Senior Principal Architect

About The Role

Peraton is seeking an experienced Senior Principal Architect to serve as the technical lead and solution authority for large, strategic Federal Civilian pursuits. This individual will be responsible for developing innovative, mission-focused technical solutions for opportunities ranging from $75M to $1B+ in total contract value. The Senior Principal Architect will partner closely with Capture Managers, Proposal Managers, Business Development teams, Subject Matter Experts, and executive leadership to shape winning solutions that align with customer missions, technical requirements, and strategic objectives.

The ideal candidate will possess deep experience designing enterprise-scale solutions across cloud, cybersecurity, application modernization, data analytics, artificial intelligence, IT operations, and managed services environments within the federal government sector.

Location: Reston, Virginia. Flexibility with travel to customer sites as needed.

What You Will Do:

• Serve as Senior Principal Architect on large federal civilian pursuits ($75M–$1B+), owning solution architecture from capture through proposal submission.
• Design enterprise architectures spanning cloud, application modernization, cybersecurity, data, AI, IT operations, and managed services tailored to customer missions.
• Develop forward-looking architectures with evolutionary pathways for emerging technologies (AI/ML, zero trust, PQC, AIOps, edge computing, etc).
• Lead technical solutioning sessions with capture teams, partners, and SMEs; develop and present solution briefings for gate reviews and executive leadership.
• Author and review technical proposal volumes - ensuring content is compelling, compliant, and discriminating against evaluation criteria.
• Conduct competitive technical analysis and articulate discriminators that create measurable separation from competitors.
• Develop deep understanding of assigned customer missions, technology environments, and strategic direction; engage directly with federal customers as a trusted advisor.
• Evaluate Peraton Labs capabilities and partner technologies for inclusion in solutions; contribute reusable frameworks and reference architectures.

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelors degree and 16 years of experience, an Associates Degree and 18 years of experience, a Masters degree and 14 years of experience, or a High School diploma/equivalent and 20 years of experience. 
• Must be a U.S. Citizen with the ability to obtain and maintain a Public Trust clearance
• 5+ years as a solution architect or similar role on large enterprise-level pursuits ($100M+ TCV) with end-to-end solution design responsibility.
• Demonstrated architecture experience across at least four domains: cloud (AWS/Azure/GCP/OCI), app modernization, cybersecurity/zero trust, data/AI-ML, IT ops, DevSecOps, enterprise platforms, etc.
• Proven track record winning large competitive proposals - translating complex requirements into deliverable, discriminating solutions.
• Experience presenting architectures to executive leadership, gate review panels, and federal customers including oral presentations.
• Strong understanding of federal acquisition processes, evaluation methodologies, and compliance frameworks (FedRAMP, FISMA, NIST, CMMC).
• Excellent technical writing and communication skills for both technical and executive audiences.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree or Masters degree in CS, Engineering, IT, or related field, and 10+ years in enterprise IT solution architecture or technical leadership preferred.
• Experience with federal civilian agencies.
• Professional certifications: AWS SA Professional, Azure SA Expert, CISSP, TOGAF, or SAFe Architect, etc.
• Experience with generative AI, agentic AI, post-quantum cryptography, AIOps, and other emerging technologies in enterprise architectures.
• Background in ITIL, Agile/SAFe delivery, DevSecOps CI/CD, and price-to-win analysis.

Details

Target Salary Range: $176,000 - $282,000. This represents the typical salary range for this position. Salary is determined by various factors, including but not limited to, the scope and responsibilities of the position, the individual’s experience, education, knowledge, skills, and competencies, as well as geographic location and business and contract considerations. Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay.

Benefits Statement: Peraton offers eligible employees a variety of benefits including medical, dental, vision, life, health savings account, short/long term disability, EAP, parental leave, 401(k), paid time off (PTO) for vacation, and company paid holidays. A full listing of available benefits can be viewed at 

Application Statements: The application period for the job is estimated to be 30 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates. By applying to this job, you are expressing interest in the role and the Company. During the review of your application, you may be required to participate in an on-camera interview, as well as participate in a process to verify your identity. Use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools of any kind during Peraton interviews is strictly prohibited unless the candidate has obtained prior written authorization. All interview responses must be the candidate’s own.

EEO: Equal opportunity employer, including disability and protected veterans, or other characteristics protected by law.