Strategic Trade Controls Research Analyst

About the role

At PNNL, core capabilities are organized into Directorates such as National Security, Earth and Biological Sciences, Physical and Computational Sciences, and Energy and Environment. The National Security Directorate (NSD) drives science‑based, mission‑focused solutions to complex real‑world threats. The Emerging Threats and Technologies Division, part of NSD, comprises over 400 scientists, engineers, and analysts with backgrounds in cyber, nuclear, intelligence, policy, data science, and related fields, working in interdisciplinary project teams to integrate policy, analytics, science, and technology into unique solutions.

Responsibilities

• Conduct research and analysis concerning national and international strategic trade control laws, regulations, policies, institutional arrangements, and implementation practices.
• Analyze commodities, software, and technologies to determine applicability of national and multilateral control lists and support technically defensible classification determinations.
• Support licensing and transaction reviews, including assessment of end uses, end users, intermediaries, destinations, transaction structures, proliferation concerns, diversion indicators, and other risk factors.
• Assess strategic trade control systems and identify practical opportunities to strengthen policy development, licensing, compliance, outreach, enforcement, and interagency coordination.
• Apply strategic trade control principles across dual‑use, military, proliferation‑sensitive and emerging commodities and technologies, including unmanned and autonomous systems, working with technical specialists as needed.
• Conduct qualitative and quantitative research using regulatory information, technical documentation, open‑source information, aggregate and transactional trade data, and other relevant sources.
• Analyze trade patterns and transaction information to identify emerging trends, anomalous activity, diversion risks, and potential implementation gaps.
• Identify appropriate HS codes when needed for trade‑data analysis and explain the relationship and limitations of customs and export‑control classification systems.
• Develop or adapt analytical methodologies to address complex or emerging strategic trade control questions.
• Translate analytical findings into clear, actionable recommendations for program activities, technical assistance, and policy or operational decision‑making.
• Design, develop, and deliver international capacity‑building activities addressing strategic trade control policy, classification, licensing, risk assessment, compliance, outreach, enforcement, and related topics.
• Develop presentations, exercises, case studies, guidance, and other instructional or technical materials for government, industry, and academic audiences.
• Facilitate workshops, tabletop exercises, technical discussions, and interagency engagements with participants from a range of professional backgrounds.
• Support assessments of partner‑country needs and the development of tailored activities, work plans, roadmaps, and follow‑on recommendations.
• Contribute to proposals, work scopes, project plans, budgets, schedules, technical deliverables, and sponsor reports.
• Coordinate tasks and activities involving U.S. government sponsors, national laboratories, interagency partners, international organizations, foreign governments, industry, academia, and technical experts.
• Manage or support projects of varying size and complexity and adapt to changing sponsor priorities and programmatic needs.
• Prepare concise, technically accurate written products for technical, policy, program‑management, and senior‑level audiences.

Requirements

U.S. Citizenship required. Ability to obtain and maintain a federal security clearance, including background investigation per 10 CFR 710, Appendix B. Position is a Testing Designated Position requiring pre‑employment and random drug testing for illegal drugs (including marijuana); applicants must demonstrate non‑use of illegal drugs for the 12 months preceding completion of the Questionnaire for National Security Positions (QNSP).

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications: BS/BA and 7 years of relevant