Senior Security Engineer

At Ardent , we hire people who want more than a job — they want to serve a mission that matters. Our teams support the federal government’s most critical national security and defense priorities, helping protect the nation, strengthen resilience, and advance the technologies and capabilities that keep America secure. For veterans, cleared professionals, and purpose-driven innovators, Ardent is a place to continue serving alongside a team that understands the importance of the mission and the people behind it. We also know top talent has choices, which is why we back our mission with benefits and flexibility that stand out: competitive pay, comprehensive health coverage, flexible PTO, federal holidays off, tuition reimbursement, professional development support, wellness stipends, and a culture that values and rewards hard work, dedication, and adaptability. If you want to build something meaningful, while enjoying the kind of flexibility and support that you need to do your best work — Ardent is where your next mission begins. Ardent is seeking a Senior Security Engineer to join our team. This is a hybrid position , requiring up to 3 days per week on-site in Washington DC. Position Description Ardent is seeking a Senior Security Engineer to support security engineering, SIEM administration, and detection optimization within a Virtual Security Operations Center (vSOC) environment. This role focuses on Microsoft Sentinel administration, detection rule development, and log management to ensure effective threat detection and response. The engineer will work closely with stakeholders to enhance visibility, improve security posture, and support vulnerability and patch management efforts. This position requires deep technical expertise in security engineering, SIEM platforms, and modern enterprise security tools within a secure, compliance-driven environment. Responsibilities and Duties Administer and maintain Microsoft Sentinel, including configuration, performance tuning, and platform optimization. Develop, tune, and maintain detection rules and analytics to improve threat detection capabilities. Write and optimize KQL queries for threat detection, investigation, and reporting. Validate log ingestion and ensure completeness and accuracy of data sources. Support onboarding and normalization of log sources across enterprise systems. Coordinate vulnerability prioritization and support patch governance efforts. Serve as a technical liaison with stakeholders to align security operations with mission needs. Support incident response efforts through engineering support and tool optimization. Document engineering processes, detection logic, and system configurations. Collaborate with SOC analysts and detection engineers to improve detection coverage and response efficiency. Requirements Must be a U.S. Citizen. Bachelor’s degree in Cybersecurity, Information Technology, or a related field (or equivalent experience). 4+ years of experience in cybersecurity engineering or security operations. 2+ years of experience supporting SIEM platforms, preferably Microsoft Sentinel. Experience developing detection logic and performing threat detection engineering. Proficiency in KQL or similar query languages. Experience with log ingestion, data normalization, and security telemetry. Experience supporting vulnerability management and patching processes. Strong analytical and problem-solving skills. Ability to communicate technical concepts to diverse audiences. Preferred Qualifications CISSP, GCIA, GCIH, CEH, or equivalent cybersecurity certification. Microsoft Sentinel or Microsoft security platform certification. Cloud security certification (e.g., AWS or Azure security). Experience supporting federal or government security operations environments. Experience working in secure or compliance-driven environments. Due to the nature of the work we support, all candidates in consideration for this role must be willing to undergo and maintain a government‑issued background investigation process. We highly encourage all Veterans and those with disabilities to apply. Ardent is an equal opportunity employer. We will not discriminate in employment, recruitment, advertisements for employment, compensation, termination, upgrading, promotions, and other conditions of employment against any employee or job applicant on the bases of race, color, gender, national origin, age, religion, creed, disability, veteran's status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or any other basis protected by state, local, or federal law. #J-18808-Ljbffr