Senior Cybersecurity Researcher

Posting TitleSenior Cybersecurity Researcher

.

LocationCO - Golden

.

Position TypeRegular

.

Hours Per Week40

.

Working at NRELThe National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado is the nation's primary laboratory for research and development of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies.

Join a team of world-class scientists, engineers, and visionaries dedicated to shaping the world’s energy future through cutting-edge research and innovation. From our vision to our NREL community, we are unique in the research community. We are focused on impact. From our work in basic sciences to systems engineering, analysis, demonstration, and deployment, we are focused on solving market-relevant problems that result in advanced, secure, reliable, and affordable energy systems. We are trusted clean energy leaders, developing cost-saving solutions that make U.S. industries more competitive, and support job creation and economic growth across rural and urban communities.

At NREL, we offer a unique, mission-driven work environment with cutting-edge facilities and multidisciplinary research teams. NREL's environment offers strong partnerships with industry, academia, and other national laboratories, as well as professional development opportunities and a competitive benefits package for employees.

Learn about NREL’s critical objectives: NREL's Mission and Vision.

Job Description

The Cybersecurity Threat Analysis Group (CTAG) within NREL’s Cybersecurity Research Center performs research to make cybersecurity an enabling part of the energy transition. This is primarily accomplished through engaging with energy sector partners, government program offices, and national security organizations. Research areas within CTAG include energy system modeling and simulation, threat to consequence risk analysis, hardware & software security, and supply chain security. 

Researchers within CTAG have the opportunity to drive NREL research in energy system security and advance a rapidly growing cybersecurity portfolio. Team members work alongside current NREL research staff to utilize the best-in-class ARIES Cyber Range to deploy applicable large-scale test environments, perform hardware-in-the-loop technology experiments, and collaborate with other laboratory and government partners. 

CTAG is seeking an experienced senior cybersecurity research security professional to lead the Energy Threat Analysis Center (ETAC) research portfolio across a large set of multi-institutional and interdisciplinary teams. The successful candidate will demonstrate an ability to champion and advocate for ETAC program strategic and technical objectives, directly task and coordinate on-site resources and individual contributors, collaborate with partners from across national labs, the Department of Energy, industry, and national security partners, and have expertise in the nexus of energy and cybersecurity systems.

Responsibilities include:

• Advance laboratory cybersecurity capabilities, including cyber threat analysis and extrapolation, risk quantification, and modeling and simulation

• Develop and enhance technical capabilities relevant to advancing threat-to-consequence analysis

• Lead development and execution of quick-turn R&D and analysis

• Represent the NREL ETAC team by presenting research results, and providing technical input during ETAC planning sessions

• Advance rigor and impact of NREL’s cybersecurity research

• Assist with staff planning, recruiting, mentoring, and team building

• Support cyber business development efforts by aligning focus with ETAC strategy

• Build research collaborations with the energy industry, other DOE labs and national security partners

.

Basic QualificationsLevel VI:
Relevant PhD and 15 or more years of experience. Or, relevant Master's Degree and 18 or more years of experience. Or, relevant Bachelor's Degree and 20 or more years of experience . Exhibits an exceptional degree of ingenuity, creativity, and resourcefulness. Apply and/or develop highly advanced technologies, scientific principles, theories and concepts. Demonstrates leadership of complex technical projects. Demonstrated management of complex and/or high-impact projects.

Level V:
Relevant PhD and 9 or more years of experience. Or, relevant Master's Degree and 12 or more years of experience. Or, relevant Bachelor's Degree and 14 or more years of experience. Applies advanced scientific technical principles, theories and concepts. Contributes to the development of new principles and concepts. Demonstrates leadership in a number of areas, including all team, task and/or project lead responsibilities. Demonstrated management of complex and/or impactful projects.

* Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.

Additional Required Qualifications

• Must be able to obtain and maintain a DOE security clearance at the Q/TS/SCI level. A polygraph may be required.  Eligibility requirements: To obtain a clearance, an individual must be at least 18 years of age; U.S. citizenship is required except in very limited circumstances. See DOE O 472.2A  for additional information.
• Strong experience leading and mentoring technical teams
• Familiar with relevant cybersecurity standards and regulations
• Expert understanding and application of project management principles, concepts, practices, and standards
• Expert knowledge of technical field and related disciplines
• Exhibits an exceptional degree of ingenuity, creativity, and resourcefulness
• Outstanding interpersonal, conflict resolution, teaming, and communication skills
• Ability to travel as needed up to 10%

Level VI also requires:

• Existing relationships within DOE program offices (e.g., DOE CESER) and/or the energy sector space with a focus on electric utilities
• Experience working with Federally Funded Research and Development Center's (FFRDC) with a preference in DOE National Laboratories

Preferred Qualifications

• Electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, or related background
• Thorough understanding of power grid architectures, devices, systems, and operations
• Understanding of electric wholesale and retail power market structures
• Experience working with private energy sector stakeholders including electric utilities, original equipment manufacturers and cybersecurity solution providers

.

Job Application Submission Window

The anticipated closing window for application submission is up to 30 days and may be extended as needed.

Annual Salary Range (based on full-time 40 hours per week)Job Profile: Researcher VI / Annual Salary Range: $140,900 - $253,600

Job Profile: Researcher V / Annual Salary Range: $117,200 - $211,000

NREL takes into consideration a candidate’s education, training, and experience, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value, including seniority and merit systems, and internal pay alignment when determining the salary level for potential new employees. In compliance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, a potential new employee’s salary history will not be used in compensation decisions.

Benefits SummaryBenefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; short*- and long-term disability insurance; pension benefits*; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match*; life and accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance; personal time off (PTO) and sick leave; paid holidays; and tuition reimbursement*. NREL employees may be eligible for, but are not guaranteed, performance-, merit-, and achievement- based awards that include a monetary component. Some positions may be eligible for relocation expense reimbursement. Limited-term positions are not eligible for long-term disability or tuition reimbursement.

* Based on eligibility rules

Badging RequirementNREL is subject to Department of Energy (DOE) access restrictions. All employees must also be able to obtain and maintain a federal Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card as required by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12), which includes a favorable background investigation.

Drug Free Workplace

NREL is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace in accordance with the federal Drug-Free Workplace Act and complies with federal laws prohibiting the possession and use of illegal drugs. Under federal law, marijuana remains an illegal drug.

If you are offered employment at NREL, you must pass a pre-employment drug test prior to commencing employment. Unless prohibited by state or local law, the pre-employment drug test will include marijuana. If you test positive on the pre-employment drug test, your offer of employment may be withdrawn.

Submission Guidelines

Please note that in order to be considered an applicant for any position at NREL you must submit an application form for each position for which you believe you are qualified. Applications are not kept on file for future positions. Please include a cover letter and resume with each position application.

.

Equal Opportunity Employer

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard basis of age (40 and over), color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic partner status, military or veteran status, national origin/ancestry, race, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding), sexual orientation, and any other applicable status protected by federal, state, or local laws.

Reasonable Accommodations

E-Verify www.dhs.gov/E-Verify For information about right to work, click here for English or here for Spanish.

E-Verify is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. This business uses E-Verify in its hiring practices to achieve a lawful workforce.