Communications Systems Engineer

About the role

FTS International, LLC (FTS) provides Subject Matter Experts (SME) free of Organizational Conflicts of Interest (OCI) focused on independent analysis and mission support services within the disciplines of Engineering, Counter Terrorism Operations, Management, Information Technology, Signals Analysis, Administration, Cyber Security, and Linguistics. This role supports specialized analysis, engineering, design, and operations for Intelligence Community (IC) and Department of War (DoW) customers.

Responsibilities

• Support development of next-generation and far-future national security systems across land, sea, air, and space domains.
• Provide systems engineering and technical advisory (SETA) support to an IC Research & Development (R&D) customer developing advanced hardware, software, and architectural solutions for mission-critical optical and quantum communication systems.
• Perform technical reviews, assessments, and risk evaluations of optical and quantum communication system development efforts at the component, subsystem, system, and architecture levels.
• Evaluate designs and technologies including optical terminals, free-space optical links, photonic components, entanglement-based communication architectures, and quantum-enhanced optical subsystems.
• Assess emerging technologies and identify gaps related to high-bandwidth space links, advanced modulation formats, pointing/tracking systems, link budgets, networking performance, and secure quantum-enabled transport architectures.
• Support development of technology roadmaps, requirements, specifications, verification approaches, and transition strategies for optical and quantum system modernization.
• Conduct technical outreach with mission users to capture needs and evaluate applicability of emerging optical and quantum capabilities.
• Prepare system engineering documentation, technical analyses, and program-level briefings to communicate findings and strategic recommendations.
• Provide support to programmatic and acquisition activities, including source selections, lifecycle documentation, and system integration planning.

Requirements

• TS/SCI with polygraph clearance.
• BS in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math) discipline.
• 12+ years of relevant experience, with at least 4 years in optical or quantum communication systems.
• Experience with USG program management and acquisition lifecycle processes and documentation.
• Strong interpersonal, verbal, and technical writing communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively within multidisciplinary teams.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office tools.

Qualifications (Preferred)

• MS in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math) discipline.
• 1+ year of experience supporting USG R&D acquisition processes and documentation.
• Experience with space-based optical terminals, quantum optical payloads, photonic systems, or advanced quantum-enhanced communication architectures.

Pay

Expected salary range: $165,000 - $195,000 per year. Placement within the range is determined by qualifications, job-related criteria, experience, internal equity, and market considerations.

Benefits

• Health Insurance
• Paid Time Off
• Life Insurance
• Short-Term and Long-Term Disability
• Retirement and Savings plans
• Learning and Development opportunities
• Wellness programs
• Other optional benefit elections