Cybersecurity Solutions Architect - Senior Le

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Full Time McLean, VA, US

6 days ago Requisition

About Merlin Group

Merlin Group operates at the intersection of cyber innovation, national security, and technology-driven transformation. With a mission to accelerate the adoption of high-impact technologies across the U.S. public sector and regulated commercial markets, Merlin is uniquely structured around three core tenets – Invest, Enable, and Scale – each designed to address a specific stage of the technology lifecycle. Together, our affiliates – Merlin Ventures, CGC, and Merlin Cyber – form a flywheel that builds enduring capability for customers, partners, and the broader cyber ecosystem, operationalizing technological advancement into mission-ready, enterprise-grade solutions.

At Merlin, we believe our strength lies in our people. Team members are encouraged to be creative, collaborative, and nimble, pursuing paths to deliver the cutting-edge cybersecurity solutions that our customers rely on. From next-generation cyber defense to secure cloud and AI, we are united by one purpose – transforming innovation into mission impact.

The Opportunity

Merlin Cyber is seeking a Cybersecurity Solutions Architect – Senior Level to serve as a subject matter expert on Zero Trust and the solutions provided by our ISV/OEM partners in each of the Zero Trust pillars. You will support our Technical Practice Area (TPA) leads, engineers, and partners in developing go-to-market solution offerings and serve as a trusted advisor to customers—designing architectures, creating visuals, and articulating the “why” behind solution choices.

This role requires broad experience across IT and cybersecurity domains with practical Zero Trust implementation experience and strong fluency in U.S. federal requirements, frameworks, design patterns, solution architectures, programs, and missions. You will use cybersecurity domain knowledge, business acumen, and interpersonal skills to help customers solve their most pressing business and IT challenges. You will also play a key role in evaluating and advising on emerging technologies in AI, post-quantum, and cybersecurity, helping Merlin's technology partners and customers adopt innovative capabilities securely and effectively.

Primary Duties & Responsibilities

Zero Trust Subject Matter Expertise

• Lead Zero Trust strategy and architecture discussion, map agency requirements to Merlin’s technical capabilities across identity, device, network, application, data, visibility/analytics, and automation/orchestration pillars.
• Lead technical discovery sessions, whiteboarding, and architecture reviews; communicate clearly with both executive and engineering audiences.
• Explain how Merlin’s technical solutions interoperate within federal environments and align to NIST SP 800-207 and agency ZT strategies.
• Document assumptions, dependencies, and risks; recommend mitigation strategies and phased deployment roadmaps aligned with agencies' modernization and ZT strategies.
• Create clear architecture diagrams, reference designs, and implementation patterns that show alignment with ZT and outcomes.

Technical Practice Areas & Go-to-Market Support

• Develop solution offerings with Technical Practice Area (TPA) leads and Merlin Labs, to include validated reference architectures, BOMs, and services descriptions.
• Translate complex product capabilities into mission-aligned value propositions; prepare executive-ready and technical visuals and narratives for briefings and proposals.
• Incorporate AI-enabled capabilities and emerging technologies into solution offerings, ensuring secure design, responsible use, and alignment with customer mission needs.
• Provide pre-sales engineering support and guide smooth handoffs to TPA leads and customer success teams.
• Ensure proposed solutions meet agency needs, align with federal frameworks and guidance (e.g., NIST RMF/800-53/171/172, NIST 800-207, FIPS 140-3, FedRAMP, TIC 3.0, EO 14028, agency Zero Trust strategies).
• Support the growth and…