The work:

The Release Train Engineer serves as the operational and cultural leader of a multi‑team Agile release train consisting of two (2) development teams, two (2) infrastructure teams, and one (1) operations/support & governance team. This role goes far beyond SAFe ceremony facilitation: the RTE drives delivery excellence, contract KPI attainment, operational rigor, and process maturity across all teams. Acting as a consultant‑leader, the RTE develops and enforces SOPs, champions continuous improvement, and coaches BAs, team leads, and client stakeholders on planning, prioritization, value delivery, and high‑quality customer engagement. The RTE ensures that teams consistently produce well‑defined requirements, prototypes and design outputs, professional documentation, and client‑ready demos while maintaining a predictable cadence of delivery and a strong, healthy team culture. The Release Train Engineer builds alignment across technical, operational, and business domains; mitigates risks; manages cross‑team dependencies; and maintains a forward‑looking view of workload, capacity, and quality expectations. This role requires frequent and proactive communication, clear escalation management, strong relationship building, and the ability to influence without authority. Ultimately, the RTE owns the rhythm, transparency, and overall performance of the release train.

Core Responsibilities:

Lead and coordinate execution across development, infrastructure, and operations/support teams. Drive achievement of contract KPIs, including delivery timeliness, quality, throughput, SLA adherence, and stakeholder satisfaction. Establish, maintain, and refine SOPs, templates, workflows, and governance practices. Facilitate PI planning, sprint planning, demos, retrospectives, and high‑profile client meetings. Coach BAs and team leads on requirements quality, prioritization, roadmap planning, backlog management, and user value articulation. Develop professional presentations, agendas, and customer‑facing materials; ensure teams are prepared for demos and executive discussions. Track and manage risks, impediments, and dependencies across teams; escalate appropriately and drive resolution. Support design and prototype development engagements; ensure timely delivery of wireframes, mockups, and technical drafts. Reinforce a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, and proactive stakeholder engagement. Maintain clear, ongoing communication with clients, team members, and leadership; provide concise updates and structured follow‑ups. Ensure predictable sprint and PI execution through coaching, direction‑setting, and proactive coordination. Develop and maintain release train reporting, throughput metrics, dashboards, and quality indicators. Foster an environment of psychological safety, team cohesion, and professional growth.

Here’s what you need:

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field and a Certified Release Train Engineer (RTE) OR Scrum Master certification.
• 3+ years of Scrum Master experience in a SAFe environment within an ART.
• Strong consulting, facilitation, and communication skills; able to lead teams and influence clients.
• Demonstrated ability to manage complex workloads, competing priorities, and cross‑team dependencies.
• Proven experience with Agile planning, backlog refinement, delivery tracking, and risk management.
• Experience preparing and delivering executive‑ready presentations, demos, and structured meeting materials.
• Ability to translate business needs into actionable plans, timelines, and team goals.
• Active Top Secret clearance and willingness to work onsite in Washington, DC.

Bonus points:

• Experience working with infrastructure, operations, help desk, or multi‑disciplinary technical teams.
• Familiarity with process automation, DevOps, or cloud hosting workflows.
• Experience developing SOPs, governance models, or operational maturity frameworks.
• Strong analytical and organizational skills, including KPI monitoring and reporting.
• Prior coaching experience across diverse roles (BAs, developers, architects, operations staff, client teams).