Senior Research Specialist - TS/SCI

Senior Research Specialist

Arlington, VA

Clearance

TS/SCI Clearance

Description

Come join our award-winning organization and work with the most talented and brightest minds in the GovCon industry. As a Senior Research Specialist you will direct cross-functional coordination with internal teams and external agencies to align joint communication efforts with broader strategic objectives, ensuring messaging consistency and seamless logistical support for engagements both domestically and internationally.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic communication efforts, providing technical content recommendations, overseeing the creation of presentations, speeches, and papers, and ensuring alignment with senior leadership’s intent across both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Oversee and ensure the effective communication of organizational activities to target audiences, aligning messages with strategic objectives.
• Manage a program to increase awareness of organizational capabilities, crafting content for key organizational publications, briefings, and reports, including weekly activity summaries, newsletters, and National Defense Strategy messages to the workforce.
• Oversee the development and continuous improvement of standardized communication planning tools, adapting strategies based on senior leadership feedback to drive consistency and clarity across initiatives.
• Provide strategic counsel on scheduling and prioritization of speaking engagements and events, collaborating closely with Public Affairs, General Counsel, and executive support teams to manage de-confliction and strategic alignment.
• Monitor, measure, and assess the effectiveness of strategic communication initiatives, adjusting planning efforts to optimize impact and address evolving policy and operational needs.
• Lead, mentor, and manage a team responsible for communications and logistics support, ensuring efficient scheduling, timely project completion, and effective resource allocation to meet organizational goals.
• Advise on technical content, providing guidance to enhance the effectiveness of presentations that highlight DoD initiatives.
• Collaborate closely with senior leaders to shape and refine briefings, speeches, and papers for diverse audiences, tailoring content for both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Lead the creation of draft products for briefings or papers by translating high-level guidance into deliverables with robust technical content that clearly convey the intended message.
• Communicate the overarching organizational strategy, linking technical activities to the broader strategic framework and mission.
• Direct the coordination of joint strategic communication efforts with other agencies, ensuring alignment with senior leadership’s guidance.
• Develop, implement, and oversee standardized strategic communication planning tools to maintain consistency across initiatives and over time.
• Monitor, measure, and assess the effectiveness of strategic communications initiatives, providing feedback to drive continuous improvement.
• Adapt strategic communication tools and initiatives iteratively based on senior leadership feedback, ensuring ongoing alignment with evolving priorities.
• Lead rapid response efforts to address policy changes with potential strategic impacts, ensuring timely and effective organizational communication.
• Oversee the drafting of key organizational content, including weekly activity reports, Congressional testimony, newsletters, year-in-review summaries, and messages on National Defense Strategy initiatives.
• Provide high-level guidance for the messaging and logistics of organizational meetings, including All-Hands or Town Hall events.
• Design and manage a comprehensive program to increase awareness among internal and external audiences of the organization’s capabilities and services.
• Coordinate with executive administrative support and international cooperation staff to ensure logistical readiness, security clearances, and seamless communication for senior leadership engagements both domestically and internationally.
• Advise on the prioritization and acceptance of speaking engagements and events, collaborating with Public Affairs, General Counsel, and executive staff to manage de-confliction and ensure alignment with organizational objectives.

Requirements:

• Clearance: Active Top Secret/SCI.
• Bachelor’s degree is required from an accredited college/university.
• Minimum of ten (10) years in of specialized in DOD policy, product support, and logistics.
• Executive level support experience, experience within DoD and other federal agencies.
• Experience in leading and providing technical guidance and direction involving multiple projects of high complexity.
• Must have experience in managing customer expectations and working directly with customers.
• Must have outstanding customer service abilities to initiative, judgement, creativity, flexibility, and confidence.
• Must have the ability to multi-task across multiple projects.

Desired

• Master’s degree from an accredited college/university.

About Xcelerate Solutions

Founded in 2009 and headquartered in McLean, VA, Xcelerate Solutions (www.xceleratesolutions.com) is one of America's fastest-growing companies, being named to the Inc. 5000 List in 2014/2015/2016/2017. With an ISO 9001 certified quality management system, an ISO 27001 certified information security management system, an ISO 20000-1 ITSM system, and delivery processes assessed at CMMI® SVC Level 3, Xcelerate is committed to providing our customers service delivery excellence. Want to learn more about our culture?  See it in action on our YouTube Channel!

Xcelerate Solutions is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, Veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression or other protected characteristic.  As part of this commitment to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals, Xcelerate provides reasonable accommodations if needed because of an applicant’s or an employee’s disability or sincerely held religious belief.

In accordance with EO 13665 Final Rule, Xcelerate Solutions will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant.
Applicants selected must be able to possess and maintain a government clearance as required for access to classified information.

US CITIZENSHIP REQUIRED