Hackathons - Team Lead (FedD068)

Role Description:

Responsibilities

• Technical Direction and Architecture
• Set and own the overall technical direction for each hackathon, ensuring solutions are grounded in UDS and Defense Unicorns' platform and tooling philosophy
• Evaluate and integrate partner technologies and third-party tools to ensure broad compatibility across the diverse technology stacks participants bring
• Define technical guardrails, reference architectures, and integration patterns that guide participant teams toward durable, deployable outcomes
• Identify technical risks early and develop mitigation strategies in partnership with the Mission Manager
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Serve as a technical voice in external engagements with government mission heroes, industry partners, and hackathon participants
• Translate complex technical capabilities into compelling narratives that communicate mission impact and drive stakeholder buy-in
• Build enthusiasm and credibility with a wide range of audiences, from senior government decision-makers to individual contributors on participant teams
• Support the Mission Manager in cultivating and sustaining relationships across the DoW innovation ecosystem
• Hackathon Execution
• Partner closely with our team, our partners, and the Mission Heroes throughout the full event lifecycle, from planning through post-event follow-up
• Design and deliver technical programming, workshops, and participant enablement content that set teams up for success
• Capture technical outcomes and ensure post-event documentation supports continuity and reuse

Required Qualifications:

• Strong hands-on technical background, with demonstrated experience designing and building software systems in complex, multi-technology environments
• Hands-on experience with UDS or similar platform abstraction and deployment frameworks
• Experience engaging directly with government or defense stakeholders in a technical capacity, including translating technical concepts for non-technical audiences
• Comfort with presales or customer-facing roles that blend technical credibility with the ability to generate excitement and communicate value
• Demonstrated understanding of software delivery and platform engineering practices for air-gapped environments, including offline package management, artifact distribution, and secure update mechanisms.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Familiarity with the DoW innovation ecosystem, including programs, procurement, and mission priorities
• Experience supporting or participating in hackathons, integration events, or innovation sprints in a technical leadership capacity
• Ability to operate in ambiguous, fast-moving environments and build structure where none exists
• Track record of delivering technical solutions that outlast the event or sprint that created them
• Travel
• Travel is expected multiple times per year to support event execution and stakeholder engagement, primarily within the continental United States, but occasionally OCONUS as required.
• The listed responsibilities are not exhaustive and additional responsibilities may be assigned based on the evolving needs of the organization. We are seeking a dynamic individual who is able to adapt and take on new responsibilities as they arise.

Travel