MSS Developer - Arlington (VA)

About Agile Defense

At Agile Defense we know that action defines the outcome and new challenges require new solutions. That’s why we always look to the future and embrace change with an unmovable spirit and the courage to build for what comes next.

Our vision is to bring adaptive innovation to support our nation's most important missions through the seamless integration of advanced technologies, elite minds, and unparalleled agility—leveraging a foundation of speed, flexibility, and ingenuity to strengthen and protect our nation’s vital interests.

Job Title: MSS Developer Engineer

Location: Pentagon | Arlington, VA

Clearance Level: This position requires candidates to be U.S. citizens and to possess, at minimum, an active Secret security clearance. Roles under this requisition may require higher-level clearances, including TS/SCI, which candidates must be able to obtain and maintain based on project assignment.

Job Description

Build Mission-Critical Analytics and Applications

• Build and maintain operator-facing dashboards, applications, and decision surfaces aligned to J7 mission workflows
• Create intuitive, self-service capabilities that empower operators to explore data independently
• Build automated workflows that deliver timely insights to stakeholders across the directorate
• Ensure data accuracy and consistency across all MSS deliverables

Drive Hands-On Platform Engineering

• Develop and maintain data pipelines, ontology, and access controls on MSS and the underlying Palantir stack
• Integrate external data sources into a well-modeled data foundation
• Ensure AI/AIP workflows have a well-modeled data foundation and that model outputs are surfaced in operationally useful ways
• Partner with mission leaders to understand analytical needs and translate requirements into technical solutions

Enable Data-Driven Decision Making

• Create compelling data visualizations that communicate complex insights to diverse audiences
• Build interactive tools that allow operators to drill down into data and explore different scenarios
• Design alerting and monitoring systems that proactively identify mission opportunities and risks
• Collaborate with teams to establish KPIs and success metrics that drive mission performance

Optimize Platform Performance

• Develop efficient data models and query optimization strategies for fast, reliable reporting Implement caching and aggregation strategies to ensure optimal dashboard and application performance
• Build scalable MSS solutions that can handle growing data volumes and user bases
• Provide day-to-day operator support and elevate complex platform issues to senior engineers as appropriate

Foster Analytics Excellence

• Contribute reusable platform content, including ontology patterns, dashboard templates, and integration recipes, to support continuous curriculum refresh Document data sources, metrics definitions, and analytical methodologies for organizational knowledge
• Support validation of the FDE&T model for potential extension to additional Combatant Commands, Service components, and functional commands
• Stay current with MSS/Palantir technologies and advocate for new tools and approaches that improve mission analytics

Required Skills

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or a quantitative discipline; extensive Palantir experience will substitute.
• 4+ years of software or data engineering experience (data analysis or data science experience considered), including 1.5+ years hands‑on with Palantir Foundry, Gotham, AIP, or MSS
• Demonstrated experience building dashboards, applications, or pipelines for operational end users
• Working proficiency in ontology design, pipeline authoring using PySpark, Code Repositories, or Pipeline Builder
• Active US government security clearance

Preferred Skills

• Prior Palantir FDE/FDSE or comparable customer-embedded role
• Hands‑on MSS experience AIP agent or large language model workflow exposure
• Familiarity with DoD data environments and classified networks
• Prior Combatant Command support
• Solid Python and SQL skills with familiarity in JavaScript/TypeScript

Working Conditions

Must be able to work onsite in a SCIF

$135,000 - $165,000 a year

Our Core Values

Employees of Agile Defense are our number one priority, and the importance we place on our culture here is fundamental. Our culture is alive and evolving, but it always stays true to its roots. Here, you are valued as a family member, and we believe that we can accomplish great things together. Agile Defense has been highly successful in the past few years due to our employees and the culture we create together.

What makes us Agile? We call it the 6Hs, the values that define our culture and guide everything we do. Together, these values infuse vibrancy, integrity, and a tireless work ethic into advancing the most important national security and critical civilian missions. It's how we show up every day. It's who we are.

• Happy - Be Infectious. Happiness multiplies and creates a positive and connected environment where motivation and satisfaction have an outsized effect on everything we do.
• Helpful - Be Supportive. Being helpful is the foundation of teamwork, resulting in a supportive atmosphere where collaboration flourishes, and collective success is celebrated.
• Honest - Be Trustworthy. Honesty serves as our compass, ensuring transparent communication and ethical conduct, essential to who we are and the complex domains we support.
• Humble - Be Grounded. Success is not achieved alone, humility ensures a culture of mutual respect, encouraging open communication, and a willingness to learn from one another and take on any task.
• Hungry - Be Eager. Our hunger for excellence drives an insatiable appetite for innovation and continuous improvement, propelling us forward in the face of new and unprecedented challenges.
• Hustle - Be Driven. Hustle is reflected in our relentless work ethic, where we are each committed to going above and beyond to advance the mission and achieve success.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities