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Department Summary:

Transportation Safety Division is seeking to advance the United States and the world to the next level of transportation safety, focusing on key competencies: safety management and oversight modernization, continuous monitoring for hazards, predicting risks in the systems, and proactively applying effective mitigations. We partner with government and industry in achieving data-driven solutions and evolving safety culture. We are focused on developing solutions that meet and exceed mission requirements by using innovation, operational experience, and emerging technologies and processes. The Division, a part of the Center for Advanced Aviation System Development (CAASD) FFRDC, develops concepts, tools, prototypes, metrics, data analytics and architectures, and advises the FAA and other parts of the Department of Transportation on regulation, oversight, enterprise safety strategy, and operational best practices. The Division partners with other elements of CAASD, with MITRE Labs, with other MITRE centers, and with industry and academia to provide innovative end-to-end approaches to pressing transportation safety problems. The Operational Safety Mitigations Department resides in the Transportation Safety Division and is responsible for safety management evolution through transforming people, process and systems, as well as modernization of oversight in support of FAA, including aviation and commercial space, through recommendations to progress policy, decisions to data, and organizational performance to achieve the next level of safety.

Roles & Responsibilities:

• Advise government program managers in defining the context, problem space and vision to determine capabilities, priorities, road maps, and technology needs using modern system engineering approaches.

• Apply systems engineering skills to drive a holistic approach to systems development and design.

• Collaborate and work as part of multi-disciplinary teams.

• Apply cutting edge methods and tools to assess designs, identify, and mitigate performance constraints and gaps, and evaluate proposed changes to solve problems that make the world a safer place.

• Understand the technical gaps, formulate solutions, and help execute research and engineering solutions.

• Support the application of emerging transportation domains.

• Evaluate Safety Management Systems (SMS) effectiveness, identify safety management gaps, recommend activities and initiatives to address gaps.

• Identify methods and capabilities for integrating SMS and creating more holistic safety management across the supply and operational chains to include draft Regulations, Policies and Guidance to support implementation.

• Provide thought leadership, research, design of capabilities to raise SMS implementation to the next level in aviation globally.

• Business development and work shaping of future opportunities to address government mission needs, industry and service needs. 

Basic Qualifications:

• BS or MS in aviation, engineering, or management  

• Typically requires a minimum of 10 years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or 7 years and a Master’s degree; or a PhD with 4 years’ experience; or equivalent combination of related education and work experience

• 10+ years of experience in a safety leadership position  

• Involvement in industry-wide safety improvement activities

• Authored in-house safety publications and training materials  

• Recognized within an organization as a safety expert 

• Excellent communication skills (verbal and written) 

• Excellent business acumen 

• Advanced certification process knowledge, trade studies, aircraft maintenance processes and practices, SMS, safety metrics and assessment, airframe design, avionics systems, type certification AND/OR advanced knowledge of commercial space operations and licensing requirements.

• This position requires a minimum of 50% hybrid on-site

Preferred Qualifications:

• 30 years Aviation and/or Commercial Space experience 

• 20 years aircraft and design certification and/or commercial or government space operations/design experience

• 10 years in a Safety Management role. 

• Lead the implementation or enhancement of a Safety Management System  

• Facilitation of Safety Risk Management Panels  

• Experience in evaluating the effectiveness of SMS processes  

• Speaker at industry-wide safety improvement activities  

• Authored widely recognized safety publications and training materials  

• Recognized within an industry as a safety expert  

• Ability to seek new business opportunities  

• Knowledge of the aviation industry

• Experience implementing or enhancing a Safety Management System, Safety Risk Management Panels, auditing SMS processes    

  This requisition requires the candidate to have a minimum of the following clearance(s):

None

This requisition requires the hired candidate to have or obtain, within one year from the date of hire, the following clearance(s):

Secret

Work Location Type:

Hybrid

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