ClearanceJobs recently sat down with Roger Finley, a senior operations manager at Frontier Technology Inc. (FTI). We chatted about job opportunities in Colorado Springs, Space Force, and how he retired from the military and began working at FTI.
Path to Frontier Technology
After retiring from the military, a recruiter found Roger’s resume on ClearanceJobs. Space and IT program experiences was the distinguishing factor on Roger’s ClearanceJobs profile, which ultimately led to his connection at FTI, supporting their Enterprise Ground Services (EGS), a U.S. Space Force program that’s focused on agile software development. Based on Roger’s former SMC background, it was an easy crossover into the Space Force and Colorado Springs scene.
Opportunities in Colorado Springs at Frontier Technology
Colorado Springs is home to many space operations and DoD bases, employing over 60,000 people. With many contractors and bases, there’s a lot of cleared work in the area. Finding the right job is a priority, but it’s important to find somewhere enjoyable to live. And Colorado Springs is a beautiful place to work and live.
For the outdoor enthusiast, there’s a lot to do in Colorado Springs, regardless of the season. It’s a big city with a small town feel, but only an hour away from Denver for pro sports and entertainment options. With the proximity to Denver and it’s IT mecca status, there are many opportunities in and out of the cleared industry.
Out in Colorado Springs, FTI began its presence with two employees and a contract with L3Harris, but since its Life Cycle Decision Support (LCDS) contract award in 2019, FTI has grown the EGS program support to 120 personnel. The EGS program is slated for 2028 delivery, so there are a number of years ahead. Supporting the Space Force at its onset means it’s an exciting time to come alongside a new military branch. More growth is expected for the coming years for FTI in Colorado Springs.
One Key Role and the Skills Needed
While all STEM fields are often in need in the cleared industry, one role that continues to be challenging to fill is the cleared DevSecOps position. The EGS program runs the gamut of a large program, hiring everyone from test engineering to cybersecurity to logistics to program managers and more. While many have software engineering backgrounds, DevSecOp engineers can be challenging to find – especially in the cleared environment. Often candidates will have cloud experience without a clearance.
Candidates with at least a Secret clearance will be able to get in and hit the ground running. However, remote work options this past year has helped FTI connect to candidates around the country by incorporating intermittent travel plans for the talent who has the resume plus the necessary clearance. While Amazon and Microsoft has been doing agile development, the federal government is just beginning to grow in this area.
Roger explained that, “with DevSecOps, it’s a different skill-set. It’s really about automation, and there’s a lot of commercially available tools” out there. Specifically, having experience with the CI/CD (continuous integration and continuous deployment) and the scaled agile, framework “is fairly new to the DoD….But, you know, as we grow and programs grow and start utilizing the Scaled Agile Framework to do their integration,…the number of people with that skill-set are fewer and fewer.”
Ways to Support the U.S. Space Force
As Space Force gives liftoff to hopes and dreams of supporting space work, candidates are often curious about what work they can do in order to support the mission. The reality is that in order to work in space, you don’t have to be a space professional or have in-depth knowledge about orbital technology. Cybersecurity, risk management, or network engineering – those are all roles that need candidates who are ready to do their work with excellence. And by fulfilling different contractor positions, candidates get the opportunity to contribute to space work. Not all jobs are space centric, but many jobs in the STEM fields (aerospace and electrical engineering) provide firsthand knowledge in a rocket science environment. But for candidates interested in the space mission, Space Force contracts offer more than space centric jobs.
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