System Architect - Level III in at MSM Technology, LLC

MSM Technology is seeking a highly skilled System Architect - Level III to lead the technical architecture, modernization strategy, and continuous Operations & Maintenance (O&M) for the FDA’s mission-critical FARM system. FARM is a high-visibility, 24/7 operational system that processes regulatory submissions, manages 26 active enterprise workflows, and interfaces with critical FDA legacy systems.

As a Level III Architect, you will serve as the technical authority for the application baseline. You will ensure "Zero Downtime" resilience, govern the deployment of minor enhancements (under 200 hours), and lead troubleshooting for complex, Tier-3 system defects. Because MSM’s central focus is Resilient Cybersecurity and Enterprise Software, you will also ensure all architectural decisions integrate zero-trust principles and maintain strict compliance with FDA Enterprise Performance Life Cycle (EPLC) frameworks.

• Architectural Governance: Lead the design, implementation, and maintenance of the FARM Java/WebLogic architecture. Ensure the technology stack remains fully compliant with FDA security standards and stays within current vendor-supported release versions.
• Mission-Critical O&M Support: Serve as the final technical escalation point for Tier 3 production outages. Participate in the on-call rotation to meet the FDA’s strict service level agreements, which include a 15-minute response window during business hours and a 30-minute troubleshooting engagement window for off-shift emergencies.
• Enterprise Integration: Oversee the architectural alignment and data pipelines between the core FARM database (Oracle 19c) and interfacing platforms, ensuring asynchronous messaging (Apache Kafka) and search indexing (Apache Solr) operate without latency.
• DevSecOps & Release Management: Govern the GitLab CI/CD pipelines. Ensure all code deployments achieve the FDA's mandate of 99% first-cycle User Acceptance Testing (UAT) success.
• EPLC & CCB Compliance: Author, review, and finalize rigorous system documentation (Version Description Documents, System Architecture Documents, Run Books). Present architectural changes to the FDA Change Control Board (CCB) for approval prior to production releases.

Required Skills:

Minimum Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Information Technology, or a related field (Master’s Degree preferred).
• Experience: A minimum of 8–10 years of progressive experience in software engineering and enterprise architecture, with at least 3 years acting as a Lead Architect on a federal government contract.
• Clearance Eligibility: Must be a U.S. Citizen, OR a Foreign National who currently holds valid U.S. work authorization and has physically resided in the United States for a minimum of three (3) out of the past five (5) years to satisfy OPM background investigation requirements.
• Process Discipline: Demonstrated experience working within strict federal SDLC or EPLC frameworks.
• Must have min 5 years of Java 11 through 21 experience
• Must have min 5 years of Oracle WebLogic 14c experience

Required Technical Stack Experience

The candidate must have proven, hands-on architectural experience with the FDA’s exact production baseline:

• Core Languages & Frameworks: Java (versions 11 through 21), Jakarta EE 11, Spring Boot, and Hibernate.
• Application Servers: Deep expertise configuring, tuning, and troubleshooting applications on Oracle WebLogic 14c in a federal data center environment.
• Messaging & Integration: Apache Kafka (event streaming), RESTful APIs, and JWT security services.
• Database & Search: Oracle 19c (advanced PL/SQL optimization) and Apache Solr.
• DevSecOps Tooling: GitLab CI/CD, SonarQube, and automated dependency scanning.
• Familiarity (Preferred): Integrating with Appian BPM (which manages the 26 core workflows), OpenText Documentum, and Adobe AEM.

Preferred Certifications

• TOGAF 9 Certification or AWS Certified Solutions Architect (aligns with MSM’s Automated Infrastructure practice).
• CompTIA Security+ or CISSP (aligns with MSM’s core Resilient Cybersecurity mandate).