IAE Engineer Functional Area Lead (Finance)

ORGANIZATIONAL SUMMARY:

The University of South Florida (USF) Institute for Applied Engineering (IAE) is a Florida not-for-profit corporation and direct support organization within the USF ecosystem. The IAE mission is to provide agile, high value engineering products and services to enhance the performance, effectiveness, and capabilities of its customers to include the Department of Defense and other federal and industry partners.

POSITION SUMMARY:

The Functional Area Lead (FAL) is a direct contributor and engineering manager that leads and supervises engineering staff and interns associated with a Functional Area (i.e., organizational construct that defines an area of technical expertise). The FAL contributes and oversees a portfolio of technical work to include design, development, fabrication, testing, documentation, and delivery of products and services related to applied research and technology development consistent with the IAE mission. This position leads, mentors, and provides managerial oversight of full-time engineering staff and interns. The FAL coordinates with peer FALs on assigned project tasks and reports technical progress and status to senior leadership. The FAL coordinates administrative tasks related to monitoring project performance, deliverables, and works with engineering leadership to identify, interview and hire staff, and evaluate the performance of engineering staff. The FAL coordinates stakeholder communications and assists in new business development with senior leadership to support project work and represent the IAE.

The IAE is seeking a senior technical manager to serve as the lead engineer for the Operational Systems Engineering (OSE) Functional Area (FA). The OSE FA focuses on the design, development, demonstration, and delivery of integrated systems for physical, information, and cyber warfighting domains through best-practices multidisciplinary systems engineering.

The OSE FAL must have expertise in multidisciplinary systems engineering and managing complexity and interdependency, proficiency in eliciting and refining customer requirements, and competency in multiple technical areas. Applicants for this position must have demonstrated experience with Defense-related operational systems, a solid foundation in systems engineering, and a firm foundation in two or more of mechanical, electrical, electronics, and/or software engineering.SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

Applicants must be eligible for a TS/SCI security clearance.

POSITION QUALIFICATIONS:

This position requires a bachelor's degree in computer science, software engineering, computer engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, systems engineering, or a related field and at least seven years of relevant systems engineering experience. Specific qualifications include:

• Knowledge and experience working within the Department of Defense ecosystem.
• Technical and managerial experience including preparing engineering proposals, facilitating customer communications, leading and mentoring engineering personnel, and project planning, tracking, and oversight.
• Experience in systems development lifecycle frameworks (e.g., V and Waterfall models) applied to projects throughout the project lifecycle (e.g., requirements, analysis, design, development, testing, and delivery).
• Experience with systemic architectural design, detailed design patterns, documenting, and evaluating designs to ensure fitness for purpose.
• Experience with configuration management, requirements traceability, and requirements verification.
• Experience with prototyping, testing, experimentation, system and component design, development, and integration.
• Self-starter with outstanding analytic and problem-solving skills; Excellent written and oral communication skills.

PREFERRED:
An advanced degree in computer science, software engineering, computer engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, systems engineering, or a related field and over nine years of relevant systems engineering experience.

Other preferred skills and experience include:

• A current TS/SCI security clearance.

Working at USF
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With approximately 16,000 employees, the University of South Florida is one of the largest employers in the Tampa Bay area. We are dedicated to cultivating a talented, engaged and driven workforce that strives to be bold. Employees excel in USF's rich academic environment, which fosters their development and advancement. In 2025, Forbes recognized USF as one of Florida's best large employers, ranked No. 1 among the state's 12 public universities. Our first-class benefits package includes medical, dental and life insurance plans, retirement plan options, employee and dependent tuition programs, generous leave, and hundreds of employee perks and discounts.
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About USF
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The University of South Florida is a top-ranked research university serving approximately 50,000 students from across the globe at campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Sarasota-Manatee and USF Health. USF is recognized by U.S. News & World Report as a top 50 public university and the best value in Florida. U.S. News also ranks the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine as the No. 1 medical school in Florida and in the highest tier nationwide. USF is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), a group that includes only the top 3% of universities in the U.S. With an all-time high of $738 million in research funding in 2024 and as a top 20 public university for producing U.S. patents, USF uses innovation to transform lives and shape a better future. The university generates an annual economic impact of more than $6 billion. USF's Division I athletics teams compete in the American Athletic Conference. Learn more at www.usf.edu .
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Compliance and Federal Notices
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This position may be subject to a Level 1 or Level 2 criminal background check.
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Applicants have rights under Federal Employment Laws :
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Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
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Applicants for USF employment are entitled to request reasonable accommodation(s) in the application process. A request is to be made at least five (5) working days prior to the time the accommodation(s) is needed. Visit the Central Human Resources ADA Accommodations webpage for more information on requesting an accommodation during the application/interview process.The Operational Systems Engineering Functional Area Lead is the senior technical and administrative lead for a multidisciplinary team of engineers. They serve as a subject matter expert individual contributor, technical leader and mentor, and administrative supervisor and manager for their team. Specific responsibilities include:

• Leads multiple project teams in the design, development, fabrication, testing, documentation, and delivery of IAE products and services.
• Serves as the senior IAE technical lead on one or more projects as required.
• Provides leadership, guidance, mentorship, and performance evaluation to the engineering staff to promote productivity and ensure timely delivery of high-quality products and services to IAE customers.
• Participates in the technical work associated with projects across the engineering portfolio.
• Initiates and directs the writing of technical documentation e.g., reports, requirements documents, statements of work, design documents, and technical proposals; reviews work products and conducts technical evaluations of artifacts produced by teams, junior engineers, and interns.
• Communicates with stakeholders external to USF/IAE to include presenting technical briefings, reporting on project progress and deliverables, performing demonstrations, supporting business development, and similar activities.
• Coordinates administrative tasks required for execution of project development tasks, including management of contract deliverables, procurement of project materials, and ensuring regulatory compliance.
• Works with engineering leadership to assist in project planning, managing workload, and ensuring proper staffing of projects and of their Functional Area.
• Coordinates cross-disciplinary project work with peer FALs.
• Reports technical progress of projects under the Functional Area's portfolio to leadership.
• Advises senior leadership on engineering staffing needs, training, and leads engineering staff interviews and hiring decisions.
• Advises IAE engineering leadership and staff on key decisions related to current and future technical directions to promote the IAE mission and enact the strategic plan.