R&D Manager - Robust Systems Analysis, Onsite

About Sandia:

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation's premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:

• Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide
• Extraordinary co-workers
• Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world
• Career advancement and enrichment opportunities
• Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)
• Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance

World-changing technologies. Life-changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://www.sandia.gov

These benefits vary by job classification.

What Your Job Will Be Like:

Passionate about leading and developing teams that impact national security missions? Join our dynamic team and develop creative solutions to unique national security challenges!

We are seeking an R&D Manager to lead our highly dedicated and mission focused Robust Systems Analysis Department in the Secure AI systems Group. The Robust Systems Analysis department supports a range of Sandia missions through foundational AI security research and application of AI security to national security missions.

The Robust Systems Analysis department advances performance characterization, threat detection, and system hardening strategies tailored to AI environments to sustain operational continuity under stress. AI security systems analysis emphasizes understanding and securing the full lifecycle data, models, software, and infrastructure while collaborating with the unique capabilities and mission in Sandia¿s Threat Intelligence Community (TIC).

On any given day, you may be called on to:

• Partner with the management team and the Threat Intelligence Community (TIC) to develop and implement vision and strategies for the future and to jointly manage the laboratories' AI security capability.
• Build and cultivate relationships with organizations across the laboratories, internal/external customers and federal agencies by providing AI Security knowledge, skills and insights and connections to resources.
• Partner with mission and capability managers to understand AI security needs and challenges of these programs and prioritize agreements to support the greatest needs and areas of highest impact.
• Champion a culture of diversity, equality and inclusion and take an active leadership role in modeling and growing these values.

Due to the nature of the work, the selected applicant must be able to work onsite.

Salary Range:

$163,700 - $278,000

*Salary range is estimated, and actual salary will be determined after consideration of the selected candidate's experience and qualifications, and application of any approved geographic salary differential.

Qualifications We Require:

• A Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline and eight (8) years of directly relevant experience, or an equivalent combination of directly relevant education and engineering or scientific experience that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform independent research and development.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a DOE Q and SCI clearance which may require a polygraph test.

Qualifications We Desire:

The ideal Manager candidate for Sandia National Laboratories will in addition possess the following:

• Two or more years of demonstrated leadership experience.
• A graduate degree in science or engineering (MS or Ph.D.).
• Outstanding interpersonal skills in developing trusting relationships with peers, staff, management, customers, and stakeholders.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in the development and delivery of presentations, proposals, reports and documentation.

Also, for this posting we are seeking individuals with the following experience:

• Ability to lead cross-organizational teams and work in a highly matrixed environment, including the proven ability to build and lead large, diverse, successful teams
• Proven interpersonal skills in developing trust-based relationships among peers, staff, management, and sponsors
• Proficiency with varied communication methods, including oral presentation, preparation of high-impact visual presentations, written reports, proposals, documentation and the ability to clearly and concisely communicate scientific and technical information at a level tailored to the audience
• Demonstrated dedication to targeted staff recruitment and supporting staff career development
• Record of scientific contribution and innovation and experience with business and program development
• Existing relationships with technical community and/or awareness of ongoing developments in AI security
• Active DOE Q and SCI security clearance or willingness to obtain an SCI clearance

About Our Team:

In the AI Security Systems Group, we team to identify and contextualize mission needs, share them with researchers inside and outside the labs, collaborate and invest in research, integrate coherent capabilities, and partner with Sandia programs to transition successful research into mission applications. Our primary mission is to seek, pursue, and assess adversaries in different kinds of data and spaces. We also provide AI security capability to support Sandia's National Security Programs and partner broadly across Sandia to collaborate on critical programmatic opportunities where AI security is needed. We are successful when our capabilities provide a groundbreaking advantage to the nation through improved decisions, behaviors, and outcomes. The current strengths of this group are in computer science, software development, software engineering, applied statistics, applied mathematics, and artificial intelligence and machine learning. National security challenges require that we become integrated specialists in cross-domain analytics addressing the phenomenal diversity of data types and decision spaces with our mission stakeholders. We continue to grow into this broader problem set.

Posting Duration:

This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of three (3) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.

Security Clearance:

Sandia is required by DOE to conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Applicants for employment need to be able to obtain and maintain a DOE Q-level security clearance and SCI access, both of which require US citizenship. SCI access may also require a polygraph examination. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain these levels of access may be impacted.

Applicants offered employment with Sandia are subject to a federal background investigation to meet the requirements for access to classified information or matter if the duties of the position require a DOE security clearance. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause a clearance to be denied or terminated by the DOE, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment.

EEO:

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law.

NNSA Requirements for MedPEDs:

If you have a Medical Portable Electronic Device (MedPED), such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, drug-releasing pump, hearing aids, or diagnostic equipment and other equipment for measuring, monitoring, and recording body functions such as heartbeat and brain waves, if employed by Sandia National Laboratories you may be required to comply with NNSA security requirements for MedPEDs.

If you have a MedPED and you are selected for an on-site interview at Sandia National Laboratories, there may be additional steps necessary to ensure compliance with NNSA security requirements prior to the interview date.

Job ID: 698126

Job Family: RD

Regular/Temporary Position: R

Full/Part-Time Status: F

Client-provided location(s): Albuquerque, NM

Job ID: Departmend_Of_Energy_-_Sandia_National_Laboratories_FGB-698126

Employment Type: OTHER

Posted: 2026-06-14T18:44:40