Principal Operations Research Analyst

Linquest Corporation - Arlington, VA

Full-time - Principal

Arlington, VA

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

About the position

LinQuest is seeking a Principal Operations Research Analyst to join our team working at client sites in the Pentagon and Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, as well as telework sites in the National Capital Region. An active Top Secret clearance is required. The Principal Operations Research Analyst will support Headquarters, US Air Force (HAF) A5/7, Air Force Futures (AFF), at both client sites in the Pentagon and Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling as well as telework sites in the National Capital Region. They will assist in leading or lead a team that employs data science, mathematics, statistics, operations research, data analytics, engineering, computer science, etc. All of this is in support of the analysis of future Air Force capabilities and concepts. The team will conduct research of military concepts and capabilities and develop and study concepts of employment and vignettes to support wargaming. In addition, the team provides support with data analytics and data visualizations utilizing various parametric techniques. Operations research is used to support the analysis of HAF A5/7 (AFF) concepts and requirements to assist with the development of Program Objective Memorandum (POM) recommendations. Such recommendations are based on coherent, analytically-sound evidence as captured in credible, validated digital models. Models are used to facilitate robust collaborations among Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) in the three Centers of AFF and across stakeholder organizations, such as HAF A8 and A9, AFRL, and the Space Force. Models of the different AF missions and functions form constituent parts of a Mission Architecture that over time can become an Authoritative Source of Truth (ASoT) about future AF operations.

Responsibilities

• Engage with Analysis Team leadership to prioritize focus areas of efforts supporting AFF organizations.
• Determine data needed to support prioritized focus areas.
• Conduct modeling sessions to build SME-informed future MT models, consistent with guidance from Joint Warfighting Concepts, National Defense Strategy, National Military Strategy, Joint Force Operating Scenarios, and other authoritative sources identified by AFF SMEs.
• Lead a team in framing conceptual challenges, developing and documenting methodologies to quantitatively analyze those challenges, and support the execution of studies, analyses, and assessments.
• Design experiments to evaluate complex problems.
• Create and run models and simulations that calculate expected performance of concepts and capabilities and perform analysis on the model results.
• Utilize studies and analyses to make recommendations regarding the military utility, feasibility, and efficiency of the concepts and capabilities under study.
• Clearly document and present methodology, assumptions, and findings to stakeholders in the form of technical reports and briefings.
• Develop briefing materials and study reports/deliverables that document the study results and explain study recommendations or findings to DoD staff, stakeholders, and decision makers.
• Understand customer requirements, adjusting analytical efforts to meet those requirements, and effectively communicate processes and results with stakeholders.
• Coordinate with senior managers and decision makers to identify and solve a variety of problems and to clarify management objectives.
• Model vignettes to provide context for analytical studies - include blue capability and red threat models within the operational environment.
• Use analytical models to perform comparative analysis of current and emerging operational and system capabilities and combinations thereof.
• Research and advocate for access to appropriate tools and collaborative environments to enable the digital model centric transformation in the client organization.
• Support project management activities in the future.
• Work in the details of the project, while leading the team if need be.

Requirements

• Master's Degree or higher in Systems Engineering, Applied Math, Computer Science, Operations Research, Statistics, or related fields.
• 15+ years' relevant experience.
• Ability to lead a team of highly skilled analysts.
• Basic knowledge/experience in Joint warfighting capabilities, advanced weapons, current and future operational concepts.
• Experience with developing models and data analysis to inform executive decision-making.
• Experience in the research, analysis, application of operations research techniques to more than one problem type, modeling and simulation, computer science, big-data analytics, or similar disciplines.
• Design of experiments experience.
• Strong qualitative, quantitative, and analytic abilities to integrate and analyze data.
• Adept at breaking complex problems into manageable elements and identifying candidate solutions for each.
• Ability and motivation to expand knowledge of various analytic tools and techniques and seek out opportunities to improve processes and share knowledge with teammates.
• Ability to effectively communicate complex concepts to audiences of varying backgrounds.
• Takes the initiative to network with relevant populations and clients to expand the client base and work opportunities; develop opportunities, concepts, and ideas.
• Willingness to learn new technical and management domains.
• US citizenship.
• DoD TS with eligibility to obtain TS/SCI.

Nice-to-haves

• Programming experience with Python, MATLAB, R, SQL, VBA.
• Experience developing and implementing mathematical and statistical models.
• Experience with Excel VBA.
• Experience building and tailoring OR assessments.

Benefits

• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Tuition reimbursement
• Vision insurance