Software Architect Contract Jobs in Reston, VA (NOW HIRING)

Shape the Future of America's Skies with Peraton

Join Peraton in advancing the safety, efficiency, and modernization of the National Airspace System (NAS) through the FAA's Brand New Air Traffic Control System (BNATCS) contract. As a trusted partner to the Federal Aviation Administration, Peraton delivers the mission-critical systems and services that keep our nation's skies safe, secure, and connected.

We're seeking innovative professionals who thrive in high-impact, mission-driven environments and are excited to help transform the future of air traffic management. This is a unique opportunity to contribute to one of the world's most vital transportation infrastructures while collaborating with leaders in aviation, engineering, data science, and systems integration.

At Peraton, you won't just support the mission-you'll help define it.

SW & Data Architect - Enterprise Software & Data Architecture

Location: Herndon, VA 

Defines enterprise software architecture standards, ICD governance, DevSecOps pipeline architecture, cloud modernization patterns, data governance frameworks, and data integration architecture for BNATCS.

Key Responsibilities

• Define enterprise ICD templates, authoring standards, and interface registry governance
• Establish CI/CD pipeline reference architecture - build, test, security scan, deployment stages
• Enforce DO-178C software safety compliance for safety-critical NAS systems
• Define cloud reference architecture for BNATCS - AWS GovCloud/Azure Government patterns
• Produce architecture baselines, ADRs, and software architecture artifacts for current active applicable NEEDS package systems
• Coordinate DevSecOps pipeline standards with security gates (SAST/DAST)
• Define enterprise data governance policy framework - data ownership, stewardship, quality standards, lifecycle management
• Develop canonical data models (conceptual, logical, physical) and enforce naming conventions across domain teams
• Design data integration patterns (ETL/ELT, streaming, event-driven) for cross-package data flows
• Enforce aviation data exchange format compliance (SWIM, FIXM, AIXM) across domain teams
• Produce data architecture artifacts for current active applicable NEEDS package systems - data dictionaries, metadata catalogs, data flow diagrams
• Support procurement trade studies with software and data architecture evaluation criteria

#BNATC

#LSI2

Required Qualifications

• BS/MS in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Science, or related field
• Minimum of 12 years with BS/BA; Minimum of 10 years with MS/MA; Minimum of 7 years with Ph.D.
• US Citizenship and the ability to obtain/maintain a public trust clearance.
• Proficiency in distributed systems, microservices, API design, and cloud-native patterns
• Experience with DevSecOps, CI/CD pipelines, and container orchestration (Docker/Kubernetes)
• Knowledge of DO-178C software safety standards preferred
• Experience with data modeling tools and methodologies (ERwin, Sparx EA, or equivalent)
• Experience with data governance frameworks and master data management
• Knowledge of cloud data architecture patterns (AWS GovCloud, Azure Government)
• Experience with ICD authoring and interface management for complex systems
• FAA or DoD software/data architecture experience preferred

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience architecting software for real-time systems, low-latency processing, or high-availability environments
• Background in data architecture and data integration - ETL/ELT pipelines, data lakes, streaming analytics - within an integration context
• Familiarity with network and transport layer considerations (SD-WAN, secure transport) that affect distributed software system design
• Experience with AIOps, observability platforms (Splunk, Datadog, ELK, Prometheus/Grafana), and application performance management (APM)
• Hands-on experience with model-based systems engineering (MBSE) or architecture modeling tools (Cameo, Sparx EA, Archi)
• ITIL certification and experience aligning software delivery with ITSM processes
• Relevant certifications such as Certified Software Architecture Professional (CSAP).

#BNATCS 

Peraton is a next-generation national security company that drives missions of consequence spanning the globe and extending to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. As the world's leading mission capability integrator and transformative enterprise IT provider, we deliver trusted, highly differentiated solutions and technologies to protect our nation and allies. Peraton operates at the critical nexus between traditional and nontraditional threats across all domains: land, sea, space, air, and cyberspace. The company serves as a valued partner to essential government agencies and supports every branch of the U.S. armed forces. Each day, our employees do the can't be done by solving the most daunting challenges facing our customers. Visit peraton.com to learn how we're keeping people around the world safe and secure.