If you’ve spent the last few years sharpening your skills in SQL, Java, and mission‑driven engineering, and you’re ready for work that actually moves the needle, this is the opportunity cleared engineers look for when they’re ready for real impact. If you take pride in writing your own résumé, owning your craft, and delivering results that senior leaders actually see, you’ll thrive here.

We’re hiring a SQL Engineer SME to support a highly visible, data‑driven application that powers analytics and reporting across the organization. In this role, you’ll write complex queries, shape data for dashboards, optimize performance at scale, and deliver high‑quality datasets that stakeholders rely on every day. Our primary development team operates out of Gaithersburg, MD, but innovation doesn’t stop there. We’re able to support onsite engineers in Alexandria, VA; Chantilly, VA; Aurora, CO; St. Louis, MO; and Tucson, AZ, giving top talent multiple paths to join the mission.

And while the requisition requirements may seem standard fare, the position is not as it will join a high performing team that is changing the way digital engineering and mission operations intelligence is enabled for our customer. 

Why This Role Stands Out

·High Impact: Your work directly supports a widely used application that drives real-time decision-making

·High Visibility: Partner with engineering teams and key stakeholders across programs

·Career Growth: Expand your expertise in large-scale data systems, performance optimization, and advanced SQL engineering

·Challenging Work: Tackle complex data problems, not routine queries

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop advanced, high-performance SQL queries across large, complex datasets (multi-table joins, window functions, aggregations)
• Optimize query performance using execution plans, indexing strategies, and query refactoring
• Ensure data accuracy and integrity across reporting datasets
• Troubleshoot and resolve data issues across database and application layers
• Shape and structure data for efficient and intuitive dashboard visualization
• Collaborate with ETL engineers and dashboard developers to ensure reliable, end-to-end data delivery

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree with 12-15 years of experience, or Master’s with 10-13 years of experience. May possess a Doctorate in technical domain
• U.S. Citizenship
• Active TS/SCI with the ability to successfully pass a Polygraph
• Expert-level SQL skills, including:
  • Complex joins across large datasets
  • Query optimization and execution plan analysis
  • Aggregations, subqueries, and window functions
• Strong experience with relational databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL, Oracle, or similar)
• Experience working with large-scale data supporting analytics/reporting
• Proficiency in Linux environments
• Ability to work independently and solve complex data challenges

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with Grafana or similar visualization tools
• Python for data manipulation (pandas, scripting, automation)
• Experience with materialized views, caching strategies, or query acceleration techniques

#MARU

If you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo — because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 — and moving faster than anyone else dares.

Original Posting:

April 21, 2026

Pay Range:

Pay Range $131,300.00 - $237,350.00

The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.