Force Design Specialist

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Major duties

The United States Space Force (USSF) Space Force Headquarters (SF HQ) Force Design and Analysis (S9) at The Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia is searching for a Force Design Specialist (NH-0343-04, GS 14/15 equivalent). Description: Help shape the future of the United States Space Force as a Force Design Specialist, where you will turn emerging threats, operational needs, and future concepts into the vital capabilities, organizations, and investments Guardians require to maintain enduring space superiority. In this highly strategic role, you will research complex security problems, assess mission and enterprise designs, identify critical capability gaps, and develop clear, evidence-based recommendations that directly influence senior leader decisions on how the Space Force plans, resources, acquires, and implements the Objective Force. As a self-starting strategic thinker, you will collaborate daily with Space Force organizations, the Joint Force, intelligence and acquisition communities, and other key mission partners to integrate sophisticated analysis into practical paths forward. By managing priorities, tracking critical milestones, and developing decision-ready products, you will ensure our Force Design recommendations are feasible, affordable, traceable, and fully prepared to transition from concept to real-world implementation-putting you at the absolute center of building the Space Force of tomorrow. The ideal candidate brings substantial experience within Space Force, Joint, national security space, intelligence, acquisition, or force development environments, coupled with a proven track record of leading complex analyses and delivering enterprise-level recommendations. Highly desirable candidates will possess expertise in force design, mission or enterprise architecture, operational planning, requirements development, or strategic wargaming, supported by a deep understanding of Space Force mission areas and the intricate dependencies among space, cyber, data, and command and control capabilities. Crucial to this role is a strong familiarity with the Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution (PPBE) cycle, acquisition processes, resource prioritization, and DOTMLPF-P frameworks. While a bachelor's degree in a relevant technical, operational, or national security field is preferred-with advanced education highly desired-the candidate must possess the ability to successfully obtain and maintain a TS/SCI clearance to support these critical, secure operations. Key Skills and Abilities:

1. Knowledge of Space Force mission areas, enterprise functions, and associated operational and technical considerations, including Space Domain Awareness; Offensive and Defensive Space Operations; Positioning, Navigation, and Timing; Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance; Satellite Communications; Environmental Monitoring; Missile Warning; Space Operations; Space-lift; command and control; data transport; ground; cyber; test and training; and other cross-mission enabling capabilities. Includes knowledge of qualitative and quantitative methods used to assess and improve mission area designs, enterprise designs, operational effectiveness, technical feasibility, dependencies, gaps, seams, risks, and implementation options.
2. Knowledge of the National Security Space, Joint, Intelligence Community, allied and partner, commercial, and interagency enterprise, including how space capabilities enable broader military and national security missions. Includes knowledge of relationships among space, terrestrial, cyber, data, intelligence, command and control, and operational architectures sufficient to assess external dependencies, interoperability, integration requirements, and mission impacts.
3. Knowledge of Force Development, requirements, acquisition, and Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution (PPBE) processes, including how Force Design outputs inform Mission Area Designs, Enterprise Area Designs, Objective Force products, requirements development, Program Objective Memorandum inputs, transition planning, acquisition planning, resource prioritization, and implementation activities.
4. Ability to gather, assemble, analyze, and integrate information from multiple sources; draw conclusions; conduct analysis; devise recommended solutions; and package the results in briefings, papers, or reports suitable for senior leader review and decision-making.
5. Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing, negotiate complex issues, resolve differences across diverse stakeholder groups, and maintain effective working relationships.

Qualifications

The 0343 series does not have an individual occupational requirement that must be met. You can view the experience level requirements here. Please scroll down to the 3rd section titled Administrative and Management Positions.