Department of State Mission & Technology SME

Title:  Department of State Mission & Technology SME

Location: Washington, D.C. / Northern Virginia Hybrid

Terms: Full-time

Salary: 200k - 250k DOE

Clearance: Active Top Secret clearance required; with SCI eligibility

Travel: As needed for customer engagements.

Position Description

Revolutional is seeking a senior Department of State (DoS) Mission & Technology Subject Matter Expert with deep institutional knowledge of the U.S. Department of State, its diplomatic and national security missions, organizational structure, technology priorities, and decision-making environment.

We are looking for someone who knows the Department from the inside.

The ideal candidate is a current or former senior Department of State Civil Service, Diplomatic Security, technology, or program leader who has developed extensive experience and trusted professional relationships across multiple DoS bureaus and organizations.

This individual will understand not only how the Department operates, but also how diplomatic priorities, administration policies, funding, acquisition strategies, organizational dynamics, and technology investments influence mission execution.
Serving as a strategic advisor to Revolutional's growth and technical leadership teams, you will help shape our understanding of the Department's evolving priorities, identify mission-driven technology opportunities, and align Revolutional's capabilities with the challenges facing DoS.

This is not a hands-on engineering position or a traditional business development role. It is a strategic advisory position requiring substantial Department of State experience, executive-level credibility, and the ability to connect mission priorities with practical technology solutions.

What You’ll Do

• Serve as Revolutional’s senior advisor on Department of State missions, organizational priorities, technology strategy, and operational challenges.
• Provide institutional insight into the Department’s organizational structure, leadership dynamics, bureau responsibilities, and decision-making processes.
• Advise Revolutional leadership on how administration priorities, foreign policy objectives, funding decisions, and organizational changes influence DoS technology requirements and investments.
• Establish and maintain trusted professional relationships with senior DoS mission leaders, technology executives, program officials, and acquisition stakeholders through appropriate customer engagement channels.
• Identify emerging mission needs, technology modernization initiatives, cybersecurity priorities, and enterprise transformation opportunities across the Department.
• Translate complex diplomatic, consular, security, intelligence, and enterprise mission requirements into actionable technology strategies.
• Advise growth, capture, and solution teams on DoS funding processes, acquisition strategies, procurement timelines, organizational relationships, and customer priorities.
• Support early-stage opportunity development, customer engagement, market intelligence, and competitive positioning.
• Participate in customer meetings, industry engagements, RFIs, white papers, solution development sessions, and proposal activities.
• Collaborate with Revolutional’s technical leadership to align capabilities with DoS priorities involving enterprise IT and application modernization; AI/ML and data analytics; cloud infrastructure; cybersecurity, SOC operations, and Zero Trust; DevSecOps; identity and access management; secure communications; and data integration.
• Identify opportunities to extend successful technology solutions across multiple DoS bureaus and mission organizations.
• Provide insight into the Department’s contractor ecosystem, strategic partnerships, acquisition vehicles, and teaming considerations.
• Help Revolutional develop a coordinated, enterprise-level DoS growth strategy grounded in actual mission requirements and customer priorities.

Department of State Experience

• The ideal candidate will bring substantial firsthand experience working within the Department of State, with demonstrated knowledge of its organizational structure, mission priorities, operational environment, and technology landscape. Experience spanning multiple bureaus and organizations is particularly valuable, including:
• Diplomatic Technology (DT): Enterprise technology strategy, infrastructure, applications, communications, and modernization.
• Diplomatic Security (DS): Security operations, cybersecurity, protective missions, and secure technology environments.
• Consular Affairs (CA): Consular systems, passport and visa technology, and mission-support applications.
• Intelligence and Research (INR): Intelligence support, information systems, analytics, and national security technology requirements.
• Management and Enterprise Services: Department-wide operations, shared services, resource management, and technology investment priorities.
• Overseas Missions: Embassy and consulate operations, overseas technology infrastructure, communications, and mission support.
• Acquisition and Program Organizations: Federal procurement, technology program execution, funding processes, and contract management.
• Candidates do not need experience in every organization. However, demonstrated understanding of how multiple DoS bureaus interact, establish priorities, and execute technology initiatives is essential.

What You Bring (Required Qualifications)

Baseline Requirements

• 15+ years of relevant federal government, national security, diplomatic, technology leadership, or mission-support experience.
• Significant direct experience working within or supporting the U.S. Department of State, with demonstrated institutional knowledge extending beyond a single program or contract.
• Deep understanding of DoS missions, organizational structures, bureau responsibilities, leadership priorities, and operational environments.
• Demonstrated experience working across multiple DoS organizations, bureaus, or mission areas.
• Strong understanding of the Department’s political and diplomatic environment, including how policy direction, leadership transitions, funding priorities, and mission requirements influence technology decisions.
• Active Top Secret clearance with eligibility for SCI access.
• Ability to participate in classified customer engagements and operate in classified environments as required.

Department of State & Technology Expertise

• Extensive knowledge of the Department’s enterprise technology landscape, including major IT organizations, modernization priorities, cybersecurity challenges, and mission-support systems.
• Understanding of how technology enables diplomatic operations, overseas missions, consular services, national security, intelligence support, and enterprise management.
• Experience engaging senior DoS mission, technology, program, and acquisition stakeholders.
• Knowledge of federal technology acquisition, budgeting, requirements development, and procurement processes.
• Ability to identify and interpret emerging DoS mission requirements and translate them into practical technology strategies.
• Understanding of federal cybersecurity, cloud computing, enterprise infrastructure, application modernization, AI/ML, data analytics, and related technology capabilities.
• Familiarity with the Department’s contractor ecosystem, acquisition strategies, and major technology initiatives.
• Demonstrated ability to operate across organizational boundaries and connect mission requirements with enterprise technology priorities.

Core Strengths

• Deep institutional credibility and demonstrated understanding of Department of State operations.
• Strong strategic judgment and ability to navigate complex organizational and stakeholder environments.
• Executive-level communication and relationship-building capabilities.
• Ability to understand the intersection of diplomacy, national security, technology, funding, and acquisition.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to identify emerging priorities and anticipate mission-driven technology needs.
• Ability to translate complex mission challenges into clear, actionable recommendations for growth and technical leadership.
• Collaborative approach to working with business development, capture, solution architecture, and technical delivery teams.
• Sound judgment regarding federal ethics, procurement integrity, confidentiality, and appropriate customer engagement.

Nice to Have (Differentiators)

• Current or former senior Department of State Civil Service, Foreign Service, Diplomatic Security, or technology/program leader.
• Previous service at the GS-15, Senior Foreign Service, Senior Executive Service (SES), or equivalent leadership level.
• Established professional relationships across multiple DoS bureaus, mission organizations, and technology leadership communities.
• Experience advising senior DoS executives on technology strategy, modernization, cybersecurity, or mission-support initiatives.
• Experience supporting both domestic and overseas Department of State operations.
• Familiarity with DoS enterprise IT programs, major technology investments, acquisition organizations, and contracting mechanisms.
• Experience supporting classified DoS environments or national security and intelligence missions.
• Previous involvement in strategic planning, technology investment decisions, enterprise modernization, or cross-bureau initiatives.