Director Network Programming Jobs in Arizona (NOW HIRING)

Iridium is an award-winning and innovative satellite communications company with bragging rights to the only network that offers voice and data connectivity anywhere in the world.   For over 20 years, Iridium's unique network and services have supported critical communications needs for individuals, businesses, and the evolving Internet of Things.

At Iridium, we understand the importance of staying connected and the limitations of traditional communications networks. People across the globe, including first responders, humanitarians, global militaries, scientific researchers, and lone workers, as well as ships, aircraft and remote operations all rely on Iridium to stay connected. We take our responsibility for providing these essential communications very seriously and pride ourselves on offering a reliable lifeline when needed.  Likewise, Iridium is committed to providing an exciting and innovative workplace, where employees are challenged to think outside the box and collaborate on new, bold ideas and solutions.  Our talented teams are passionate about their work and the impact our company makes around the world.  Iridium fosters an empowering and inclusive culture that allows employees to genuinely be their best selves.   We are looking for others who want to join this truly unique company that celebrates our employees and provides the opportunity to truly make a difference in the world.

If you are passionate about space and deploying disruptive space technology, you will be excited about the Deputy Director of Network Infrastructure and Ground Entry Points (GEP) opportunity with Iridium in support of the Space Development Agency (SDA). In this role, you will provide technical and organizational leadership across Network Infrastructure and GEP functions, leading and developing a team of architects and principal engineers while driving cross-functional execution, continuous improvement, and strategic capability growth. You will be responsible for architecting and evolving scalable, secure network and ground infrastructure solutions that improve efficiency, resilience, and mission effectiveness across existing SDA programs, while also supporting new program development through early-phase architecture, requirements shaping, and integration of new capabilities into Iridium's SDA portfolio. Success in this role requires deep experience in network infrastructure and ground systems, the ability to balance technical depth with strategic leadership, and a proven track record of guiding senior technical staff, collaborating with program leadership, and translating SDA mission objectives into executable architectures and delivery roadmaps. 

This position requires an active/current Top Secret/SCI U.S. Security Clearance with the ability to obtain CI Polygraph (A U.S. Security Clearance that has been active in the past 24 months is considered active.) 

• Provide technical and organizational leadership for Network Infrastructure and GEP architectural and design activities

• Direct and manage a team of subject matter experts and principal engineers to ensure consistent, high-quality architectural and design outcomes

• Lead and oversee architecture analysis and design efforts across network, ground, data, and integration domains, ensuring the appropriate use of methods, standards, and enterprise-aligned content are utilized

• Evaluate alternatives and guide trade studies, making clear, defensible recommendations to leadership on critical design decisions that balance mission needs, cost, risk, and scalability

• Establish, communicate, and enforce architectural and design standards, guidelines, and reference architectures that support SDA mission objectives and long-term program sustainability

• Identify, shape, and integrate new capabilities into existing SDA programs, while supporting new program development through early-phase architecture, requirements refinement, and solution definition

• Anticipate future network and ground infrastructure needs, developing forward-looking roadmaps that improve resilience, efficiency, and mission effectiveness

• Serve as a senior escalation and decision authority for complex cross-functional issues, setting policies, procedures, and governance mechanisms to streamline operational workflows and improve service outcomes

• Collaborate closely with program management, engineering, and finance to prepare and contribute to executive-level program documentation, briefings, and decision materials, including architecture summaries, risk assessments, and capability trade-offs

• Evaluate emerging technologies and industry standards, providing strategic insight to inform investment decisions and enabling adoption of innovative solutions where they deliver clear mission value 

• Bachelor's degree in management, information systems, computer science, engineering or related field; or equivalent, relevant, and progressively responsible experience in lieu of a degree

• 15+ years of relevant experience in information technology, preferably in a Government operations environment 

• Possess a deep understanding of networking, security, storage, compute, cloud and hybrid-cloud services, and virtualized environments

• Possess a deep understanding of Ground Entry Point concepts, Systems, interconnectivity between remote sites and Operations centers

• Possess a detailed understanding of antenna components, services provided, site build-out needs including Civils, facility needs including power, generator, UPS, cooling, heating necessary to effectively provide direction to Engineering team

• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to present information, drive discussions, and respond to difficult scenarios with limited preparation across all employee groups  

• Capable of being a strong motivator and source of direction for your team and exemplifying commitment to your team's goals

• Have a people-oriented mentality and actively promote cross-functional team building

• Able to confidently drive discussions, raise support for key ideas, and tailor your communication style to a wide range of audiences

• Possess the creativity, resourcefulness, and decisiveness needed to manage risks and respond to critical situations

• Have a strong sense of urgency in driving projects to completion and be motivated to achieve outcomes and results

• Excellent prioritization skills and the ability to effectively coordinate the activities of multiple groups

• Experience with the following:

  • Executive-level program management briefing and presentation skills
  • Ground Entry Point (GEP) design and function, including RF antennas, site civils, electrical power, and HVAC systems
  • Fiber-optic transport and government network interconnections
  • AWS cloud management and networking, including hybrid on-prem/cloud architectures
  • Cross-domain solutions (CDS) and multi-classification environments
  • KG-class / Type 1 encryption devices and secure network architectures
  • Virtualized computing and storage architecture environments
  • RHOSP, PaaS, and IaaS technologies
  • MPLS and TCP/IP communications
  • Thin client technologies in enterprise and secure environments
  • Linux, VMware, and Kubernetes environments 

• Experience with the following:

  • Government network standards and protocols
  • SIPR (Secret Internet Protocol Router Network), NIPR (Non-Classified Protocol Router Network), SCIF (Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility) management and usage
  • Project engineering, project management, and supplier management    
• Certification in AWS, CISSP, CompTIA Sec+ 

We'll also need you to:

• Be on call, as needed
• Be able to travel up to 25%
• Be a U.S. citizen

This position primarily works in an office setting and is largely sedentary with the majority of the position working with a computer. The role typically requires the use of basic office equipment such as a phone, video, computer, keyboard, mouse, and printer. 

Iridium is an Equal Opportunity Employer, including individuals with disabilities and protected veterans.