able to stand, bend, kneel, lift, reach, or stoop as needed in a typical office setting.
Reasonable accommodation policy
Federal contractors must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application process should follow the instructions in the job opportunity announcement. For any part of the remaining hiring process, applicants should contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.
IWT was established in 1997 and is dedicated to providing government and industry with products and engineering services centered on the wireless communications segment. IWT has core capabilities in system engineering, wireless architectures; mesh/ad hoc networks; sensor signal processing; geo-location; wide band/narrow band sensor networks; software/cognitive radio; software application development; signal processing and integrated circuit design and development.
IWT designs and manufactures wireless communications devices and associated software. IWT develops applications level and embedded software for its products. IWT sells software, hardware, and services to government and commercial markets. IWT provides field services to its customers in terms of technical support, installation, and distribution.
Equal employment opportunity policy
The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor.
Job Type: Full-time
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- 401(k) matching
- Dental insurance
- Employee assistance program
- Health insurance
- Health savings account
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
- Tuition reimbursement
- Vision insurance
Application Question(s):
- Applicant must be a US citizen, holding no dual citizenships.
Ability to Commute:
- Lynchburg, VA 24504 (Required)
Ability to Relocate:
- Lynchburg, VA 24504: Relocate before starting work (Required)
Work Location: In person
